talkmagic.co.uk

in a move tha has major implications for all those involved in the entertainment industry, ofcom is planning to deregulate or sell off the frequencies that wireless devices use. anyone who uses a wirless mike, in ear monitor, talkback or audio link will be effected.

taken from musician's union's magazine spring 2007.

of most importance to us will be the deregulation of channel 69 which will increase the take up by everyone wereas it was mostly used for pmse and comunnity fetes.

what you can do about it:-
ofcon is running a public consultation on the proposals untill march the 20th 2007 so get in quick people.

there is an online form at http://www.ofcom.org.uk/consult/condocs/ddr/howtorespond/form

if you wish to take further action write to your mp and ask them to sign the petition.
a draft letter is avalable at http://www.gbaudio.co.uk/temp/letter.htm and an mp finder at http://www.psr.keele.ac.uk/area/uk/mps.htm

the petition is at http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/PMSEspectrum

thanxs for your suport.

magicdiscoman wrote:thanxs for your suport.

You've damned well got it mate!

This is an outrage.

Whats next a chagre for the air?

As part of the Digital Dividend Review, OFCOM has announced plans to sell off the Analogue UHF TV band. This band is also heavily used for so called Program Making and Special Events, covering usage of radio microphone, radio talkback/foldback, and wireless comms systems. We'll see the return to cabled mics on the WestEnd Stage, popular TV programs becoming unworkable, and the Vicar having to shout at the village fete. The implications for the 2012 Olympics are also unthinkable, during the 2004 Olympics for example in excess of 300 channels could be in use in a single stadium, difficult even with the currently available spectrum. Without the availability of Radio Mics in the West End, it is likely that much of Musical Theatre will cease, Sir Lloyd-Webber has already hinted that he'd consider premiering his next musical on Broadway. Overall the impact on UK PLC of the loss of this spectrum would be immense, impacting on everything from church services through to the Olympic Games.

quote from petition site.

also known as the white noise area between tv braodcasts.

sound all good to me if I can help you the best way I can you have got my suport magicdiscoman



____________________________
Happy days are here to stay

PMSEspectrum - epetition reply18 July 2007

We received a petition asking:

"We the undersigned petition the Prime Minister to halt the selling off of radio spectrum used for PMSE until a suitable alternative is found."

Details of Petition:

"As part of the Digital Dividend Review, OFCOM has announced plans to sell off the Analogue UHF TV band. This band is also heavily used for so called Program Making and Special Events, covering usage of radio microphone, radio talkback/foldback, and wireless comms systems. We'll see the return to cabled mics on the WestEnd Stage, popular TV programs becoming unworkable, and the Vicar having to shout at the village fete. The implications for the 2012 Olympics are also unthinkable, during the 2004 Olympics for example in excess of 300 channels could be in use in a single stadium, difficult even with the currently available spectrum. Without the availability of Radio Mics in the West End, it is likely that much of Musical Theatre will cease, Sir Lloyd-Webber has already hinted that he'd consider premiering his next musical on Broadway. Overall the impact on UK PLC of the loss of this spectrum would be immense, impacting on everything from church services through to the Olympic Games."


Read the Government's response

Spectrum allocation and assignment is a matter for Ofcom, and - the Government agrees with the regulator's proposal to allocate spectrum via technology-neutral auctions.

However, we - acknowledge the particular circumstances of the Programme Making and Special Events (PMSE) sector. For this reason we welcome Ofcom's PMSE consultation, issued on 20th June 2007.The consultation proposes that spectrum should be awarded to a band manager with the incentives and expertise to manage the spectrum efficiently for wireless microphone users and others, and it sets out a number of options for achieving this.

These include holding a 'beauty contest', or comparative selection process, which would involve Ofcom choosing an organisation to manage the use of the spectrum for these and other users. The licensee would pay fees reflecting the amount of spectrum they use, and have incentives to use it efficiently. Another option is to award access to the spectrum by auction after a pre-qualification process that ensures bidders have the skills and expertise needed to manage the spectrum for users in this sector.

We will continue to listen to interested parties on this matter, in the light of Ofcom's latest consultation which will run untill 31 August 2007.

so no clearer then.

SUPPORT A VITAL MUSICIANS' UNION CAMPAIGN NOW!

Ofcom / Spectrum Allocation


Members may recall that we wrote to you earlier in the year to ask for your help in lobbying MPs regarding the above. As a result of our collective efforts, Ofcom agreed to a further consultation period to look specifically at the concerns of the Programme Making and Special Events (PMSE) sector which includes our industry.


Ofcom's consultation on Programme Making & Special Events: Future Spectrum Access ends 31 August 2007.


Whilst Ofcom have made limited progress in recognising some features of the Programme Making and Special Events (PMSE) sector, of which we at the MU are all a part of, their second consultation on future spectrum access remains fundamentally flawed. We believe, as we are sure members do, that it would be a travesty if we allowed Ofcom to implement proposals which could potentially be just as damaging as those originally put forward in the Digital Dividend Review (DDR).


Therefore we are encouraging you to contact your MP, using the draft letter provided here. Political pressure on Ofcom has proved extremely effective in the past at making them engage with the industry and we believe, if applied correctly and at the most opportune time, it could do so again.


The draft two-page letter should be sent to your local MP immediately. Simply use the link below to download the letter. Print out the document then add the date, the name of your MP and your signature.

http://www.musiciansunion.org.uk/site/cms/contentdocumentview.asp?documentid=779&dm_i=147197879

all help apreciated thanxs.