WIRELESS TELEPHONY.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXVI, Issue 20365, 20 September 1929, Page 13

WIRELESS TELEPHONY.

BRITAIN TO AUSTRALIA. EARLY SERVICE PROBABLE. (Received September 19, 7.45 p.m.) British Wireless. RUGBY. Sept. 18. An extension of the wireless telephone service to include communication between Britain and Australia is probable within the next few weeks. Tests over an extended period have proved satisfactory and tho opening of the service to tho public will be announced when the charges have been fixod. It is believed that business people will make wido use of tho service when it comes into operation.

Tlio wireless telephone service between London and New York is now almost continuous. The charge is £8 for three minutes. Calls of one hour's duration, and sometimes longer, aro occasionally made by British and American financiers.

BEAM RADIO SYSTEM.

CHEAPER COMMUNICATION.

Tho advantages of the beam wireless system were discussed by the council of tho Auckland Chamber of Commerce yesterday. It was stated that it was cheaper to send cablegrams to Sydney and have the messages relayed to England by wireless than to send them direct. A letter was read from Mr. 0. J. Thedens, Austrian Trade Commissioner, stating that tha beam Wireless system run by the Australian Government in conjunction with Amalgamated Wireless, Limited, had ( resulted in transmission ratus being considerably reduced.

Tho cable rates from Australia to London used to be 3s a word, but the charge now was 2s a word. Tho beam service rate was Is 8d a word, with proportionate reductions for transmission to other countries. The service was direct and there was no relaying, as with cablegrams. A total of 6,000,000 messages had been sent in six months.

The acting-chief-postmaster at Auckland wrote stating that the Post and Telegraph Department was aware that a large proportion of Australia-United Kingdom traffic was being handled by the beam service. However, tho department did not consider that any appreciable amount of New Zealand traffic was forwarded through tho medium of the beam service.

" Apparently it is cheaper to send cablegrams to Australia to be retransmitted than to send them direct by cable," Mr. J. A. C. Allum said. " It is well worth keeping in mind," said the chairman, Mr. H. T.. Merritt.