Radio Round the World

Radio Record, Volume IV, Issue 30, 6 February 1931, Unnumbered Page

Radio Round the World

=n oo ae POSSIBLY with the idea of exctuding the often annoying sound of meighbouring loudspeakers, Mr. Percy Maxim, the son of the famous gun inventor, has perfected q device which, installed at an open window, keeps out all external noises without interfering: with the ventilation. * * se LACK of uniformity in the voltages of public electric power supplies appears to be causing much inconvenience to owners of all-electric radio reeceivers in America. According to an exchange, no fewer than twenty different voltages are in use in various parts of that country. * * . LAST year the total length of the . British Broadcasting Company's transmissions amounted. to . 64,467 hours, and out of the total the aggregate length of breakdowns amounted only: to 19 hours 20 minutes-a percentage of 0.08 of the total transmitting time. A splendid record. # me x NGLISH: broadcast transmissions ’ are often relayed by a- network -of- American stations, because the times for tonducting such relays are suited for good reception and to the evening programme hours. of the

States, An attempt was recently made by American programme directors to persuade G. Bernard Shaw to broadeast. Oharacteristically, Shaw replied, "Of course I will-for four billion dollars." But the directors wére unwilling to go beyond twenty thousand, They tried again during the Disarmament Conference; but Shaw retorted that when he'addressed -an American audience he wanted to be quite outspoken! * * * AN Austrian station attempted a novel broadcast recently in describing from a mountaineer’s point of. view the ascent of a nearby Alpine peak over ten thousand feet high. In order that listeners might follow. the progress of the climbers, who.were on skis, 2 few minutes’ description of the scene

and of incidents of the climb was given at regular intervals throughout the day. For this purpose a portable shortwave transmitter was carried, and the progress reports relayed by the broadcast station in the valley below. * * * EK\VaR since the Italian stations initiated relays of operatic performances from opera houses a steady increase in the attendance at these performances has been observed, The ‘broadcasting station at Turin offers an excellent illustration of this. Recently, for the first time, a number of operas were relayed from a nearby theatre, and it was found that the latter was attendéd by an audience increasing in numbers and apprecia-~ ‘tion at every PREAEIATCG.

* oF "THE question of introducing the sponsored programme into the Indian broadcasting services was discussed recently by the officials of the Central Broadcasting Advisory Committee, recently formed in India. Their decision to adopt such a type of programme was taken with the object .of creating a wider field from which 2 greater variety of programme matter could be selected, and with a view .to placing at the disposal of firms an effective method of obtaining publicity. The problem of arranging interesting. programmes is obviously a difficult one in a land where artists are scarce, and it was thought that . the wider scope ereated by the introduction of the sponsored programme would, if the business community availed itself of the opportunity, prove to be mutually beneficial. Ea Ea 2 ‘THE new "B" class broadcasting station 2MV, Moss Vale, which was built by Amalgamated Wireless and opened on December 17 last, is being heard by a surprisingly large circle of listeners. Mr. W. Young, manager of the station, has received letters acknowledging reception from listeners in New Zealand, Victoria, and Queensland, as well as from many parts of New South Wales. = ms ok HE lament of the pessimist that people are becoming weary of broadeasting is strongly negative by the verdict of readers of a French publication. They were recently invited to classify, in order of merit, and under the separate headings of "Pleasure" and "Utility," the seven modern inventions most: deserving to be singled out and encouraged on ac-

count of their value to the public. Under the heading of "Pleasure" wire-...: less was awarded pride of place by a wide margin, followed by motoring, cinema, electric lighting, gramophone and. photography. Under "Utilitv’ wireless took third place, being preceded by electric lighting _ and water supply. + * * ENGusE newspapers of late have eontained much concerning the thriving state of the radio industry. One firm ‘reported ‘that business during the first week of last October showed a 20 per cent. increase over the corresponding week of the preceding year, the second week.50 per cent., and the third 130 per cent. Despite the financial depression, the New Zealazyl.. radio trade,in geveral’ has ‘maintaiz &, -and in many cases substantially in creased, the annual turnover. , * * oe N "international publicity station" broadcasting advertisements. in all Huropean languages is the aim attributed to a German company which is endeavouring to secure control of a broadcasting station situated at Lux- | embourg. This is to close down shortly to allow of the installation of new transmitting equipment designed to de- . liver the tremendous power of 100 kilowatts. . we >

_ ae we POPULAR discontent in Holland over . the Government censorship of ra~ . dio programmes has not been diminished by the decision of the Second Chamber to reject a mea sure for the withdrawal of the existing system. Recently a seven-mile proces- * sion. of Dutch lIisteners marched through the streets of The Hague in protest against the alleged unnecessary suppression of politics at the microphone. . x: bd RECENT technical improvement in radio equipment are not making matters any easier for the officials of the Radio Branch of the Canadian Federal Government. In fact, there is a possibility that the greater selectivity which receiving sets now possess may bring about international complications. So long as the selectivity of receiving sets was not too refined, the Government heard few complaints concerning clashes of sta~ tions on the same wavelength. Now. however, with the improvements ip. sets, such complaints are becoming n*. -merous, and the Federal Governme is being looked to to straighten ¢fi the situation. Station CRB, of Toronto, and station XHD, of Mexico, for instance, are on the same wavelength, and are now beginning to conflict. Listeners are objecting to having the foreign programmes interfere with the Canadian one. The Radio Branch is looking into the matter, and it is pos-. sible that reference will have to be made to Mexico in order to straighten out the difficulty.