In October 2022, the National Association of Black Owned Broadcasters notified the FCC of its “discontinuance” of its support for it. Also voicing his calls to reject the proposal in front of the Commission was Connoisseur Media CEO Jeff Warshaw.
There’s more: a group of small broadcasters wanted the plan to die. So did 13 Members of the U.S. House of Representatives, and, in a significant way, the NAB.
Now, 15 months later, a rule change that would pave the way for GeoBroadcasting Solutions’ “ZoneCasting” technology is very much alive, thanks to an order and further notice of proposed rulemaking.
FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel on Wednesday (1/31) circulated the order and “FNPRM,” which would allow FM broadcasters to air original programming from a booster — the lynchpin behind GBS’s proprietary ZoneCasting offering, which was demonstrated at KSJO-FM in San Jose and at an FM radio station in Jackson, Miss. — WRBJ-FM.
To be clear, geo-targeted content would air for a limited period of time during the broadcast hour. Detractors believe even this would create interference, and thus prevent important emergency information from being distributed, rather than aiding in that effort. Then, there is the sales conundrum, with some industry observers who requested anonymity questioning the resulting impact on advertising rates should “micro-casting” become a reality.
As of 5:15pm Eastern Wednesday, the Order and FNPRM had not been publicly disseminated by the Commission. That did not stop Brendan Carr and Geoffrey Starks from issuing a joint statement in support of the proposal from GBS.
“As Commissioners on the FCC, we have consistently stood up for policies that drive
innovation and support small businesses,” said Carr, the senior Republican, and Starks, a Democrat. “We strongly believe that radio deserves to benefit from the same path of progress. For broadcasters, listeners, and businesses that rely on the airwaves to reach their audience—not to mention public safety—radio is too important to leave behind as other services continue to pioneer.”
That is why Carr and Starks support allowing geo-targeted content on the FM dial.
They continue, “In 2020, in a unanimous and bipartisan vote, the FCC proposed to revise its rules to permit broadcasters to originate a limited amount of geo-targeted content from FM booster stations. Since we released that unanimous proposal, small and independent broadcasters have repeatedly told us that geo-targeting could be a gamechanger. They’ve said the technology could help them stay relevant, and in some cases stay in business, by allowing them to offer hyper-localized content over radio—just as television broadcasters are beginning to do with NextGenTV. We’ve also heard that geo-targeting could lift small businesses and community organizations by helping them reach a targeted audience more cost effectively, thereby reducing barriers to the nation’s airwaves and connecting listeners to the content that matters to them the most.”
This explains why Starks and Carr, who may not see eye-to-eye on many regulatory policies pertaining to Radio, came together to thank Rosenworcel “for moving this proceeding to an order so that broadcasters can implement this technology, to the extent they choose to do so. Without a doubt, geo-targeting presents a new way of thinking about FM. If radio entrepreneurs want to test new business models and deploy new technologies, the FCC’s rules shouldn’t stand in the way.”
