Continuing on whether a Procaster when used as directed covering a large populated area is broadcasting here it is in definition and from the CRTC
Legal Definitions: Regulatory bodies like the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) define broadcasting based on the act of transmitting to the general public, and audience awareness is not a prerequisite for this definition. In essence, if a signal is available for public consumption, it is a broadcast, regardless of whether a specific audience is actively or knowingly engaged with it. (end quote)
Getting back to my Procaster. It is covering a, lets say, a 1 kilometer radius around me, in a populated area with thousands of residents, it is technically a broadcast according to the CRTC and the dictonary/encyclopedia whether you advertise it or not. It is an unlicensed broadcast.
So an agent pays me a visit, gets with a spectrum analyzer costing 1000s$$$ my signal over a large populated area, listens, hears a "jingle" that makes me sound like a radio station, gathers from that it is intended for the public, comes, sees me set up outside with radials, the whole bit, or the transmitter on a roof, you are broadcasting plain and simple according to the definition of broadcasting. You are really going to say it's for me?
My only argument is it is inside my house and it's legal to use. But an agent could say it is still going off your property to a large public area in general where anyone can find it and it is still a broadcast. And to be nasty could say turn it off or lower the power by detuning the antenna so it doesn't leave your property. My property being a house with a 50 * 25 ft back yard.
Do you see now what I mean by using a Procaster as directed for best range is a broadcast?
Unless you are in a rural area with no residences in range out in the country.
The only good thing is a visit is not too likely but not impossible.
This is nonsense and if I could get into politics and get elected this would change as soon as I sat down at my desk. If it is legal to use broadcast would be out of the rules or all unlicensed use in the AM and FM bands would all move to BETS-1 and out of RSS-210.
And 250uV at 30 meters(AM) would be replaced with the RSS-210/FCC rule.
.... set up outside with radials, the whole bit, or the transmitter on a roof, you are broadcasting plain and simple according to the definition of broadcasting. You are really going to say it's for me?
My only argument is it is inside my house and it's legal to use. But an agent could say it is still going off your property ... ..
Perhaps, but don't discard the fact that like 15.219 there is no field strength limitations associated with a RSS-210 AM transmitter, so how far your signal travels is a moot point as far as regulations go, the agent would have no basis for objecting to your range, because your compliant. He would have to prove your intent... And your intent might simply be that you want to hear your station on your portable radio while your walking your dog or riding your bike down the street or working in the yard or whatever - which is why you have your RSS certified transmitter installed outside, which also corresponds with the way it had been designed and marketed.
@richpowers All good points, and that would be my defence.
@mark You'll probably never need a defense. Isn't it a complaint-driven enforcement there same as it is here? Who in your neighborhood might ever issue a complaint? Even here in the states there has not been a single AM citation in nearly a decade. No complaints = no foul = no investigations.
It could be because 20ft+ ground leads has become less common.. but I actually think it's because the licenced AM stations now they all have their FM repeaters. More often then not, they only seem to announce their FM frequency, sometimes not even mentioning their actually AM frequency of licence, which they seem to care less about now.
The only complaints I have ever heard of have been from other radio stations that feel you are competing with them, and taking away listeners and revenue. There actually have been a few on AM here in Canada over the years. Only one has ever resulted in a negative action (and that is the Winnipeg case that has been discussed previously).
That being said, it is possible to get a complaint from the public. I believe I did when I was on Bowen Island, using FM. No one ever came to the station, but I did see a truck with what appeared to be field strength measuring equipment in the vicinity. Evidently, they felt I was compliant (or compliant enough), as I never heard from them.
You never know who you'll run into in any particular area. In my case I knew that there were individuals attempting to put together a project to obtain a low power licensed radio station for the island, but it never really got off the ground. I theorized it was one of them who made the complaint, using the mindset that if I can't do it, no one should.
The only complaints I have ever heard of have been from other radio stations that feel you are competing with them, and taking away listeners and revenue. There actually have been a few on AM here in Canada over the years. ...
Same here no exactly, no different at all.. that's the way it was here -- but that all changed ever since all licenced AM stations were granted FM repeaters by the FCC in an effort to save the dying AM band, to help boost the AM stations advertising revenue.. (weird way to help AM stations survive ain't it?). I don't know if they did the same in Canada - But here, I'm pointing out AM NOUOs completely ceased after that. Before that, for over at least a 20 year period, there was consistently at least 3 or 4 Part 15 AM stations being cited per year - That came to a complete stop after the FM repeaters for AM came on the scene. There have been no more NOUOs. AM station owners here now focus more on their FM broadcast, they seem to care less about their AM band of licence, because their money is coming from their FMb repeaters, they quit bothering to see if some part 15 AM signal is "stealing:their revenue" anymore.