What The New FCC Ban Means For Wireless Microphone System Operators
Wireless Microphone System FCC Law – What does the 700 Ban Mean for You
If you’re still operating a UHF wireless mic you bought in the last 10 years, the probability is high that you are unknowingly breaking the law. Though this law loomed in the distance for the past two years, the FCC has banned the use of the seven hundred band (698-806 MHz) as of the 12th of June 2010. Which frequency does your wireless microphone operate? Look at the back or bottom of your receiver. It is supposed to be printed on there somewhere.
Should you be worried if you are breaking this FCC ban? Lots of wireless owners are curious how the FCC will enforce this legal ban|law]. The range of broadcast for wireless microphones is generally less than 500 feet, which makes getting busted for something such as a machine karaoke wireless microphone nearly unbelievable. The penalties are nothing to sneer at because you will suffer confiscation of systems and fines as high as 10 grand for violating the law.
Curious why the FCC banned the 700 band? After all, the seven hundred frequency range is one of the best due to strong signal propagation. That’s the reason tv channel broadcasters used the 700 band for so long. Now that digital television is fully in effect, the 700 band has been sold off like it is private property by the FCC. Nineteen billion bucks paid by big communication corporations like Verizon, AT&T and Qualcomm for exclusive rights to of most of the 700 frequencies. A “clear” 700 band is what the FCC offered to the communication giants, and they have to make good with the 700 ban.
What does it boil down to? You aren’t alone, that’s for sure. Though statistics are fuzzy, there are probably a 1/2 million or more ultra high frequency microphone operators violating this law today. You are in luck if your mic lets you alter frequencies, since the FCC is currently allowing wireless mics to use the 500 MHz band. The current FCC plan is to designate given channels in the 500 band for wireless mics. And all new wireless mics you purchase from manufacturers from VocoPro to Shure are – by regulatory process! – operating above or below the 700 range.
When a wireless microphone just operates in the 700 band, you’ve got a bad news situation. There are some manufacturers who extend a trade in credit the purchase of new microphones if you surrender your old seven hundred band system. And one manufacturer was re-banding their wireless microphone systems for customers left holding the bag. Contacting the manufacturer of your particular microphone is the first resource you could explore when you discover yourself holding an illegal wireless microphone.
It is galling, but many manufacturers are leaving customers holding that illegal bag. You might find yourself holding a perfectly working, expensive and illegal wireless microphone system, which is grossly bogus. Keep in mind that a mic is 100% functional and lawful internationally, so you could sell it, or even better donate it to an international charity. You can do humanitarian deeds and earn tax deduction, too.
If you continue operating your 700 band wireless mic, wireless intercom, or in-ear monitors, you should expect fresh interference from newly designated government frequencies, cellular network signals, and broadband Internet. And expect the FCC to deal with you severely if you get caught whether you own karaoke DJ equipment four wireless mics for club night or church minister using a wireless lapel microphone on Sunday service. The 12th of June 2010 marks a lousy day for wireless mic system operators across the USA, because it is officially illegal to operate, sell, or resell a wireless mic system that operates only [in the 700 band|on the 698-806 MHz frequencies.
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