Radio Round the World

Radio Record, Volume III, Issue 7, 30 August 1929, Page 12

Radio Round the World

‘AT the end of 1928 the wireless apparatus in the United States was valued at £3825,000,000. This is an increase of £50,000,000 on the previous year. The number of amateur listeners is at. present 35,000,000, while *in1927 it was 26,000,000. In 1921 the number was 7,500,000, and the number of dealers has doubled itself in the last year. OLLYWOOD studios and their talking pictures are to have an air policeman to guard them against the noise of airplane motors. It will be a captive balloon at 400 or 600 feet with a 1000-watt lamp on its highest, point for night duty. The rule will be that no ‘plane can fly lower than 2500 feet within a certain area of the balloon. In the case of violation, réports will be made to the Hollywood Department of Commerce, which will discipline the offender. If the offence is repeated more than twice, the pilot’s license will be suspended. HW ZHALANDDRS will be in- . terested to learn that a fellowcountryman has been appointed to the position of day announcer for station 2FO. The new announcer is Mr. Conrad. Charlton -and is best known as an actor. He played in "The Student Prince," ‘"Madame Pompadour" and the "Vagabond King." Mr. Charlton saw three years’ active service abroad with the New Zealand Forces and was badly wounded. | cnssasteuseunabshemeunmmsssioneen

(CONTINUED increase, in the number of licensed listeners in Huropean countries is indicated by statistics for the year 1927 and 1928. ‘The total number of license-holders rose from 5,897,000 to 7,163,000, or 21.4 per cent. The British total on January 1, 1929, was. 2,684,941, the German 2,635,537. The following is a tabulation of the number of licensed radio receivers per 1000 inhabitants :-

A BROADCASTING bill has been formed in France which looks like becoming law. The following points are mentioned. A State monopoly, National Office of French broadcasting to be formed, tax £1 on every vaive set, all sets must be deciared within a month of the Bill becoming law, and’ all purchases of sets to be declared within eight days of purchase. Advertising is not to occupy more than onetenth of broadcasting time. There is to be established a short-wave station for the benefit of French colonies. ; The B.B.C. announcer, in dealing with the Vesuvius eruption caused some joy to millions of listeners, in spite of the tragic subject, by informing them that the "lager flowed down the mountain-side towards the villages." The alteration was quickly made to "lava," but it was too late. Truly a country flowing with milk and honey. od THER has now been formed in Hngland, the Railway@Radio Co., Ltd. The nominal capital is only £1000, but to offset that, its articles provide that it shall acquire any inventions, patents any any secret process to and in econnection with radio communication, to and from railway trains. "Popular Wireless" remarks that a process to soften railway soap would make their fortunes. [= is indeed a mystery how listeners in the larger towns of America can achieve any degree of listening comfort. New York has 23 stations, Chieago 21,- Philadelphia 12, Seattle 11, Los Angeles and Portland have 10 each, Boston, St. Louis, ’Frisco and New Orleans 6 each. New York State has 45 in which it is second to California with 46. { [HE General Commissariat of Algeria has undertaken the construction of a huge radio station, Which is to be completed in 1980. One reason for this station is thé ever-increasing nécessity for a means of informing tourists of coming fetes of interest, and also of a means. of communication to the sparsely-settled Algerians of news ee rere oe ne ~~

of interest and importance, There is also. a desire to provide a means of — stimulating interest in music and in the classics. . [THE proprietors of an Hnglish mine in Lancashire have installed in the pit of this mine, 400 feet below the level of the. earth; a loudspeaker, which blares forth concerts broadcasted from Glasgow. The use of this set is not only confined to enjoyment, for in the event of any accident, information can be conveyed from the local station, thus saving seconds which might separate life and death. TH Columbia Broadcasting Co. has decided to build new headquarters having 32 stories. There is to be a means of co-operation with the other 51 stations which are under the same board of directors, and also accommodation for 250 musicians. The building is to be so constructed that prad+ tically all extraneous sound is exclud~ ed. Space is to be left for a television studio which is to be equipped as television progresses. A LARGBH firm in Copenhagen has begun to hire out receiving sets. The company makes a special type of apparatus which it does not sell, but only hires for small sums, A very great number of sets have already been hired. Meetings of protest have already been held at which the Danish radio trade discussel whether or no, this was dishonourable competition. As a protest against the action of this electricity company, traders have resolved not to use any electricity on three days a week in order to make their dissatisfaction known to the public. RTHR a conference with the Pope Signor Marconi announces that arrangements have been made for the installation of a broadcasting set in the Vatican. The work is to be begun immediately, necessitating the construction of a temporary railway. The masts of this station are to be placed near the ancient walls of the Vatican and on the building of a new seminary. , The power will be equal to that of the station endowed by the Italian Government at the Basilique St. Paul. "THE B.B.C. estimate that their ecopeerts are listened to by 14 million people or 28 million ears. This should surely bring about an epidemic of stage fright on the impressionable artists of English studios. The person who is on the air is wont to underestimate the number of his invisible audience, and it would be indeed interesting (if it were possible) to discover the exact number of people around the wox who hear the same concert at the sanYev time.

Denmark ...... Sweden ..... tee Great Britain .. ‘Austrian ..cccoee Germany eoeeeeo NOrway ccevecess Hungary ....eeU.S.A. (estimated) 1927 57.05 54.68 56.91 47.79 33.49 22.9 10.41 1928 76.42 63.47 59.48 58.31 43,92 aaa 4 20.1 68.1 — 90.9