EMPIRE BROADCASTING.
COPYRIGHT DIFFICULTY. STATION READY FOR TESTING. BY CABLE -PRESS ASSOCIATION—COPYRIGHT LONDON, Aug. IG. Empire broaeasting is likely to be threatened by questions of copyright. Mr. Marcuse has already received warnings, but- is hopeful of overcoming the difficulties. He declared: “It would be unfair to make me responsible for the music 1 broacast, because it is merely an experimental and not a revenue earning scheme. The listeners do not pay any license for listening to my programmes where the music is designedly broacast outside Britain.
“The international copyright law is immediately concerned. A song may he copyright in one foreign .country as well :is in England. It may be copyright in several, or throughout the world. This means that many are interested in royalties. Some are agreeable to waive their objections, but others arc not. Mr. Marcuse completed the station to-day. The generators were started, and everything appears satisfactory, and will be ready for the initial test in a week. Mr. Anthony Hankey, representing the Wireless Association of Britain, is shortly going to the Dominions in connection with Empire broaeasting. It is intended that the visit should culminate in the formation -of an Empire Broadcasting Association, dealing with every aspect of the matter. Air. Kellaway, the director of Marconi’s, in a letter, emphasises that the problem is a technical one. “We in the Marconi Company,” he says, “are already considerably experienced in the use of the short wave and as keenly interested as anyone in the successful inauguration of Empire broadcasting but. I am convinced it would be gravely prejudiced if the corporation yielded to premature and ill-con-sidered action. Their policy, with which we are scientifically associated, is grounded on a fundamental desire to serve the cause of Empire consolidation by the intelligent use of wireless. “Nobody disputes the admirable sentiment behind the amateur relay, but I have grave misgivings concerning the effect, or the early expressions of wonder, which will soon be repaid by disillusion and disappointment. “On the contrary, when the engineers of the British corporation and the American corporation and ourselves complete their work, we may confidently expect the ultimate solution -of the problem throughout- the world.” The controversy is carried to a further stage by Hugh Pocoek, editor of the “Wireless World,” who says: “I foresee the future Empire service provided by a high power short-wave transmitter in England and re-broad tasted through local stations in the Dominions and the colonies. It is likely that each reception area will have to instal more than •one short wave receiver at points a short distance apart, combining the results of reception at the local transmitter, because experience shows that fading may be minimised by this method, which needs experimenting, necessitating the Dominions’ making their own arrangements hut in order to do so they must have transmissions to listen to.
< 1 11 is imperative that a transmitter sou iil be established without delay, first experimentally and gradually developing with the Dominions’ co-opera-tion until perfected. There is more work to be done in the Dominions than at the trnsmitting end.”
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Hawera Star, Volume XLVI, 18 August 1927, Page 5
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511EMPIRE BROADCASTING. Hawera Star, Volume XLVI, 18 August 1927, Page 5
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