Our Mail Bag

Radio Record, Volume II, Issue 37, 28 March 1929, Page 27

Our Mail Bag

Will correspondents please practice brevity, as heavy demands are now made on space. All letters must be signed and address given as proof of genuineness; noms de plume for publication are permitted. Address correspondence Editor, "Radio Record," P.O. Box 10382, Wellington.

Dealers’ Licenses. WAS surprised to read in the last issue of your journal that the Government intend to impose a further tax on radio dealers. This seems to me to be unfair in the case of country radio dealers, whose turnover is generally small, but who nevertheless perform-a useful service to the public. I have been a radio dealer for some years, in a.small town some fifty miles from the earest centre, but will discontinue the radio department of my business, as it is not sufficiently profitable to warrant the extra taxation. It is most conveni- ’ ent for country owners. of sets to have someone near at hand who can replace a faulty transformer, supply a spare valve at a moment’s notice, or trace and remedy some fault in the receiver, but it seems to me that the extra tuxation will induce many country dealers to discontinue the business. This will undoubtedly benefit the larger city radio dealers, but it seems somewhat extraordinary that "the more stable sections of the trade" (as you say in your leader on the subject) should be able to induce the Government to. impose a tax, with the object of forcing their smaller competitors out of the business. In this leader you also say, "The number of radio dealers .... was in excess of actual business requirements." Unfortunately the same may also be said of many other classes of business, such as the motor trade, phonograph dealers, grocers, drapers, ete., yet in such cases the Government makes no attempt to eliminate competition by imposing a tax which would force many of the smaller dealers out of business. There is no sound reason for the present increase in the cost of a dealer’s license, and I am certain that any further Government interference with private enterprise is undesirable and detrimental to the whole. commun-ity.-Country Radio Dealer. ‘We quite sympathise withour correspondent and the case advanced by him. The object of the increase is not primarily to effect reduction in the number of dealers, although we did pojnt that out as one of the likely resuits of the increase. The prime pur-

pose of the increase has relation to patent royalties, and under the new license all holders thereof are entitled without further payment or risk to use patents held by Amalgamated Wireless, Ltd. While sympathising with legitimate dealers like our correspondent, we still believe the effect of the new rates will be to benefit the radio business on broad lines, and improve the standard of service. Too many business failures and their legacy of bad debts necessarily force a high margin on goods placed by original wholesalers.vem

The Protest Upheld. I AM inclined to uphold "Country Dealer’s" protest against the raising of licenses (dealers’). It is country dealers who will suffer most and the small amount of trade they do would not make much difference to the city dealer, and it adds a few shillings to the income of the country dealer. Also it is convenient for set owners to get their repairs done and any material they need for their sets. I take it that it is the small city dealer it is desired should be eliminated, but the country dealer who can make very little difference to the business of city firms is also eliminated.

Regarding announcing name of record after it is played. I understood it was to give those who tuned in during the playing of a record a chance to hear name, which is very convenient, in my opinion. It seems strange, no doubt, not to hear name before record is played, but one would become accustomed to it in time. Personally I would give name of record before playing (why bother with name of composer?), and then when record is finished: "Record is--’ (whatever name it happened to be. R. S. Blunt suggests better class music and jazz kept separate. Why not give the last half-hour to dance music? In all stations "you would be pleasing some of the people some of the time. You can’t please all the people all the time." Never mind, radio is a great boon and blessing to country dwellers and I doubt if you receive as many complaints from the country as from the city. City people need to go out into the back-blocks for.a time. . They would be glad :to. hear anything.-‘‘Quite Satisfied," Waia.: ° One of the Growlers. , I AM one of the "growlers" re the broadcast programmes. Will you kindly tell me where 2YA learned the idea of announcing the name of a record after it has been broadcasted? In my opinion the New Zealand stations do not broadcast nearly enough sports, such as swimming, boxing, motor racing, and such like. These are my only

eomplaints at present.

A.

W.

Seddon-

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