Industry News

By Brian Galante

“High efficiency.” “Low wind load.” “Reliability.”

Those are traits many broadcasters note of Dielectric‘s many products. Now, broadband pylon TV antennas are coming for FM broadcasters to enjoy.

The Sinclair Broadcast Group-owned and independently operated Dielectric’s new FMP antennas represent the broadcast industry’s first slot cavity microstrip FM antenna product family. Among the benefits Dielectric is touting are multicasting, pattern flexibility, increased reliability and small tower footprint.

Attending the 2022 NAB Show? Dielectric will publicly share full details of the FMP family for the first time between April 24-27 at Las Vegas Convention Center, in Booth W7107. RBR+TVBR will be covering the NAB Show and will offer further coverage as it warrants.

 

“Television broadcasters have long valued pylon antennas for their straightforward designs, versatility and structural benefits such as low wind load,” said Dielectric VP/GM Keith Pelletier. “The cylindrical design attributes of pylon antennas historically translated to narrow bandwidth characteristics that were impractical for FM signals. Dielectric’s engineering breakthroughs introduce techniques to increase that bandwidth, making full-band FM operation in pylon antennas a reality.”

The engineering breakthroughs include reducing the antenna Q factor, which improves the bandwidth from one to 20 percent; and stabilizing the H:V ratio across the band. The 20% bandwidth translates to full FM band operation, a key goal of the FMP antenna’s design. Dielectric has also included its patented parasitic dipole, which adds a vertical component to the existing horizontal signal. This creates more pattern options for FM broadcasters, including elliptical and circular polarization, and contributes to the substantial bandwidth increase.

While Dielectric’s special pylon designs for FM radio differ from TV systems, the FMP family carries over many traditional pylon antenna benefits including optimal downward radiation, smaller size and lower weight. For example, FMP antennas reduce the number of parts used in equivalent ring-style antennas by more than 60%. The streamlined componentry also improves reliability over the long term as there are far fewer parts to repair or replace.

The pylon design also provides broadcasters and tower crews with top-mounting options, in addition to the traditional side-mounted configurations of ring antennas. This is ideal for high-power FM stations that want a true top-mounted omnidirectional antenna. The FMP can handle input powers of 100kW and higher, which also makes the antenna a top choice for combined operation of multiple stations.

Dielectric’s FMP designs use full-wavelength spacing between antenna elements. This reduces the number of antenna elements required compared to ring-style designs, which require half-wavelength spacing, hence more elements, to cover the full FM band. The efficient design is also easy to scale. Antennas are built in four-layer building blocks and can be increased to eight or 12 bays to suit higher power requirements and elevation pattern gains.

Dielectric’s abilities and drive to push innovation is showcased further with the actual FMP antenna design process, which was completed in a virtual environment and then quickly built to validate the designs. This process would traditionally take years and numerous iterations of parts to develop the antenna. Dielectric recently established a team of specialized engineers to create new designs quickly and efficiently using HFSS (High Frequency Simulation Software), which greatly accelerated the development process.

Dielectric, which turns 80 this year, revolutionized FM broadcasting in the 1960s with the first dual-polarized antenna, which introduced the concept of circular polarization from a single FM antenna element. The company again changed the game in the late 1970s with a quadrupole design that unveiled bandwidth improvements that remain present in modern ring-style antennas. Pelletier cites these examples as the roots of the innovations behind the FMP family, while also incorporating Dielectric’s experience in building pylon systems for TV stations.

“We are always looking at ways that we can bring antenna design concepts from one market to another and advance the technology for modern and future broadcast systems,” Pelletier said. “We have now adapted what was long a solution for mostly single-channel TV operations for both broadband TV and FM broadcasting, which very much differentiates our product portfolio from competitors.”

By Brian Galante

ROANOKE, VA. — It has been serving viewers in Southwest Virginia since 1952. In 2019, it moved to a new facility as part of a plan to improve its coverage of the region as its NBC affiliate.

For station owner Graham Media Group, replacement of the aging HDTV cameras was necessary. In the end, WSLS-10 in Roanoke-Lynchburg purchased six new studio cameras. Today, it believes its on-air look is improved, and its production sets are better represented.

The Roanoke-based NBC affiliate purchased six SK-HD1800 studio cameras from Hitachi Kokusai.

WSLS produces 31 hours of live newscasts each week for the market, as well as local lifestyle programming including daytime offering Blue Ridge Spotlight. The broadcaster initially launched its new studio space in 2019 using its existing, decade-old cameras alongside additional units borrowed from a sister station.

That all changed in 2021, when WSLS launched a long-planned camera technology refresh to enhance both its visual quality and creative options.

“Improving our picture quality was the main thing we wanted to do, but our previous cameras had also become unserviceable,” said Ricky Williams, Director of Technology at WSLS. “We also wanted to add new production capabilities such as automated lift.”

Systems integrator Digital Video Group (DVG) had built the technology core of WSLS-10’s new studio. He recommended the SK-HD1800 cameras as ideal fits. “Beyond the quality advantages, the success DVG has had with Hitachi cameras at other broadcasters was a big factor,” Williams said. “We do so much live production every day that taking a camera out of our rotation to resolve any issues would impact our product.”

WSLS went live with the SK-HD1800 cameras in November 2021, with DVG performing the integration and Ross Video handling the setup of camera robotics. With live production happening throughout the day, WSLS deployed the new cameras and robotics two at a time to minimize disruptions.

A phased approach to implementation was used.

“The improvement in picture quality was very noticeable as soon as we went on-air with the first two units,” Williams recalls. “We could immediately see an A/B difference next to the older cameras we were still using. It motivated us to speed up the deployment of the rest of the new cameras, since it would be so obvious to viewers that we were using both generations at the same time.”

Two of the SK-HD1800s are deployed on new Ross BlackBird pan/tilt/lift elevation systems to accommodate varying heights in the studio and sets. The remaining four SK-HD1800s are set up on Miller 3230 Combo Live 55 pedestals with Ross pan/tilt heads. Five of the cameras are used for newscasts, with two – including one shared between both purposes – used on the Daytime Blue Ridge Spotlight set on the other side of the studio. Production is automated through the Grass Valley Ignite platform, with Ross Video routing systems, Xpression graphics, and Dashboard control software rounding out the infrastructure.

Burk Technology has brought to market its Arcadia24 Hosted Subscription Service, and it’s a move the company that’s long worked with radio and TV broadcasters says can provide secure web-based remote control accessible to small groups and individual stations.

Arcadia24 delivers remote facility control to station engineers and managers via their mobile devices. Hosted by Burk Technology on AWS, each customer’s Arcadia24 service is installed, configured, managed and maintained by Burk.

Web links from mobile devices to the Arcadia24 server are locked down and encrypted using the latest generation of Transport Layer Security (TLS). Encrypted VPN tunnels and firewall protection guard communications between Arcadia24 and each remote site.

A Cloud-based product, Arcadia24 communicates with each remote site at its optimum rate, accommodating variations in communications speed and performance. The most current data from all sites is then made available for instant display on authorized mobile devices.

Arcadia24 users are authenticated via Microsoft AD LDS, with each user’s access restricted to specified channels, sites, and station groups. Control of critical site functions can be strictly limited to key personnel while overall site performance may be made visible to a wider group of authorized users.

Burk provides customized graphical control screens for each site connected to Arcadia24, giving station personnel instant access to critical site information. Sites can be grouped based regional hierarchy, engineering responsibility or other criteria, with drill-down to display performance summaries.

“Burk’s original Arcadia remote access system brings flexible, secure mobile site control to large radio and television groups operating tens to hundreds of stations,” said Matt Leland, Burk’s Director of Sales. “The new Arcadia24 is hosted and managed by Burk, making it easy for smaller organizations and even individual stations to realize this same level of secure mobile remote access.”

Arcadia24 manages remote sites equipped with Burk Technology v5 ARC Plus or ARC Solo remote control systems.

Radio occupied a small albeit still relevant spot at this winter’s Consumer Electronics Show.

Paul and Fred Jacobs, unmasked. (photo courtesy Fred Jacobs)

Jacobs Media President Fred Jacobs, who led tours of the floor for broadcasters, said the exhibition included lots of audio innovation, though it wasn’t focused on broadcast radio.

“CES has never been a place where a lot of radio-specific products are introduced. But the acceleration of technology in recent years has seemingly pushed it even further to the background,” Jacobs said.

The crowd at CES was smaller — the Consumer Technology Association estimated 40,000 — and some major exhibitors backed out because of COVID concerns. Companies nevertheless displayed and launched a myriad of consumer electronics products.

We asked Jacobs to recap his experience. (This is the second in a two-part series about the recent CES; Radio World’s Feb. 16 issue featured comments from Steve Koenig of CTA.)

Radio World: CES is when the consumer technology world debuts the latest and greatest in tech, but the impact broadcast radio makes seems negligible. Why?

Fred Jacobs: Perhaps because radio is an established thing and CES is more about technology breakouts.

There were glimpses of radio. Victrola displayed a few retro-looking radios. It was kind of lame. But what CES does offer is a chance for radio attendees to better understand the current marketplace and where technology is going. And how it affects the radio biz.

RW: You again led tours of CES with groups made up of broadcasters. What resonated for them?

Jacobs: Every year with our tours we spend a few hours running around the Las Vegas Convention Center, and at a certain point those on the tour they ask us “Hey, where is radio?” Outside of Xperi and a few odds and ends, there usually isn’t much connected with broadcast radio. But we really dig and try to connect the dots for radio execs and understand the implications of the new technology we find on radio.

For me the big thing this year, similar in scope to what we have seen in the past, was dashboard technology and the direction it is moving. Radio is not going to be Numero Uno in the dash any longer. And we are talking about vehicles made today. Radio will have to coexist with all these other media options.

Radio broadcasters came away from the tour talking about a future where radio is one of many choices in the vehicles we will drive — or that will drive us. Radio managers are realizing that if their content isn’t compelling and attention-getting, the multitude of dashboard choices will weaken radio’s position as a driving companion.

RW: Xperi again had a major presence, featuring its DTS AutoStage platform. What do you think of their efforts?

Xperi Corp. showed its DTS AutoStage platform in a Mercedes vehicle. (photo courtesy Xperi)

Jacobs: Xperi had a great location. All the auto stuff is in the new West Hall, and Xperi was right in the middle of that. The radio broadcasters with us enjoyed their time with Xperi, and that exhibit looked really good. Every year it seems to get bigger.

Most of the broadcasters on our tour had not experienced AutoStage. So here is this gleaming new Mercedes sedan sitting there with Xperi’s latest in-dash experience. The broadcasters asked lots of good questions about how AutoStage is going to work and how the rollout is going. I think they were just thankful and excited to see something radio at CES that looked really good.

RW: What did vehicles on display at CES look like and was radio still visible in the dash?

Jacobs: You’re seeing more dashboards that are pillar-to-pillar with one big screen. There was a Turkish car maker, called Togg, which had a screen from the driver stretching across to the front-seat passenger. It was really cool. Then there are screens in the back.

The whole idea is that everyone in the vehicle can have a different entertainment experience, which is kind of scary. But at the same time, it potentially opens up an avenue for more people to listen to the radio station of their choice while someone else is watching a movie.

An Israeli-based company, Silentium, had a display in Eureka Park [an area at CES reserved for startups and young businesses] of personal sound bubbles. Not a physical bubble, but the idea being without wearing AirPods or headphones, everyone in the car will be able to listen to whatever audio they want. It’s not physical barriers; it’s more of an acoustical or directional way of doing it by sending out inverted sound waves that cancel out noise and sound.

It hasn’t been perfected yet, but it’s a bow to the future passenger economy in cars, where companies are trying to monetize everyone in the car.

RW: CES was scaled way back due to concerns over COVID. How different was it?

Jacobs: For those who have been to CES previously it was quite different. It was still a huge exhibition. You had about half of the normal displays, but you still had a sense that you couldn’t see it all.

The first timers still had a sense of ooh and ah, but even for vets like us, what happens is you start shifting your focus away from hot new gadgets and you start recognizing technology trends and technology themes.

There were three different flying cars at CES that I noticed. That’s kind of cool. But when you explore, after a few days you see this fountain of practical technology applications of these autonomous vehicles and electrification. Those are the moments for attendees where they start connecting the dots and seeing similar trends and where radio can possibly fit in. You see where the world of technology is moving and you can’t help but go home with a different feel for what you might want to do.

Coming back from CES, the overall feel is that dashboard displays are becoming more sophisticated. AI is becoming an increasingly bigger part of the technology package and the vehicle will learn your preferences.

That can benefit or hurt radio. If you have the right content, it’s an opportunity, too. Radio has to think about competing with everybody in the car and not just other radio stations up and down the dial.

RW: The home smart speaker sector is more mature now. Any new audio components catch your eye that might stream a radio station?

Jacobs: Not really. Millions of homes in the U.S. now have smart speakers. In terms of revolutionary new technology to listen to a station’s stream or a podcast, there was nothing special. It’s all about the car, really, for radio broadcasters.

RW: You’ve written on your blog expressing a worry that U.S. radio is sitting out an audio renaissance of sorts.

Jacobs: I think radio has struggled to find its place in the audio landscape, which is ironic, and in a few different areas.

Research shows that more people are listening to audio than ever before. People’s audio pie and the numbers of listening minutes have been growing, but radio listening is not growing. The other piece is podcasting. For the publishers, podcasting has been a cash cow. But we’ve learned that most broadcasters haven’t been able to take advantage of the podcasting movement. Some broadcasters have purchased podcasting companies, but those have little to do with their broadcast holdings. So, it seems most radio stations are not participating in a meaningful way in the podcasting space.

Where radio is doing a better job is with smart speaker listening. That has been accelerated by COVID and the realization that people are not listening to more radio on traditional AM and FM radios, but they are listening more on non-traditional devices like mobile phones, tablets and smart speakers.

RW: Final thoughts on the CES experience?

Jacobs: As we visited a number of carmakers, I think broadcasters are beginning to realize this whole idea of how radio stations are displayed in the dash is going to be critical. They can’t just brush this off. And individual station owners are realizing they can effect change with their own station’s dashboard displays, whether it is RDS or HD Radio with Artist Experience.

Once you see these dashboard displays at CES, you realize that this is an area where radio has fallen behind. Yet it is within our own control to look good in these new vehicles. That’s why Steve Newberry from Quu was there and interacting with OEMs. [Quu offers software and services to add visuals to radio broadcasts.] He and his company are very eager to find out what these vehicle screens are capable of and how he can market products to help radio broadcasters maximize it to their benefit.

Randy J. Stine has spent the past 40 years working in audio production and broadcast radio news. He joined Radio World in 1997 and covers new technology and regulatory issues. He has a B.A. in journalism from Michigan State University.

The post Dashboard Is Radio’s Focus in Consumer Electronics appeared first on Radio World.

Many years ago, directories listing the radio broadcasting companies in the U.S. would always feature the uniquely named Ad Astra per Aspera Broadcasting at the top of the alphabetical list.

Today, the licensee still exists. And, it is signing off on the purchase of an AM/FM combo and an FM translator serving a small Kansas town.

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A thirty-year promotions management software company and a company dedicated to offering integrated digital marketing solutions for media companies are partnering up.

PromoSuite and Aptivada are teaming to create an integration between Aptivada’s contesting platform and PromoSuite Next and PromoSuite Mail products.

The integrations are designed to help shared clients increase efficiency, eliminate duplication, and harness the power of the two platforms working together, the companies say.

Aptivada is co-founded by Brian Green. He commented, “This partnership with PromoSuite emphasizes the importance of offering streamlined tools that give each of our clients the ability to work through one platform to streamline efforts. We’re thrilled to join forces and deploy solutions that are extremely efficient and a win/win for everyone.”

Aptivada’s contest entrant information will now be found within PromoSuite’s winner database. This can enable client stations to use PromoSuite Next to manage the prize fulfillment process, including remotely generating winner release and W9 forms. Additionally, the winner’s data would be available within PromoSuite Mail for inclusion in future email campaigns.

PromoSuite’s CEO Rocco Macri noted, “At PromoSuite we are continually looking for ways to increase productivity by improving workflow and opportunities for collaboration across all departments. Aptivada shares our passion for the radio industry, and we’re excited to work together to bring these solutions to our clients.”

The Sinclair Broadcast Group subsidiary dedicated to the deployment of advanced broadcast capabilities is readying a three-part webinar series that tackles the intricacies of Advanced Emergency Information powered by the NextGen Broadcast standard — ATSC 3.0.

The webinar series will be held virtually, on consecutive Tuesdays in March starting next week (March 15). The “deep dive” begins at 1pm Eastern on March 15, March 22 and March 29.

The sessions are designed to “warn and inform consumers” of urgent events from weather to police actions to natural disasters and finding lost neighbors.

“As the ability for broadcasters to create interactive services draws closer, Advanced Emergency Information (AEI) services are among the most compelling public service a broadcaster can offer,” ONE Media 3.0 notes. “AEI also represents the best unique feature set broadcasters can field as they vie for users against much larger media platforms that have had interactive capabilities for many years. This series will examine opportunities AEI services can offer broadcasters to improve service to their communities and business health.”

As NextGen Broadcasters offer interactive services, AEI services can offer features not available from large digital platforms.

That’s the focus of the first webinar, on March 15.

Speakers:
Josh Gordon, TV Industry Strategist, Josh Gordon Group, (Moderator)
So Vang, VP of Emerging Technology at ONE Media 3.0
Rob Folliard,  VP, Government Relations & Distribution, Gray Television
Ed Czarnecki, Ph.D., Chairman, NextGen Video Information Systems Alliance (NVISA)
Lynn Claudy, SVP Technology at the National Association of Broadcaster

The subject of the March 22 webinar: How AEI services can strengthen relationships with local emergency managers and public safety professionals.

Lastly, the March 29 webinar’s topic is: AEI services will enable TV newsrooms to better serve communities during threats.

 

Register for the first or all webinars by clicking here.

It’s a 6kw Class A serving a small Alaskan city accessible to Anchorage only by a 75-minute flight.

Pending FCC approval, it will be soon owned by Strait Media. 

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Angry Audio’s StudioHub Universal Interface — aka “World Panel” — is for broadcasters who need to put audio from personal devices on the air.

“This 1 RU stereo device provides convenient interfaces for multiple types of I/O, enabling quick connection of nearly any kind of audio gear to your mixing console,” it said in its announcement.

Analog inputs on the front include balanced +4 dBu on two XLR/TRS combo connectors, unbalanced –10 dBV on two RCA (phono) jacks, and one 3.5 mm stereo jack. Analog outputs are stereo +4 dBu balanced on two XLR connectors, –10 dBV on two RCA jacks and a 3.5 mm stereo jack.

[Check Out More Products at Radio World’s Products Section]

“In addition to the stereo outputs, there are two analog balanced mono outputs on XLR connectors. These are summed L+R and are intended to feed reporter ‘press box’ recording devices. These outputs are switchable between line and mic level with a ground-lift function. All analog signals are electronically buffered with high-performance active audio circuitry.”

For digital audio, AES/EBU inputs and outputs are provided on XLR connectors as well as S/PDIF inputs and outputs on RCA/phono coax connectors. “All digital signals are electronically buffered and transformer coupled.”

The front also features two pass-throughs: a USB and an RJ45 port. These fit into standard “D-type” cutouts and are easily changeable to different connector types.

The rear panel uses the StudioHub+ wiring standard for analog and digital audio connections to and from the user’s console. Power comes via an included external power transformer. The Universal Interface is enclosed in a powder-coated steel chassis, with no exposed circuit boards.

Retail price is $595.

Send your new equipment news to radioworld@futurenet.com.

The post StudioHub Introduces ‘World Panel’ appeared first on Radio World.

The owner of the KLOVE and Air1 Contemporary Christian Music (CCM) noncommercial networks wanted a big FM between San Antonio and Victoria, Tex.

The company that owns this FM said OK — so long as it could get an asset in a Top 30 market it’s been leasing in return.

Educational Media Foundation agreed. As such, Alpha Media is gaining another FM signal in its home market.

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