Stewart Newlands Posted February 20, 2007 Share Posted February 20, 2007 Save our spectrum! http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/PMSEspectrum/ The government is planning to sell off all of the radio frequencies that we currently use for radio mics & communications, when they switch off the analogue TV bands. The process to due to be completed by 2012, but will be starting much sooner than that. There is at present NO sensible allowance made for radio use within our industry, and this will affect all broadcast or recorded TV, theatre, other live entertaiinment, & corporate events - indeed anywhere that currently uses a radio microphone. The government's action is, of course, motivated entirely by raising money, and the result will be a damage to people's livelihoods as well as their enjoyment of pretty well all forms of entertainment. Please take a moment to contribute by clicking on the following link, and please pass this on to as many people as you can. It's maybe true that two millions signatures won't sway the government on road pricing, but don't let that dissuade you - we must try! http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/PMSEspectrum/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
niclights Posted February 20, 2007 Share Posted February 20, 2007 This will also include wireless DMX presumably! Added to Avo forum :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spock Posted February 20, 2007 Share Posted February 20, 2007 See the BBC news story at http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/6378925.stm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ynot Posted February 20, 2007 Share Posted February 20, 2007 Save our spectrum!http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/PMSEspectrum/I signed up earlier.I also added the theatre name after my own name - doubt it will make a deal of difference, but it does sort of lend a little more credence to the names if they're obvioulsy involved in some way...Just a thought Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lamplighter Posted February 20, 2007 Share Posted February 20, 2007 When you get your signature check e-mail from No 10, the list of names makes for an interesting read.Brian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twiggy Posted February 20, 2007 Share Posted February 20, 2007 Another way of taking money then? I dont know that much about frequencies and bands so I was wondering wether someone coul dexplain just what the implication of this would be. Will it make some equipment useless or will we have to pay money for the bands we use? Jon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bobbsy Posted February 20, 2007 Share Posted February 20, 2007 Good questions twiggy, but unfortunately there aren't any firm answers yet. We're at the stage in the proceedings where there's a consultation document out but the final decisions haven't been taken and there's a definitely lack of detail. It might be useful to give some background about the present regulatory situation. At present, the majority of radio microphones and In Ear Monitors use UHF frequencies in the same band as broadcast television. There are, in effect, three ways to legally use UHF radio mics. First, right at the top end of the range, there is a small chunk of bandwidth (enough for 2-4 mics) that can be used without any licence at all. Just below this, is UHF channel 69. This is dedicated to PMSE (programme making and special events) use and, although you need a licence, this is relatively inexpensive per year. Depending on the quality of the equipment you have, you can get between 8 and 14 microphones in this channel. You can also use this alongside the licence free channels to expand things, but it should be pointed out that there is potential interference between Ch. 69 and the free spectrum, so you have to be cautious about what frequencies you choose. However, you can see that 14 to 18 radio mics doesn't go very far when you consider that a West End show may use 40 or 50 mics...and be working next door to ANOTHER theatre also trying to use 40 mics! At present, users get around this by using spare TV channels. There are (if my count on fingers is right) 47 UHF TV channels. Each location (at present) should receive things on 11 of them (five analogue and 6 digital). Because of the high power of main TV transmitters (up around a megawatt for some analogue) there is great separation between areas where individual frequencies are used. Even with overlap (where I am I can get 3 different transmitters) there are always at least some "quiet" channels that can be used for radio mics. Under the present regulatory structure, JFMG can issue licences for shows to use these quiet channels. These special licences aren't cheap, but when they're issued, JFMG have taken into account potential sources of interference (i.e. other shows or studios) and also interference you might cause. Because of the relatively low power of radio mics, you can cram quite a few users into relatively small areas like the West End. It's a very effective system. However, the new proposals will allow quiet channels (and even the guard bands between channels) to be sold off to other users once analogue television is switched off. Potentially users are generally various forms of mobile communications and, with higher powers involved, these are unlikely to coexist very well with entertainment users. Also, a major disadvantage for PMSE users is that there simply isn't a monolithic "industry" that can put in a bid to compete. Phone companies are big multinationals; we are a collection of individual theatres, shows and churches. So, to answer twiggy's questions, it could be any of the above. We may lose frequencies entirely or find that the price to get any is so high we might as well have lost them. They may try to cram ALL users into Channel 69, or they may allocate some totally new band for our needs that means huge re-equpping. Clearly, none of these plans is good for us, hence the importance of writing to both OFCOM and our MPs asking the PMSE be made a special case and allocated enough of the RIGHT frequencies at an affordable price. Bob Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnhuson Posted February 20, 2007 Share Posted February 20, 2007 This will also include wireless DMX presumably! Added to Avo forum :) Some maybe, but most wireless DMX solutions use 802.11x technology so will be unaffected. I'm 99% sure that Avo's wireless DMX is based on Wi-Fi. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
niclights Posted February 20, 2007 Share Posted February 20, 2007 Sure, yes. On reflection figured I'd posted nonsense! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Dave Posted February 21, 2007 Share Posted February 21, 2007 I'll post this in this topic as well. If this is something you are concerned with, instead of the petition, please read and reply to the OFCOM consultation document which can be found here http://www.ofcom.org.uk/consult/condocs/ddr/ddrmain.pdf (my link button Still doesn't work) This is still in consultation so we haven't got as far as No. 10 yet SO PLEASE REPLY!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ynot Posted February 21, 2007 Share Posted February 21, 2007 I'll post this in this topic as well. If this is something you are concerned with, instead of the petition, please read and reply to the OFCOM consultation document which can be found heretypical bureaucratic documentation... 165 pages to wade through. I'll try to get to that, but with equally wordy (and often longer!) documents to plough at for the day job this one's unfortunately not at the top of my pile.... :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Freddie Posted February 21, 2007 Share Posted February 21, 2007 See the BBC news story at http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/6378925.stm If you have 2 email addresses, it might be worth using one of them to "tell a friend" (the other 1) with the link at the top of that story. If we can get it into the "most emailed" box on the left, that'd be good. EDIT: Just seen this: http://www.theruddicks.plus.com/br/mics.jpg:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Dave Posted February 21, 2007 Share Posted February 21, 2007 typical bureaucratic documentation... 165 pages to wade through. I'll try to get to that, but with equally wordy (and often longer!) documents to plough at for the day job this one's unfortunately not at the top of my pile.... :) If we all took that attitude then the PMSE community (and thats pretty much all of us) would be in a lot of trouble. It's not the best document in the world - actually it's a typical consultation document; and OFCOM do need a gentle shove in the right direction, but but this is not something any of us can afford not to care about. They are still listening. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ynot Posted February 21, 2007 Share Posted February 21, 2007 typical bureaucratic documentation... 165 pages to wade through. I'll try to get to that, but with equally wordy (and often longer!) documents to plough at for the day job this one's unfortunately not at the top of my pile.... :) If we all took that attitude then the PMSE community (and thats pretty much all of us) would be in a lot of trouble. Erm, did I say I wouldn't read it at all????Think you misunderstood me there! I know from bitter experience that to read and digest properly a document such as this one, with (as you rightly say) such high import, you need to attack it with a fresh head and a serious amount of time to devote. One could be cynical and say that this is precisely why some documents are written thus - to discourage earthlings from actually spending the time reading them.... This is also why, when I write a work document I write a full version, then pare it down to a bare minimum so it ISN'T daunting to the intended readership. I will WANT people to read and understand my dribblings! The biggest problem is, though, that I read docs better when they're on paper - I can scribble notes in margins, quickly go back and forth to folded corners I've earmarked, and such. But printing off 165 pages is going to make the old HP deskjet groan a tad!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lightsource Posted February 21, 2007 Share Posted February 21, 2007 I'm reading it - because I need to buy a few radio mic's in the near future, and I don't want to throw them away when the new regs come into force. How many others are in the same / similar position Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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