Radio Giants Join With REC, Prometheus Against New Content Translators

Radio giants such as iHeart and Cumulus are united with low-power FM and public interest entities such as REC Networks and Prometheus Radio Project in opposition to a proposal to allow originating programming on FM translators (see 2006260029), in comments posted Friday in RM-11858. This responds to a petition from the new Broadcasters for Limited Program Origination. BLPO includes Miller Communications, Cromwell Group and Finger Lakes Radio Group.

The proposal is a “radical re-structuring of the classes of secondary FM services, wrote iHeart, Cumulus, Beasley, Entercom and the Educational Media Foundation. It would “fundamentally alter the FM translator service beyond its design and purpose,” said Prometheus, Common Frequency and Riversmeet Radio Services.

Proponents of originating content on translators said it would allow geotargeting of advertising and increased signal quality for a station’s listeners. It would “permit licensees to enhance service to local communities, and also to better serve local advertisers who might not otherwise be willing or able to purchase commercial radio advertising,” said Galaxy Media. “Limited amounts of local origination on FM translators would provide localized audiences with new opportunities for content of significant local public interest at an affordable cost,” said Lifetalk Radio. “There are legitimate times when a separation of programming is reasonable and good for the community based on unique coverage factors,” said Cromwell Media.

Some lumped the translator origination request with a petition to change booster rules to allow geotargeting, filed by GeoBroadcast Solutions, and GBS filed specifically to object to that characterization. “The Geo Petition and BLPO Petition are unrelated and frankly have little in common, and so should be dealt with separately,” said GBS. BLPO argued the two requests are similar. They “should not be conflated by industry,” GBS said.

The BLPO proposal “seeks to transform existing FM translators into a new class of program-originating FM stations, free from the local programming requirements, regulatory fees, ownership limits, and other responsibilities,” said the Prometheus joint filing. "Allowing the existing owners of FM translators to originate programming does nothing to increase the number of participants in broadcast program creation since ownership interests will remain unaffected," the filing said. The petition effectively calls for a new commercial LPFM service, said REC. “The proposal would push the radio industry headlong downhill to a newly-created, mostly unregulated, quasi-repeater/majority-originating radio service,” said the radio heavyweights.