56o 



NATURE 



[October 13, 1923 



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III 



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recomniiiiil 

 advers( t i[ 

 and ii 



CoiIIUii 



canicil m:1 

 lee to I" )., 

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rate I'l 



bro.uU ,1-1 111 i'i\ 111;; 111 (-11 

 furtlii-f M( Diiiinciulcd tli.it till- i>(iiii 

 pain s i(\iscKl licence should be extended 

 years ixAoiul the orij^inal term, i.e. to jaiin.ir\ 1, 

 igj/. It IS proposed that in return for these con- 

 cessions the Compaii\ . <>ii its part, shall agree (fl) to 

 the immediate ai>iili( ation of Ihr srhcnie recom- 

 mended ; (6) to tla n\ ision of its ai ti< !(-. of associa- 

 tion, in order to provide (i) for dealers and retailers 

 of wireless apparatus to obtain at least one \l. 

 share in the Company, (2) for members of the public 

 to take up shares, if and when fresh issue of capital 

 is made, and (3) for securing adequate representation 

 on the Board by the new membership ; and (c) to 

 the abolition of the deposit of 50/. now required from 

 members. 



Mr. J. C. W. Reith (the General Manager of the 

 British Broadcasting Company), a member of the 

 Committee, makes a reservation as to the conditions 

 proposed in relation to the issue of uniform licences 

 and as to the general application of the scheme 

 recommended ; he is of opinion that under the pro- 

 posed scheme the interests of the British manu- 

 facturers will not be sufficiently safeguarded. 



On the technical side, the Committee makes certain 

 important recommendations as to wave-lengths 

 and the hours during which broadcasting services 

 may be provided. It considers that arrangements 

 should be made for the greatest possible extension 

 of the existing broadcast band of wave-lengths 

 (350 to 425 metres), preferably by the allocation of 

 a band from 300 to 500 metres, excluding 440 to 460 

 metres, and that all possible steps should be taken 

 to protect the band allocated to broadcasting from 

 interference by other services. The Committee 

 further suggests that the present restrictions on the 

 hours of broadcasting should be removed, so th. 

 additional broadcastmg facilities might be provide'; 

 These changes, it is considered, can be readily intro- 1 

 duced without detriment to the other interests which | 

 have to be considered. I 



In relation to the broadcasting programmes, the ! 

 Committee states that the British Broadcasting 

 Company has achieved a large measure of success in 

 gauging the public taste and providing programmes, 

 and suggests that there should be a gradual extension 

 of broadcasting of news, under proper safeguards ; 

 it is also urged that more latitude should be given 

 to the broadcasting of special events without regard 

 to hours. Finally, the Committee places on record 

 its conviction that the Postmaster-General should 

 remain the final arbiter when any question is raised 

 as to what kind of matter may or may not be broad- 

 casted. 



Contemporaneously with the issue to the public 

 of the Report of the Broadcasting Committee, a 

 statement was sent to the Press by the Post Office ; 

 therein it is announced that the Postmaster-General 

 feels that it is not possible for the scheme recom- 

 mended by the Committee to be brought fully into 

 operation immediately, but, with the view of the 

 continuance of the broadcasting services, he has 

 agreed with the Company to the introduction of a 

 constructor's licence at a fee of 15s. for a limited 

 period — the licensee must in such cases give an 



NO. 2815, VOL. 112] 



undertakinK that, in constructing " 



he will not knowingly use parts ma 



where than in f.reat Britmn or Norm' 



I'liriher, with th'- \i.\v of meeting the 



.'00,000 persons wIkj .tre supposed •'■ ' - * 



ol unlicensed receiving apparati: 



issue ;i special interim lii r-m »• , 



covering present appai 



purchased and irrespi ■ 



I. II tun-. |.i<Ai'led that this licenc 



' '' tolxr I , In such cases no ' 



lor i),i>t usa;^!', nor will [jrorc.-rlin'.;^ Ik; uistitir 



the tailurc to i i)ni|)!\' wi'li ^\\t■ l.iw. The 1 



the constriii ior\ .md ■un licences will I — 



continued until \)v^v\:. \ ,z\. and, subject t) 



sanction l»y the House <;' ( onnnon-i, the Pcwtmaster 



('.'•neral agrees to pay \is. hd. aii'l -j^. Ud. out of th.- 



15s. and I05. broadcasting licences respecti\ " 



the British Broadcasting Company. The < 



of the Postmaster-General to raise the liceiu e i. 



to the home-constructor has come as a real disappoint 



ment to a \erv lartje number of them : to many of 



this class of li>t' m r the increase of the fee from 10 . 



to 15s. makes all tlie flifferenre wIm-''"-'- »i>--'- ■ 



possess a licensed station of Ihcir ow 



one altogether. 



An agreement has also Ix-cn come to between the 

 Post Office and the British ! iroadcasting Company 

 for the modification of the articles of association of 

 the Company on the lines recommended by the 

 Committee. The licence now held by the Company 

 will be prolonged, on suitable conditions, to the end 

 of 1926 ; provided that the Company gives a satis- 

 factory service and is willing to erect additional 

 stations, should the Postmaster-General require this 

 to be done, it is given what is virtually a monopoly 

 during the unexpired period of the original agreement. 

 However, the rights of the Postmaster-General are 

 reserved, in certain circumstances, from and after 

 December 31, 1924 ; thereafter not only may he, 

 in appropriate cases, license other organisations, 

 but he may also give them an adequate share of the 

 revenue arising from new licences. The Postmaster- 

 General may further (without regard to geographical 

 anvn) license other services without withdrawing 

 part of the licence fees to which the Company 

 , be entitled. 



it is announced also that the Postmaster-General 

 proposes at an early date to appoint an Advisory 

 i'xiard, as recommended by the Committee, to assist 

 him m all important questions relating to broadcast- 

 ing. Presumably this Board will be a statutory body : 

 whatever may be the sources from which its member- 

 ship is drawn, it is to be hoped that everv' care will 

 be taken to a\oid the creation of the inefficient type 

 of Board so strongly condemned, and justly so, by 

 Sir Henry Norman in the special paragraph con- 

 tributed to the Report by him. 



The action taken by the Postmaster-General on 

 the Report of the Broadcasting Committee brings 

 to a close the deadlock which has now for some 

 months existed between the Post Office and the British 

 Broadcasting Company. It is somewhat unfortunate 

 that the restoration of peace between the parties 

 to the original agreement has been purchased at the 

 expense of a class, the home-constructor- vim are 

 deserving of greater consideration th;- re 



about to receive. It is not at all impr at 



the course of e\ents may cause both the Postmaster- 

 General and the British Broadcasting Company to 

 regret that the recommendations of the Broad- 

 casting Committee in relation to the introduction of 

 one uniform broadcast licence have not been at once 

 put into force. 



