LAS VEGAS -- The FCC Media Bureau’s Audio Division has been stretched by a spate of recent licensing windows but has added resources and hopes to catch up with delayed filings, said Audio Division Chief Albert Shuldiner on a panel with other Media Bureau staff at the NAB Show 2024 here Monday. The panel, which included Media Bureau Chief Holly Saurer, also discussed proposals to prioritize some broadcaster filings, the recent approval of geotargeted radio, and pirate radio enforcement. “Delay is not our No. 1 goal,” said Shuldiner.

The FCC’s unanimous order Tuesday allowing radio stations to use FM boosters to offer geotargeted ads and announcements comes over the objections of the nation’s largest radio broadcasters and NAB's years-long campaign against FCC authorization (see 2209230070. Although Tuesday’s order allows broadcasters to receive only temporary authorization for geotargeted content and seeks comment on procedures for a more permanent process, advocates for the ZoneCast technology pushed by GeoBroadcast Solutions (GBS) see the order as a win and the accompanying Further NPRM as mostly ministerial. “Today marks a monumental victory for small- and minority-owned FM radio stations,” said Roberts Radio CEO Steve Roberts, a longtime proponent of the technology. NAB “is pleased that the Commission is only authorizing the use of GeoBroadcast Solutions’ troubling technology on an experimental basis at this time,” the trade group said.

The FCC unanimously approved an order allowing broadcasters to use FM boosters to originate geotargeted radio content (see 2402090044). The order lets broadcasters apply for an experimental license to carry geotargeted content for a maximum of three minutes per broadcast hour. Such content is expected to be mostly advertisements, and the push for geotargeted radio has faced heavy opposition from NAB and larger broadcasters over concerns about ad rates and interference (see 2210210050). The item includes a further NPRM that seeks comment on establishing a more permanent process to replace the experimental license. In comments included with the order, FCC Commissioner Geoffrey Starks said the order would help minority and small- market broadcasters. “No fewer than 21 civil rights organizations also urged us to make this change,” he said. “They believe geotargeting has the power to diversify media ownership, while giving small businesses and community organizations more of an opportunity to get their message on the air.” The FCC has for years “ensured that various technologies from cable to 5G to next-gen broadcast TV have the freedom to target their content to specific geographies,” said Commissioner Brendan Carr in his statement with the order. “Except the FCC has never allowed radio broadcasters that same opportunity. It has artificially limited broadcasters’ business models,” he said. The order said: “Weighing the competing interests in this proceeding, we find that program origination over boosters will advance the public interest with benefits that outweigh the concerns.”

The FCC unanimously approved its entire open meeting agenda Thursday, including an order making it easier for consumers to revoke consent for being robocalled, an order revising wireless mic rules (see 2402150037), an NPRM on a licensing framework for in-space servicing, assembly and manufacturing missions, and an NPRM seeking comment on using prerecorded script templates aimed at facilitating multilingual emergency alerts. “In the United States, over 26 million people have limited or no ability to speak English,” said FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel at the open meeting. “That means we have to get creative and identify new ways to reach everyone in a disaster.”