RADIO BROADCASTING.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LX, Issue 18353, 20 March 1923, Page 4

RADIO BROADCASTING.

Sir,—" Amateur " apparently is anxious that every owner of a set, crystal or valve, should pay a subscription to the broadcasting company. When one considers that in England one can purchase a valve receiving set for £7 10s, including phones and batteries, one would expect to pay something to defray expenses of broadcasting. I say let the firm who charges £25 for practically the same set, pay the expenses; or better still why not the firms themselves do the broadcasting as an advertising medium or subsidise the company. I am . over 120 miles from Auckland, and it would cost me about £50, without the cost of a loud speaker, to hear Auckland. Unless the prices com© down a good deal, broadcasting the best of concerts will not supersede the gramaphono for country clients. Filament. Sir,—The latter part of "G. Ridleak's" letter on this subject appears to convey severe criticism on those few who have endeavoured to stimulate an interest in wireless by going to the expense of erecting a transmitting stations Incidentally, it may tend to create quite a wrong impression. Being more or less a radio fan, I have looked forward with considerable interest to a local broadcasting station, and to all inquiries as to when the station would start I have received the reply that they are "not broadcastingonly experimenting." I understand from this that they are experimenting so as to give the best results, and that the "trashy gramaphone music" mentioned by "G. Ridleak," along with the attendant distortion, is by way of experiment only, and not to be taken as a sample of the real article. From what I can gather on the subject, it is almost impossible to pet good results from any new transmitting station without quit* a lot of experimenting, so that adverse criticism on the efforts of local enthusiasts does not seem quite just at this stage. No doubt the operators will have the local station working to their satisfaction in a short time, and they will then be in a position to broadcast entertainments to satisfy the numerous amateurs who own receiving sets. In the meantime I would suggest that all owners of receiving sets get into touch with the owners at the broadcasting station and offer such assistance as they aro able, to help defray the cost of operating it. It is not to be expected that they will be able to give good entertainments without paying the performers, and the cost of operating a broadcasting station must be very heavy; so that it seems hardly fair to expect two or three to shoulder all the expense and trouble and have owners of receiving sets get their entertainment for nothing. If those having receiving sets paid' only a shilling a week they would assist the broadcasting people to give entertainments that would be appreciated. Co Denser.