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'REGIONAL' LOCAL RADIO LICENCE:
COVERAGE BRIEF AND SPECIFICATION
EAST OF ENGLAND
1. This licence is being offered for the provision of an Independent Local Radio service on the FM (VHF) waveband. The licence is offered for the use, from four transmission sites, of four frequencies on this waveband. Applicants should prepare their coverage proposals on this basis.
2. The closing-date for applications for this licence is Tuesday, 26 November, 1996. Completed application forms must reach the Chief Executive of the Radio Authority, at Holbrook House, 14 Great Queen Street, London, WC2B 5DG, by 14.00 on that date.
3. This coverage brief provides information specific to the advertised licence for the East of England. Intending applicants must study, in conjunction with this brief, the Notes of Guidance for Local Licence Applicants, available from the Authority's Head of Development, which provides general information on the submission of a licence application and the requirements of an ILR service. Applications must be submitted on a standard Application Form (Issue 12), also available from the Head of Development.
4. This licence is offered for a service designed to cover the following area:
The main population centres of Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire, and other parts of these counties, subject to available frequency resources.
5. The Authority believes that adequate coverage, as defined in the Authority's guidance document, 'Coverage: Planning Policy, Definitions and Assessment', from the first three of the transmission sites described in paragraph 8 below should include most of Suffolk, and parts of Norfolk and Cambridgeshire, together with the northern fringe of
Essex. Most districts to the south-east of a line drawn approximately between Cromer (on the coast of Norfolk) and St. Ives (in Cambridgeshire), then south to Royston (in Cambridgeshire), and to the north of a line from Royston to Harwich (on the coast of Essex), should be covered. The Authority will require good coverage to be provided of the main population centres - Norwich, Ipswich and Cambridge - and as much of the areas surrounding and between them as is reasonably possible. Towards the boundary of coverage, the following places should be served: East Dereham, Swaffham, part of Ely, part of St. Ives, Royston, Haverhill, the northern edge of Colchester, Felixstowe and Harwich. Places which are just outside the predicted coverage contour from these three transmission sites, but where coverage is admissible within the terms of this licence, include Fakenham, Downham Market, Chatteris, Huntingdon, Saffron Walden and Halstead. Within, and at the periphery of, the main area of coverage, there will be localised pockets where reception is expected to be unreliable; these include the coastal towns of Cromer, Great Yarmouth, Lowestoft and Southwold, and inland, parts of Newmarket and Sudbury.
6. A relatively low-powered transmitter at Peterborough is designed to provide coverage of the population in the main residential and business area of that city, within a service area of around 12 km. radius. A corridor of territory, including the towns of March, Chatteris and Ramsey, lying between the coverage of the Peterborough transmitter and the main coverage area from the other three transmitters, will be technically unserved (i.e. in terms of the reception-strength which defines adequate coverage).
7. The Authority anticipates that, if using the sites and aerial characteristics detailed below, it is likely that this service would achieve composite coverage from the four main transmission sites of an area with an adult (aged 15+) population of around 1,300,000. Applicants could base their financial proposals on this approximate level of potential population coverage, but should note that this figure will be dependent upon the choice of transmission sites, and the transmitter characteristics approved for use.
8. Outline approvals are being sought for four frequency assignments for this licence, on the basis of the transmission sites and characteristics detailed below. The Authority should be in a position to advise the successful applicant for the licence of the actual frequencies, at the time of the licence award. Applicants should base their proposals on the following presumed assignments:
1) Location: Mendlesham (Suffolk)
National Grid reference: TM 122 641
Total maximum effective
radiated power: 20.0 kilowatts
Aerial polarisation: Mixed (10.0 kW horizontal polarisation
+ 10.0 kW vertical polarisation)
Aerial pattern: See attached template
Aerial height: 374 m above sea level
Site operator: NTL
Frequency: 106.4 MHz
2) Location: Stoke Holy Cross (near Norwich)
National Grid reference: TG 258 026
Total maximum effective radiated power: 4.0 kilowatts
Aerial polarisation: Mixed (2.0 kW horizontal polarisation
+ 2.0 kW vertical polarisation)
Aerial pattern: See attached template
Aerial height: 185m above sea level
Site operator: British Telecom
Frequency: 106.1 MHz
3) Location: Madingley (near Cambridge)
National Grid reference: TL 392 594
Total maximum effective radiated power: 1.0 kilowatt
Aerial polarisation: Mixed (500 Watts horizontal polarisation + 500 Watts vertical polarisation)
Aerial pattern: See attached template
Aerial height: 124m above sea level
Site operator: BBC
Frequency: 105.6 MHz
4) Location: Gunthorpe (near Peterborough)
National Grid reference: TF 189 032
Total maximum effective radiated power: 200 Watts
Aerial polarisation: Mixed (100 Watts horizontal
polarisation + 100 Watts vertical
polarisation)
Aerial pattern: Omni-directional
Aerial height: 78m above sea level
Site operator: NTL
Frequency: Likely to be above 107.0 MHz
9. At the time of licence advertisement, the frequency assignments given in paragraph 8 have not received international approval, since they represent additions or modifications to the currently agreed VHF broadcasting international transmitter plan. This approval has been sought, and is under consideration by the administrations concerned, a process which takes several months. The characteristics of the assignments have been dimensioned such that the approval of the relevant neighbouring administrations is expected without modification, and preliminary enquiries of those administrations support this analysis. However, although basing their proposals on the assignments as given, applicants should appreciate that some modifications to their technical characteristics may prove to be necessary (or possible, in case of an increase of allowed power towards continental Europe) in order to secure the necessary approvals. To the best of its understanding, the Authority would not expect such differences of allowable power in any given direction to exceed, typically, 3dB.
10. Applicants should be aware that, in accordance with its usual policy, the Authority will within reason seek to protect the frequencies used for this licence within the contour defined by a field strength of 54 dB(mV/m) at a receiving height of 10m above ground level. However, this does not amount to a guarantee applying to all parts of a licence area, and as the range of frequencies concerned are used progressively more intensively around the country, the relatively large area covered by the licence implies that some erosion of coverage due to interference from future services is quite likely. This is in addition to the erosion of 'out-of-
area' reception which is a common characteristic of many new licences, particularly those using frequencies in the 105-108 MHz sub-band. The Authority will endeavour to ensure that this does not reduce the population covered (as defined technically) by more than 5%, compared with that covered when the licence first comes into service. As with most new licences, it is not possible at this stage to give advice about any measures which may be necessary to ensure technical compatibility with the aeronautical navigation service.
11. All of the sites described in paragraph 8 above are currently used for radio transmission. Use of these sites would be subject to agreement with the site operators. Applicants must note that, although clearing frequencies with the DTI Radiocommunications Agency for use at these sites, the Radio Authority has not ascertained whether there are any practical constraints or cost implications in using these sites or in implementing the aerial characteristics noted above. It will be for applicants themselves, if they wish to propose use of the above sites, to discuss these aspects with the site operators.
12. It is for applicants to decide whether to make use of the sites described above, or to propose an alternative site (or sites) of their own choosing, without prejudice to their application. Applicants who wish to propose an alternative site (or sites) must note carefully the points outlined in paragraphs 3.5-3.6 of the 'Notes of Guidance for Local Licence Applicants', and in addition should recognise that the submission of an alternative proposal for approval and clearance is a process that may take several months to complete, and that an outcome that is wholly satisfactory to the successful applicant cannot be guaranteed. A more comprehensive account is provided in the 'Notes on Approval Procedures for Sites and Frequencies', one of the supplementary documents listed in the Foreword to the 'Notes of Guidance', available on payment of a £10 fee for the complete set of documents. Applicants intending to propose an alternative site (or sites) are strongly advised to obtain and study this.
13. The licensee will be responsible for its own transmission facilities, and will be free to decide whom to appoint for the supply, construction and maintenance of its transmission systems and equipment. This will be the case whether the successful applicant chooses to locate the transmitters at the sites detailed above, or at an alternative site (or sites). Applicants should, however, note that the BBC is currently prohibited from providing transmission services, other than access to a site, to ILR licensees.
14. As noted in paragraph 5 above, there are parts of the East of England region which will not be served from any of the four transmission sites described. Within the terms of this licence advertisement, the Authority will be prepared in principle to consider proposals by the successful applicant to extend coverage within the counties of Norfolk, Suffolk, or Cambridgeshire. This would be subject to the availability of suitable frequencies, and after taking account of the Authority's other local licensing intentions, whether or not these have been elaborated in detail at the time. In general, unless there is clearly little chance of a conflict between different development options, candidate frequency resources will be retained for other uses, particularly elsewhere in England. The zone of relevance in this respect extends approximately to London, the West Midlands and Yorkshire. However, it may nevertheless prove possible in the shorter term to identify frequency resources to extend coverage from the main service area around Ipswich, Norwich, and Cambridge, westwards to Kings Lynn, and/or to infill coverage in Great Yarmouth and Lowestoft, by the establishment of further transmitters. However, applicants should recognise that there is neither a firm expectation that such extension(s) of coverage should be sought by the licensee, nor is there any firm commitment by the Authority that this can be provided. Licence applications should be based upon coverage plans which are sustainable with frequency resources limited to those described in paragraph 8 (or their equivalents at alternative sites).
Programming proposals
15. In evaluating applications for this licence, the Authority will wish to assess the extent to which each applicant offers to provide a programme service which would broaden the range of audience choice in relation to existing ILR services available within the region; in particular, formats provided by the existing licensees (on both wavebands) for Norwich, Ipswich/Bury St. Edmunds and Peterborough, and (on FM) for Cambridge & Newmarket.
16. An existing licensee within this region may apply for this licence, as permitted by the revised ownership limits contained in the broadcasting legislation enacted in 1996 (at time of writing, awaiting Royal Assent), subject to the statutory provisions regarding plurality and diversity addressed therein. This may be either on the basis of a proposal to establish a new programme service, or to transfer an existing service to the
frequencies assigned to this regional licence. In the event of a successful application on the latter premise, the licensee will be required to relinquish its existing licence(s) and frequencies, for probable re-advertisement or for alternative use of the frequencies elsewhere, within a period to be specified at the time of the regional licence award.
17. Other licensing plans
Applicants should recognise that no licensee is granted exclusive coverage of any given area. The Authority's licensing strategy involves the establishment, over a period of time, of a range of local radio services of varying scale and character. In addition to the existing ILR services within the East of England, a local service for Great Yarmouth & Lowestoft is due to come on air shortly, and the Authority is in the process of awarding a small-scale local licence for the city of Cambridge.
Application fee
18. The application fee payable for this licence, which is a category B licence (adult population between 1.0 and 4.5 million) on the FM waveband, is £1,475. A cheque for this sum, payable to the Radio Authority, must accompany each application submitted.
Date of licence advertisement: Tuesday, 30 July, 1996.
Formal notice of advertisement placed in the 'Eastern Daily Press', 'East Anglian Daily Times', 'Cambridge Evening News' and 'Peterborough Evening Telegraph' of that date.
Issued by the Radio Authority, Holbrook House, 14Great Queen Street, London WC2B 5DG, tel. 0171-430 2724.