Feed aggregator

Here’s a heads-up for users of Digital Alert Systems EAS/CAP devices in the United States.

The manufacturer has released a free but necessary update to the Federal Emergency Management Agency digital certificates that your devices use to authenticate messaging from the Integrated Public Alert and Warning System, or IPAWS.

DAS has released free updated IPAWS Certificate Authority credentials for DASDEC and One-Net series encoder/decoders. The current certification chain expires on April 14.

“The new certificate is fully functional right now, so customers are advised to replace the existing certificate to ensure the required message authentication continues to operate correctly,” it said in the announcement.

“Digital Alert Systems reminds all EAS participants that the FCC requires them to ‘configure their systems to reject all CAP-formatted EAS messages that include an invalid digital signature.’”

Senior Sales Engineer Adam Jones was quoted saying, “We appreciate FEMA getting these out so quickly, and our customers will be pleased to know this new certificate is good until March of 2031.”

The new certificates will also be packaged with the pending DASDEC V5.3 release. Customers planning to update to that version can wait and get their certificates then if they prefer, as long as they do so before April 14.

The company emphasized that DASDEC and One-Net customers using the IPAWS system must have the latest certificates in place so that the devices only process messages authenticated through IPAWS.

“Users not updating their equipment before April 14 could see this error message: ‘Event Log: Digital Signature VERIFICATION ERROR: Signer UNTRUSTED! Check for correct CAP decoder CA file.’ Alternatively, the device might simply ignore valid IPAWS alerts.”

The field service bulletin and CA file are available from the DAS website. “DASDEC and One-Net customers should go to the website, download the field service bulletin for instructions, and link to the new CA file.”

The post Digital Alert Systems Releases Digital Certificate Bundle appeared first on Radio World.

In December 2023, a “leadership restructuring” impacting the company’s organizational operations began at iHeartMedia.

Now, Streamline Publishing has learned that a significant shift in the company’s advertising sales departments is underway.

According to company memo given to Radio Ink, iHeart leadership has developed plans to capitalize on digital and data-driven assets. This sees the appointment of Jenna Craig as President of National Media. Craig will oversee the integration of the National Networks Group, led by President Alan Korowitz, including Premiere Networks and Total Traffic & Weather Network, as well as the Agency Partnerships team, with EVP Scott Liss and SVPs Ethan Turner, Alex Kiernan, John Chianese and Rhonda Bitterman now reporting to her.

At the same time, Carter Brokaw will take the role of Chief National and Digital Revenue Officer, with Craig reporting directly to him. Operations within National Sales will see Mary Pultorak reporting to Ann Marie Licata, the EVP of Sales Operations.

The National Verticals Group, under the leadership of President Adrienne Pabst and EVP John Karpinski, will transform into the “Strategic Partners Group.” This entity will remain focused on industry and marketing verticals while managing and cultivating strategic national client relationships.

The MMS organization, led by Josh Becker, will now report to Karpinski.

What does this mean for President of National Sales Jeff Howard? He is transitioning into a consulting role, Radio Ink confirmed.

 

It was once owned by NBC, and later by Media General before becoming a Sinclair Broadcast Group station in December 2014. Now, Sinclair Inc. is commemorating the upcoming 75th anniversary of the TV station’s debut, making it Rhode Island’s first television station.

Please Login to view this premium content. (Not a member? Join Today!)

A West Virginia State Senator has introduced a bill that would require public places that have televisions for use by the public to have at least half of those sets activated for closed captioning at all times.

This time, there’s progress on the bill’s advancement.

Please Login to view this premium content. (Not a member? Join Today!)

It’s The Most Anticipated Honor Roll in Broadcast Television.
It’s Once Again Time To Make Your Vote Count! The Radio + Television Business Report is proudly opening its nomination window for the Broadcast Television’s Best Leaders of 2024 For the sixth consecutive year, RBR+TVBR is calling on the broadcast media industry to help our leadership team in selecting the top-ranked individuals who oversee free-to-air broadcast TV stations across the U.S. — from the biggest groups to the smallest privately held operations. From ATSC 3.0’s continued build-out to digital multicast offerings and even “FAST” channels, over-the-air television continues to thrive in a world where streaming gets outsized attention. Play-by-play sports is even back on broadcast TV in multiple markets! With news programming a key community resource and network fare meshed with the top syndicated shows, broadcast TV remains an important asset for consumers and marketers. That’s why RBR+TVBR’s Broadcast Television’s Best Leaders nominees represent those who have demonstrated management prowess, and are ably guiding their broadcast television stations to ratings and revenue success.

 

Please take a moment to select the sixth-annual honor roll saluting Broadcast Television’s Best Leaders. You may select from among our suggested nominees, or offer your own nominee. Simply CLICK HERE for your ballot!

Edward Edmiston stands with part of an antenna at the SWR factory in an undated photo.

Edward Edmiston Sr., part of the leadership of antenna and transmission systems manufacturer SWR LP, has died. He was 68.

Edmiston played a crucial role in the evolution of the company owned by his brother, President David K. Edmiston Sr.

SWR began in 1963. Its name stands for Systems With Reliability. According to an obituary from the company, “In 1985, Edward began his career in broadcasting with SWR Inc. located in New Hampshire. Edward acquired SWR Inc. from Jack Kruger and relocated the headquarters from New Hampshire to Ebensburg, Pa., in 1990.”

The current iteration of the company remains in Ebensburg today.

Edmiston was involved in manufacturing and turnkey installations of many FM and TV stations in countries including Vietnam, Thailand, Singapore and India.

“Edward was the founder and served as president of SWR Ebensburg from 1990 to 1994, then relocated to the Philippines, where he established an international branch of the business. He returned to Ebensburg in 2017 and served as director of engineering at SWR.”

He also was a member of the Association of Federal Communications Consulting Engineers.

SWR described “his irreplaceable dedication and expertise” as well as his kindness and a gentle personality.

“He leaves behind his loving wife Bernadette, children Eddie Jr., Stephanie, Jennifer, Julie, Tracy, Thomas, Ashley and a long list of friends and loved ones both personal and professional.”

A cause of death was not released.

[Visit Radio World’s People News Page]

The post Edward Edmiston, DOE of SWR, Dies appeared first on Radio World.

Triton Digital has released its second annual U.S. Podcast Report, delving into the U.S. podcast market in 2023. The report details changing listening habits and audience demographic data, and provides insights into the top podcasts and networks from this past year.

According to the report, the number of monthly podcast listeners continues to rise, with 12% growth over the past two years. “In 2023, 40 percent of the U.S. population reported listening to a podcast within the past month,” Triton said in a press release. “This growth was reflected across all segments of the population, especially those late to adopting podcasts as a preferred medium.”

This graphic displays the percentage of the U.S. population that listened to podcasts within the past month, with data from 2021, 2022 and 2023. 35.9% of the population listened in 2021, 37.1% in 2022 and 40.3% in 2023.

Triton also says listening by older Americans and by women is growing at a faster rate, with a 22% increase in listeners over the age of 55, and a 19% increase in female listeners aged 18 and older over the past two years.

Per the new findings, the top podcast genres of 2023 were news (with 22% of downloads), true crime (18%) and comedy (15%).

The top sales networks of 2023, according to the Triton U.S. Podcast Ranker, were the SiriusXM Podcast Network (ranked first), NPR (ranked second) and Wondery (coming in third). The top podcast of the year was “NPR News Now.”

Triton says the report incorporates data from a survey of 12,000 monthly podcast listeners in the U.S., done in collaboration with Signal Hill Insights.

“2023 was another year of significant growth for the podcast industry, and with increasing female and over 55-plus audiences, we can expect more content production to serve those groups in the coming year,” said Daryl Battaglia, Triton Digital’s SVP of measurement products & strategy.

Read the full report here.

[Sign Up for Radio World’s SmartBrief Newsletter]

The post Triton Digital Reports Increased Podcast Listenership in 2023 appeared first on Radio World.

The rollout of the new ATSC 3.0 digital broadcast television standard is poised to continue in a significant way across 2024, and a 17-year-old company just north of Chicago has been an active participant in the development of various TV standards around the world. Now, Anywave Communications Technologies is bringing what it calls a “complete” ATSC 3.0/1.0 signal chain package to market.

What does this mean? Anywave General Manager Dave Neff explains the advancements in this InFOCUS Podcast, presented by dot.FM.

Listen to “The InFOCUS Podcast: Anywave GM Dave Neff” on Spreaker.

In this letter to the editor, the author comments on Buc Fitch’s 2006 story “The Demise of the First Phone,” which was recently reshared in our Radio World Engineering Extra SmartBrief newsletter. Comment on this or any article. Email radioworld@futurenet.com.

I graduated from high school in 1969 and ended up working for WCWA(AM/FM) — the FM eventually became WIOT while going to college. I was the “college kid” who filled in weekends and vacations but reported to the chief engineer who also happened to have a ham ticket as I did. We hit it off and I stayed almost to graduation, picking up the “First” phone license in 1971 — even passed the Ship Radar endorsement.

You’d think I would stay in broadcasting and join the certificate wall members. But industry came calling and I left broadcasting because of money. I saw the handwriting on the wall of low pay. $1000/mo. in 1974 was just too much to pass up, especially after getting married.

Of the three friends from college in the business (we worked for three different stations in the Toledo market), one went to Collins Radio, one stayed as chief of several stations and I left the business. The only time I used the First after graduation was to apply for a license for portable radios at my first industry company.

The license and the “General” issued after that are still hanging on the wall in my shack, but the future in the radio business just wasn’t in my future. I do wonder how I would have done if I stayed. Probably poorer and still working at 72.

— Russ Kinner, WA8ZID and old time broadcast engineer

[Related: “Letters: Fond Memories of the ‘First Phone'”]

The post Letter: Remembering the FCC’s First Class Radiotelephone License appeared first on Radio World.

In this letter to the editor, the author comments on Radio World’s ongoing, extensive coverage on shortwave radio. Comment on this or any article. Email radioworld@futurenet.com.

I am relieved to see the discussion of shortwave relevance is still relevant.

In my contest blog (WQ6X.Blogspot.com), I have broached this topic several times. Searching the word “shortwave” in the blog, I come up with many entries, the first being “Does Shortwave Radio Have a Future?,” wherein I referenced the article in the Feb. 20, 2019, issue of RW on this topic.

I was a big fan of WTWW on shortwave until the shutdown of their station due to obvious lack of funds to keep it reliably on the air. I’m not looking for another religious broadcaster to buy the site and offer us just more of the same.

I would like to see stations like WTWW back on the shortwave medium with their own transmitters. Yes, I’m remembering the way it was. Is there any REAL reason we cant bring back some of the relevant activities from our glorious past?

While I am a dedicated radio amateur, I still thoroughly enjoy shortwave broadcasts from around the world, which also serve as a propagation-prediction tool.

Back when the NIST was proposing dropping the Space-WX forecasts on WWV/WWVH (because we have internet now), numerous people including me wrote in to remind them that, when we operate mobile, maritime mobile or camping out on mountaintops (often w/o cellphone or internet access), we rely on those broadcasts to receive up-to-date information. As of 2024, those broadcasts are not only STILL with us, they have become more relevant than ever.

Thank you for keeping the discussions about shortwave relevance relevant.

— Ron Fitch, WQ6X, president, Amateur Radio Club of Alameda

[Read more stories about shortwave radio]

The post Letter: Let’s Restore Shortwave to Its Former Glory appeared first on Radio World.

So you’re in your rack room searching for a set of headphones. Or you have some plugged into equipment, but no place to store them, so they dangle onto the floor. Sound familiar?

Chief Engineer William Harrison at FM station WETA in Washington, D.C., developed a solution and shares it with Workbench readers. 

We’ve received so many positive comments about the “do-it-yourself” construction projects we’ve published, and William’s submission is definitely worth considering.

In addition to these photos of the construction, William included a parts list to construct 10 headphone rack hooks. They’re are designed to screw into a standard broadcast-type equipment rack, accepting 10-32 rack screws.

William’s pictures make the project easy, and the finished quality is impressive. Follow along with the pictures and descriptions. Send your tips

Click on the photo to toggle between step-by-step pictures of the installation process.

Materials List (10 Hooks)

William spent $50.93 to build 10 of these hooks, or about five bucks each. You can lower the cost to under $3 by using standard nuts and washers instead of the knurled thumb nut and self-retaining washer. 

18-8 Stainless Steel Threaded Rod, 10-32 Thread Size, 4 Inches Long
www.mcmaster.com/95412A450/
$12.12 per pack of 10; $12.12 total

Black Phenolic Plastic Ball Knob, with 10-32 Threaded Hole, 11/16-inch Diameter Head
www.mcmaster.com/6046K11/
$1.03 each; $10.30 total

High-Temperature Silicone Rubber Tubing for Air & Water, Soft, Durometer 50A, 3/16-inch ID, 3/8-inch OD, Opaque Black
www.mcmaster.com/5236K852/
$1.95 per foot; $5.85 total (cut into 3-inch pieces)

Self-Retaining Washer for Number 10 and M5 Size, 0.277-inch ID, 1/2-inch OD, 0.052–0.072-inch-thick
www.mcmaster.com/91755A141-91755A384/
$14.65 per pack of 100; $14.65 total

Brass Flanged Knurled-Head Thumb Nut, 10-32 Thread Size
www.mcmaster.com/92741A140/
$8.01 per pack of 10; $8.01 total

Workbench submissions are encouraged and qualify for SBE recertification credit. Email johnpbisset@gmail.com.

[Read Another Workbench by John Bisset]

The post Hook Those Cans appeared first on Radio World.

The woman who serves as Market President for iHeartMedia in Eau Claire, Wisc., and Rochester, Minn., has been appointed to the NAB Radio Board of Directors. She assumes the seat last held by Joel McCrae.

Jeanna Berge was appointed to the National Association of Broadcasters Radio Board of Directors by Chair Collin Jones, in accordance with NAB by-laws. The appointment is effective immediately.

Berge has been in Eau Claire since she started her broadcast industry career, beginning in 2011 as an Account Executive. She rose to SVP/Sales in 2018 and earned her current title and responsibilities in 2021.

David Antoine, CBRE, CBNT, has joined equipment dealer Broadcasters General Store as a sales engineer.

David Antoine

Based in New York City, Antoine has worked for broadcast organizations including Westwood One, WQXR, Emmis and Inner City Broadcasting. He most recently was the chief technology officer of jazz station WBGO in Newark, N.J.

Supply side experience includes DSI RF Systems, Aeta and Lawo North America. Antoine also is on the board of directors of the Society of Broadcast Engineers.

Send items for People News to radioworld@futurenet.com.

[Sign Up for Radio World’s SmartBrief Newsletter]

The post David Antoine Joins BGS appeared first on Radio World.

The world’s largest on-demand audio platform, which is very much diving into the podcast arena, saw its shares rise on a largely down Tuesday thanks to an upgrade courtesy of UBS.

Spotify‘s 1-year target price was hiked to $274 per share, as UBS raised its rating on “SPOT,” which trades on the NYSE, to “Buy” from “Neutral.” The price target adjustment is significant, as it is up from the prior level of $170.

In an interview for Yahoo! Finance, Alexandra Canal shared how UBS sees sustainable margin expansion and stronger bottom-line trends in the coming year for Spotify.

This is driven by several key factors, including strong subscriber loyalty, advertising growth, and steady price increases.

But, Canal notes that Spotify has “really struggled with that valuation question.” There’s also a lack of profitability, due to the enormous royalty payments it must pay for the right to allow its users to stream music.

EBITDA is “finally in positive, solid territory,” though, Canal notes, and that’s a big plus for the streamer. Podcasts are expected to break even in the first half of 2024, with $1 billion spent over the past few years to build the segment.

One year ago, SPOT was priced at $121.17; as of 11:26am Eastern it was priced at $219.75, up $1.14 on word of the UBS report.

Matthew Davidge and Julie Huang have teamed up as equity interest holders in a variety of broadcast TV stations, including low-power facilities licensed to Roseland Broadcasting Inc.

The pair are also partners in SagamoreHill, and in an Upstate New York city it is Louis Wall that holds majority interest in a low-power TV station branded as “NBC Watertown.” Now, that operation is in position to greatly expand its coverage area thanks to a deal involving three LPTVs across the region.

Please Login to view this premium content. (Not a member? Join Today!)

The 5G Broadcasting Network focused on the development and deployment of direct-to-mobile broadcast communications in the U.S. and around the world led by CEO “SuperFrank” Copsidas has teamed with two low-power TV station owners for the filing of a pair of new experimental 5G broadcast licenses.

 

Please Login to view this premium content. (Not a member? Join Today!)

Broadcast Electronics, the Elenos Group-owned designer and manufacturer of broadcast products including transmitters for radio and TV, has given a long-standing Adult Alternative FM serving the nation’s No. 1 market an audio media management system boost.

BE worked with Fordham University-owned WFUV-FM 90.7 in New York to upgrade the station’s system to AudioVAULT 11.

WFUV, says Director of Technical Operations George Evans, “has the unique mandate to champion music discovery and foster an appreciation of our diverse musical heritage but also to train the university’s next generation of multimedia professionals through educational programs and practical experience.”

With its selection of AudioVAULT 11, WFUV has the ability to gain workflow improvements. A new AudioVAULT Scheduler is in place for program and content distribution tasks. AudioVAULT Anywhere is present for remote voice tracking, playlist and program management, file playback, remote broadcast, sports, and remote talent needs.

Additionally, CloudVAULT enables cloud-based shared and redundant content storage via a secure Microsoft Azure platform.

There is also seamless integration with Adobe Audition digital audio editing software. Additionally, enhanced AVWatchDog provides an extra set of eyes and ears to monitor and track a full range of schedules and playlists days in advance to ensure everything is in place, and should something be missing, it will proactively notify you so you can take corrective action, BE notes.

“We are extremely pleased to partner with WFUV and thank them for trusting Broadcast Electronics to help deliver their content to Greater New York City,” said Rich Redmond, President/COO of Broadcast Electronics. “AudioVAULT 11 simplifies operations, provides seamless cloud-enabled disaster recovery, and puts more power in the hands of WFUV programmers, journalists, and students to create compelling content that connects with their listeners.”

Quicklink, known for its remote production products, has brought to market the Quicklink TX (Skype TX) 2110, bringing the integration of Skype and Microsoft Teams callers into ST 2110 media workflows.

This new support enables the globally adopted Quicklink TX solution to integrate seamlessly with uncompressed IP video workflows conforming to the SMPTE ST 2110 specification.
The SMPTE ST 2110 suite defines standards for transporting video, audio, and metadata
essences as separate streams over professional IP networks. Quicklink’s support for ST
2110 empowers broadcasters to unlock new efficiencies in live production.

“We have seen a rapid growth of demand for IP video and adoption of the ST 2110
standard,” said Richard Rees, CEO of Quicklink. “By introducing ST 2110 support to
the Quicklink TX, our products now align perfectly with customers transitioning their
facilities to IP.”

The Quicklink TX is offered in a number of channel configurations for complete workflow
flexibility and is relied upon by leading broadcasters worldwide to integrate remote Skype
and Microsoft Teams guests into live productions with exceptional full HD quality.

The Quicklink TX IP-3 and Quicklink TX IP-6 are offered in addition to the established HD-SDI options. The interoperability with ST 2110 infrastructure simplifies workflows and expands possibilities for remote contribution over modern IP networks.

The exclusive global provider of Philips Professional Displays and complementary
solutions has struck a partnership the world’s leading sports entertainment platform and Europe’s largest football broadcaster.

It brings the platform’s live and on-demand content streaming services into hotel guest rooms for the first time, exclusively via Philips MediaSuite hospitality TVs.

Set to be unveiled and demonstrated for the first time at ISE 2024 in Barcelona (Philips Booth 3P500), this latest global partnership — with DAZN — strengthens PPDS’ mission to deliver the industry’s most extensive and flexible choice of in-room TV entertainment services for hotels.

The DAZN app will be available for the first time via hotel guest room TVs, embedded directly onto Philips MediaSuite TVs. Hotel brand partners include Accor, IHG, Marriot, and Radisson.

For hotels wishing to subscribe to DAZN for their guests, there are two initial packages that can be selected depending on their target audience.

Launched in 2016, and headquartered in London, DAZN provides an extensive choice of live sports and entertainment, with top division men’s and women’s football/soccer, professional boxing, MMA, motorsport, wrestling, and tennis hosted on the platform annually.

By Brian Galante

Macnica will arrive at the ISE 2024 show this week with strong momentum behind its IPMX product development business. In addition to the launch of the MEG1, Macnica’s first IPMX ethernet gateway, ASTRODESIGN will offer a preview of its forthcoming IPMX AV over IP Gateway powered by Macnica’s full-stack ME10 SoC solution.

ASTRODESIGN will demonstrate its innovation, the IA-1568 IP Gateway, at Stand CS650 in the Fira Barcelona Gran Via’s Discovery Zone, which highlights first-time ISE exhibitors. ASTRODESIGN anticipates that the device will begin shipping in June.

ASTRODESIGN specializes in real-time digital signal processing technology for several industries, and manufactures a wide range of video, audio and measurement products and solutions for use in broadcast and AV environments, including live event venues. The company offers a broad range of product lines, including IP Gateways to support 8K video transmission and JPEG XS compression in SMPTE ST 2110 systems. These products were chiefly engineered for use in the Japanese market.

ASTRODESIGN last year became an AIMS Alliance member to join forces with companies like Macnica to advance IPMX product development. That included developing a new IP Gateway for IPMX systems that would also help ASTRODESIGN expand into new business regions, including North America and Europe. Having worked together before, ASTRODESIGN quickly chose Macnica as its development partner for the IA-1568. Macnica’s ME10 SoC gave ASTRODESIGN a complete 1G AV over IP solution for low-latency transport of 4K60 4:4:4 video, along with a compact, low-profile design that perfectly fits within the IA-1568’s 1RU hardware design.

“Macnica’s ME10 solution provided our engineering team with the proven reference designs we needed to accelerate both product development and time to market while reducing our in-house engineering costs,” said Sean Yoshioka, Sales General Manager for the International Business Division of ASTRODESIGN. “The ME10 also provides with a futureproof solution that allows us to add new features and functions to IA-1568 even after the product comes to market.”

The Macnica ME10 SoC transports HDMI 2.0 4K 4:4:4 video, audio and control data over 1Gb networks in a compact 23x23mm form factor. Ideal for use in larger production runs or within compact product designs, the ME10 supports key functions for IPMX interoperability (device discovery and registration, network resiliency, subframe latency and more) and provides a customizable API and web interface to all IPMX product developers.

Yoshioka anticipates pairing the IA-1568 IP Gateway with ASTRODESIGN’s 8K camera to move 4K video to monitors and display systems inside production studios and stadiums, though this represents just one of many potential use cases. He adds that the ME10’s compatibility with HDMI and its related features, including HDCP for digital content protection and EDID for display identification will be useful in bridging legacy systems and connections with IP networks.

“ASTRODESIGN customers who use the IA-1568 can cleanly feed video from any HDMI output to the IP network, and then receive that video anywhere throughout the network,” said Motoki Nagashima, VP of Video Transport Solutions at Macnica. “That can include feeding a large monitor inside conference rooms to support live presentations, or feeding a large number of displays spread throughout a large sports venue. What’s most exciting for our industry in general is that this partnership represents a major step forward for the IPMX suite of standards, and for freeing end users from the limitations of being locked into proprietary solutions.”

ISE 2024 takes place January 30-February 2 at Fira Barcelona Gran Via. Macnica exhibits at Stand 5G800.