THE WIRELESS WORLD.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 19688, 15 January 1926, Page 2

THE WIRELESS WORLD.

By Masha. Vox.

Events during the past seven days have been somewhat surprising at VLDN, the Exhibition station, in that the Manager of Broadcasters (Ltd.), Mr A. R- Hams has made a public statemnt that sheds a great deal of light on the present position of Exhibition broadcasting. . Reports of the doing of the Wireless Committee have shown that its members are determined that the service shall be improved, and at a recent, meeting of Exhibition directors the position was briefly discussed, and the committee was asked to submit a report. At the time of this column going to press, the Wireless Committee had not met the directors, but it seems clear that some form of direct action is contemplated. A MISUNDERSTANDING. In the meantime Mr Harris has replied to the directors and the committee, and to all who have studied his statement it is obvious that a very grave misunderstanding existed from the outset. Mr Harris states that the station erected at the Exhibition was never intended to supply the whole of New Zealand, a fact that shows and proves a misunderstanding immediately. From the point of view of the directors the object of installing a radio station at the Exhibition was to give to Australasia the very best that Logan Park could offer in the way of programmes, Exhibition news, and publicity. Like every other feature of the Exhibition, the broadcasting station was hoped to be second to none of its type and scope in the world —the very best, and nothing but the best was necessary. , It is now obvious that YLDN is simply one of the four stations to be equipped in the main centres of the Dominion by Broadcasters (Ltd.). In fact, Mr Hams has said:— “The position is that the present station is not intended to serve the whole of New Zealand. Had such a service been intended five kilowatt or larger equipment would have been required. The disadvantage would be that the cost would be great, and 75 per cent, of the transmissions would go to sea. The better scheme and the one stipulated by the Government is for the installation of a half kilowatt set such as this is at each of the four centres and that is the arrangement under which we are operating at present.” AT THE ELEVENTH HOUR.

It seems rather peculiar that this was not made clear during the earlier days in the life of VLDN, and it would appear that the statement has been made as a last resource, when it has become necessary that listeners should have some explanation of th© mediocre s©rnc© that is being sustained. In view of the fact that VLDN is only guaranteed a range of 100 miles, the results that have been achieved are not as bad as they previously appeared, and the explanations made by Mr Harris in regard to the difficulties of transmission from the Exhibition, owing to the location and surrounding. may be accepted as a satisfactory reason for the faulty transmissions inside the 100-mlle radius. The reason for installing an unsuitable set has yet to be discovered, and no doubt the committee will now sift the matter to the bottom, although it is doubtful if any improvement can be effected, and already nearly half the allotted span of the Exhibition has passed. A CORRESPONDENT’S QUERIES. “Radio.” —Official broadcasting stations under the control of Broadcasters (Ltd.), N.Z., are to be installed in each of the four main centres —Auckland, Wellington, Christchurch. and Dunedin. At the present time VLDN, the Exhibition station, is the official Dunedin broadcasting station. There are also broadcasting stations operated by amateur clubs in nearly all towns of any size from Invercargill to Auckland, and a Dunedin listener should be able to receive programmes from the majority of these. A license is necessary, and particulars may be obtained from the Poet and Telegraph Department, where required information about the various stations should also be available. A first-class receiving set is certainly capable of listening to the places you mention —in face, a clever and painstaking amateur can do wonders with a small and inexpensive set. RADIO ON THE CONTINENT. Though the Old World is the home of radio and the science has reached a very advanced stage in England and America, radio broadcasting and reception by telephone in France, compared with the United States and other countries, is thus far undeveloped upon a commercial scale. Consul C. D. Westcott (Paris) advises the Department of Commerce. That fact restricts present opportunities for the saje of American radio sets and accessories, although the possible market therefore in the near future should not be disregarded. At present there are in France only four long-range broadcasting stations They are located in Paris Two are operated by the Government. one by a private company dealing in radio equipment, and one by an enterprising newspaper. The variety, selection, and technical rendition of programmes broadcasted by them are of a high order. Operating expenses of the private company are defrayed in part by competing French radio manufacturers and dealers. Recently regional stations, of limited range, have begun operating at Lyons, Toulouse, and Agen. RECEIVING COMPLICATIONS.

But it is generally conceded by the trade that the commercial development of radio in France will require the regular operation of from 15 to 20 stations for long-range broadcasting. They should be so located that every section of the country will be assured of good reception at all hours, but apparently there is no immediate prospect that such a project will be realised. French radio receiving sets are complicated by the great range in wave length to which they must “tune in.” That obstacle has retarded commercial development from the beginning. The Eiffel Tower station operates on a 2500-metre wave, and the others above noted on 1750, 450, and 345 metres. Due to the extra long operating waves, which are now obsolete, the receiving set requires a multiplicity of coils, switches, plugs, and other accessories. If broadcasting were limited to waves of 500500 metres the cost of a set would be much .less, its operation simplified, and the demand therefore increased. A REQUEST REFUSED. The manager of the Radio Broadcasting Company of New Zealand writes deprecating the action of broadcast station VT.TTN Dunedin Exhibition, in closing down on New Year’s Eye at 10.10 o’clock, with that of the Australian stations, which saw the New Year in. He writes: “Even if VIJIN is only a temporary station there was nothing to prevent a programme being supplied till after midnight, and the New Year could have been ushered in with an appropriate speech, which may have made it apparent that there was something in common between the company and those whose fees support the broadcasting.” The manager of the Radio Broadcasting Company of New Zealand was recently requested by the radio writer for an Auckland paper to supply information on the hours of transmission, wave-length, power input and output of the company’s stations (says a northern writer), He replied declining to supply the information on th© grounds that the existing stations being temporary expedients no useful purpose would be served by publishing such details. This is the sort of thing that only adds to the unpopularity of the Broadcasting Company. Th© manager overlooks the fact that his company is pocketing 25s out of each broadcast listeners 50s license fee for the existing broadcasting service, whether temporary or otherwise, and the licensees have a right to know the particulars sought. The press offers a free medium for the dissemination of such information, and in refusing these particulars the manager of the company was ill-advised. DOMINION NOTES. The use of portable receivers capable of being used out of doors is very popular wherever broadcasting has been well developed and it will no doubt soon become familiar in New Zealand. Th© regular listener’s license in Now Zealand specifies the address of the receiver, but it can easily be made available for use with a portable sot by application to the postal authorities. The well-known Wellington broadcasting station 2YK has lately been taken over by the Broadcasting Company, and has been brought into operation again after its long silence. The transmitter proper remains in its old quarters in the Dominion newspaper office, but the studio has been removed to the Dominion Farmers’ Institute and connected with the transmitter by a land-line. At .present only test transmissions arc being given, four times weekly. The introduction of a first-class microphone and amplifier system has made the transmissions from this station of really admirable quality, and though the plant is only of low power. 2YK will "be welcomed by all who can bear it. During the tost period, the management will be glad to receive reports, particularly from the more distant parts of th© Dominion.