Spain’s planned State Radio Communications Agency has been tasked with evaluating and closing down up to 3,000 illegal radio stations throughout Spain. In some regions of Spain, especially the major cities and along the Coast, illegal ‘pirate’ stations outnumber the legal frequencies by two, sometimes three to one. Thus, those that are legal have been complaining to the Government for years of their loss in revenue and wanting action to be taken.
The agency has been created following pressure by the AERC, the Spanish Association of Commercial Radio. They have already presented a list of broadcasters they consider to be outside the law including 482 on the Canaries, 387 in Andalucía, 338 in the Valencia region, 183 in Cataluña, 144 in Madrid and 143 in the Basque Country. In addition there are many so-called Municipal Radios that are breaking the law as they are run by companies and not by the local Town Hall.
Some of the local English-language stations around the Costa Blanca have been operating without the correct business licences and may face closure sooner rather than later, mainly because they interfere with and impact the revenue potential of the Spanish broadcasters. The coverage area of some Spanish broadcasters has been reduced by the setting-up of these English-language stations.
Central Government has said it is to draw up a map of Spanish radio, which will allow a cleaning up of the FM band followed by the quick and firm closure of those broadcasters who lack the correct permissions. The State Radio Communications Agency is scheduled to be set up by 1 June, so the stations have a few months to get their official paperwork in order. But the illegal operators complain that no new concessions for licences have been made available and that many of them have submitted applications for licences but have not heard back from the commission.
(Source: SpanishNews.es)
on Jan 12th, 2010 at 12:57
I have been hearing this thing as far as I can remember.
They have the rules, they have the ways and the instuments and that is nothing new. Nothing has hapenned before, so I dont see the point this time is going to be different.
Some of those stations are the perfect instruments for politicians, so I dont see they are going to shot his feet.
on Jan 12th, 2010 at 16:27
Not only official local stations have their problems with illegal transmissions, but the Spanish attitude also affects stations way out of Spain on AM.
Take frequency 1602 kHz, this is a LPC, power limited to 1 kW, and can be used by all European countries.
In Spain their are a number of transmitters active on 1602, most of them with to much power, doing 5 kW.
But the most serious (semi) i;legal user is Radio Vitoria with no less then 25 kW, so doing 25 times more then allowed.
As a result this station can be heard al over Europe after darkness and crippling other European 1602 users, such as Radio Waddenzee in Holland, that is strictly maintaing it\’s 1 kW limitation
on Jan 13th, 2010 at 10:21
According to the EU law of freedom of speach and right to choice and competition to existing stations, you have the rigth to apply to a legal frequency and licence.
This is happening in Sweden after 1 of July.You have the rigth to broadcast in all broadcasting bands below 30 MHz in AM/DRM.
Band l and ll in fm and drm+.
Band lll and L-band, dab+,dmb etc.
Band IV/V in DVB-t2 radio.
on Jun 10th, 2010 at 16:46
Certainly the FM band around the southern Costa Blanca is just chaotic, very high power and low power stations on adjacent channels,some only 100kHz apart, varying modulation levels, all which drive some of the ’sophisticated’ receiver wild. Try to hear a weak station within 100kHz of a high power one, many receivers insist on hopping to that one !
Also I hear stations on 87.5 MHz and 108.0 MHz which are band EDGES, not channels , thus modulation spreads up ton 50kHz into adjecent bands, PMR two-way radio and Aeronautical frequencies. I am also very surprised at the sheer number of transmitters on medium wave. Though here in Cor, SE Ireland with 5 metres of vertical wire to a good car radio I can hear UK stations up to 200kM (thats the 5kW down to 200 watters ) even in midday summer (chaos in the winter of course). Lots of the radio frequency planning is hopeless.