SIXTEENTH ANNUAL REPORT FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION FISCAL YEAR ENqtO JUNE 30, 1950 (With notation al sUb;~e~~portantdevelopments) JUNITED STATES GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE· WASHINGTON. 1951 For sal. by the Superintendent of Documents, U. S. Government Printing Office Washington 25, D. C. Price 40 cents COMMISSIONERS MEMBERS OF THE FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION (as of December 1, 1950) CHAIRMAN WAYNEOoy (Term expires June 30,1951) PAUL A. WALKER ROBERT F. JONES (Term expires June 30.1953) (Term expires J'une 80,1954) ROSEL H. HYDE GEORGE E. STERLING (Term expires June 30,1952) (Term expires June 30,1957) EDWARD M. WEBSTER FRIEDA B. HENNOCK (Term exnires June 30, 1956) (Term expires June 30. 1955) n LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION, Washington 25, D.O., December 29, 195(J. 1'0 the Oongress 0/ the UnitedState8: The sixteenth annual report of the Federal Communications Com­ mission is submitted herewith in compliance with section 4 (k) of the Communications Act of 1934, as amended. By custom, this report deals primarily with Commission activities for the fiscal year ended June 30, 1950. However, telecommunica­ tious is such a fast-moving subject that it has been found appropriate to include in tlie introductory summary brief reference to subsequent events up to the time of going to press. The attention of the Congress is invited, in particular, to the little­ publicized yet highly important developments in the nonbroadcast field. Here new and augmented services have a material public impact in utilizing radio for the protection of life and property, as adjuncts to commerce and industry, and in furthering common car­ rier telephone and telegraph service. Respectfully, 'WAYNE COY, Ohairman. ill [ Page IV in the original document is intentionally blank 1 TABLE OF CONTENTS Pap INTRODUCTORY SU¥MARY • ._ __ __ __ __ __ __ _ _ 1 1. Highlights of the fiscal year____________________________________ 1 2. Subsequent events • • ... _. ... __ ... 8 Chapter I. GENERAL ... _. 13 1. Authority__________________________________________ 13 2. Functions ... • ... _... 13 3. Commissioners_ ......... .___ __ __ 14 4. Staff organizatioD___________________________________ 15 5. Personnel ... 18 6. Appropriations_____________________________________ 18 7. Litigation ... .____ __ __ 19 8. Legislation • .___ __ __ __ 22 9. National defense____________________________________ 23 10. Hearings__________ __ 25 11. Licenses and other authorizations_____________________ 26 12. Applications and other filings_________________________ 26 13. Correspondence, releases, and publica.tiollS_____________ 26 II. COMMON CARRIERS_________________________________________ 27 1. Common carrier regulation___________________________ 27 2. Domestic telephone .:._____ 28 General________________________________________ 28 Domestic telephone services______________________ 29 Construction of facilities_____________________ 29 Microwave relay systems____________________ 30 Channels for TV program transmission________ 31 Speed of service____________________________ 32 Discontinuance, reduction or impairment of service______ __ __ 32 Domestic public land mobile radio service______ 32 Rural subscriber and short haul toll radio- telephone services_________________________ 34 Service in Hawaiian Islands__________________ 34 Coastal and Alaskan service__________________ 35 Cable landing licenses_______________________ 35 Foreign attachment cases____________________ 35 Rates and tariffs________________________________ 36 Rate schedules_ ___ __ __ __ _ 36 Special permissions___________ __ __ __ 36 Unlawful use of telephone facilities____________ 36 Studies of long lines operations_______________ 36 Toll rate study_____________________________ 37 Separation of property, revenues and expenses__ 37 Western Electric cost and price review_________ 37 State telephone rate cases____________________,. 38 VI TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter Page II. COMMON CARRIERS-Continued 2. Domestic telephone-Continued Other regulatory matters_ _________ __ __ __ __ __ _ 38 Depreciation ________________ ______ __ __ __ ___ 38 Allocation of depreciation reserves of multi- state companies__________________________ 39 NARDC Committee on Depreciatioll .. _ 39 NARDC Committee on Accounts and Statistics_ 39 Financing and refinancing____________________ 40 Pensions and relieL_________________________ 40 Preservation of records .. 40 Restatement of plant accounts on basis of orig- inal cost_ _____________________ __ _________ 40 Annual report Form M (applicable to class A and class B telephone companies)__________ 41 Annual report Form H (holding companies)____ 41 3. Domestic Telegraph_________________________________ 41 GeneraL___ _______________________ _____ __ __ _ 41 Service and facilities_ ________________________ __ _ 42 Western Union modernization program________ 42 Deskfax and facsimile_______________________ 42 Construction of wire facilitics_ __ ________ _____ 42 Speed of service____________________________ 42 Microwave relay system_____________________ 43 Discontinuance or reduction of telegraph service_ 43 Rates and tarilfs________________________________ 43 Rate scheckJ.lcs_ _________________ ____ _______ 43 Special permi8sions____ _______ ______ __ 44 Western Union domestic rates________________ 44 Baseball-sportsservice by message and directwire_ 44 Other regulatory matters_. _______ ______ ____ __ 45 Depreciation_ _____ ________________ __ __ _____ 45 Relief and pensions - 45 Reclassification of plant accounts_____________ 45 Continuing property records_________________ 45 Uniform system of accounts__________________ 45 Retirement units___________________________ 46 Report forms_______________________________ 46 Preservation of records______________________ 46 4. International telegraph and telephone_________________ 46 GeneraL____ __________ ____ __________________ __ _ 46 International service_ __________________ __ __ _____ 47 Telegraph circuits_ ___________ ___ __ _______ __ 47 Telephone circuits__________________________ 47 Frequencies_ ____________________ __ _______ __ 47 Equipment and operating techniques__________ 48 Applications_ ____ __ __ _____ __ _ 48 Docket ca8cs_______________________________ 48 International conferences ___________ __ ___ __ __ _ 50 International Administrative Telephone and Telegraph Conference, Paris, 1949__________ 50 London revision of the Bermuda Telecommuni.. cations Agreement________________________ 50 Other conferences .. 51 International merger ...... _ 51 TABLE OF CONTENTS VII Chapter 'Page II. COMMON CARRIERS"":"""Continued 4. International Telegraph and Telephone------Continued Rates and tariffs________________________________ 52 Rate schedules_____ ____ __ _____ _______ _______ 52 Special permissions____ ______________________ 52 Telephone rates between United States and Cuba.. 52 International rate case_______________________ 52 Elimination of special reduced government rates- 53 Multiple address press rates__________________ 53 Acceptance and delivery practices____ _________ 54 Distribution of international traffic____ _____ __ _ 54 Other regulatory matters_________________________ 55 Depreciatioll________ ________________ __ ___ 55 Continuous property records ~___________ 55 Pensions and relieL_________________________ 55 Reclassification of plant______________________ 55 Part 34 (Uniform System of Accounts for Radio~ telegraph Carriers)________________________ 55 Annual report Form R (applicable to class A and class B radiotelegraph carriers)_____________ 55 Monthly report forms________________________ 56 Preservation of records______________________ 56 5. Statmtics___________________________________________ 56 Telephone carriers________ _______________________ 56 Land line telegraph~~____________________________ 57 Radiotelegraph and ocean-cable carriers______ ______ 57 Radiotelegraph carriers_ ______________ _______ 57 Ocean-cable carriers__ ____ _____ ___ __ _____ 58 International telegraph traffic • 58 Business and residence telephones by States_________ 59 Common carrier radio authorizations_ __ ___________ 60 Common carrier applications_____________________ 60 III. SAFETY AND SPECIAL RADIO SERVICES_______________________ 61 1. GeneraL___ ___ ________ __ ___ ___ __ ____ _____________ __ 61 2. Marine radio services________________________________ 62 GeneraL_______________________________________ 62 Safety on the Great Lakes_______________________ 63 Safety of life at 8ea______________________________ 64 Radio aids to navigatioll_________________________ 65 Radio Technical Commission for Marine Services___ 66 International frequency coordination______________ 67 International technical standards ~___________ 68 Voluntarily equipped radiotelephone ships__________ 69 Commercial coast stations________________________ 69 Alaska, fixed public and public coastal services___ __ 71 Interference problems_______ ________________ _____ 71 Equipment developments, problems and approvals_ _ 71 3. Aeronautical radio services___________________________ 72 GeneraL__ ____ _____ __ _______ _____ __ _________ 72 Aviation organizations and conferences_ ________ ___ 73 Aircraft radio_ ____________________________ __ ___ 75 Aeronautical landand aeronautical fixed radio stations_ 75 Civil Air Patrol stations • 76 Airdrome control stations________________________ 76 Aeronautical mobile utility stations_ ____ _____ __ 76 VIU TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter Page- III. SAFETY AND SPECIAL RADIO SERYICEs-Continued 3. Aeronautical radio services-Continued