Broadcast call signs

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Broadcast call signs are call signs assigned as unique identifiers to radio stations and television stations. While broadcast radio stations will often brand themselves with plain-text names, identities such as "cool FM", "rock 105" or "the ABC network" are not globally unique. Another station in another city or country may (and often will) have a similar brand, and the name of a broadcast station for legal purposes is normally its internationally recognised ITU call sign. Some common conventions are followed around the world.

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North America

Broadcast stations in North America generally use callsigns in the international series.

International shortwave

The US government-operated international broadcaster the Voice of America no longer uses callsigns assigned to it; however, Radio Canada International's transmitter in Sackville, New Brunswick was assigned CKCX. Privately operated shortwave stations, like WWCR and CFRX, also have call signs.

Canada

In Canada, the publicly owned Canadian Broadcasting Corporation uses CB; privately owned commercial broadcast stations use primarily CF and CH through CK prefixes. Four stations licensed to St. John's by the Dominion of Newfoundland government (VOWR, VOAR-FM, VOCM, and VOCM-FM) retain their original VO calls. The CB prefix used by CBC stations actually belongs to Chile rather than Canada, and is in use by the CBC through an international agreement. [1] Low-power broadcast translator stations begin with VF for FM and CH for TV, followed by four numerals assigned sequentially. Unlike the United States, all digital TV stations use the "-DT" suffix instead of keeping the "-TV" suffix.

Mexico

In Mexico, AM radio stations use XE call signs (such as XEW-AM), while the majority of FM radio and television stations use XH. Broadcast callsigns are normally four or five letters in length, plus the -FM or -TV suffix where applicable, though several older stations have only three letters. The longest callsign is six letters, plus suffix: XHMORE-FM. All Mexican TV stations using digital TV signals use the "-TDT" suffix.

United States

In the United States, the first letter generally is K for stations west of the Mississippi River (including Alaska, America Samoa, Guam, Hawaii, and Northern Mariana Islands) and W for those east of the Mississippi River (including Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands). Except for those with their radio channel or physical TV channel number in them, all new callsigns have been four letters (plus any suffix like -FM or -TV) for some decades, though there are historical three-letter callsigns still in use today, such as KSL in Salt Lake City and WGN in Chicago. Co-owned stations were also allowed to adopt their original short AM callsign like WGN-TV and KSL-TV, even after new ones were prohibited.

There are a number of exceptions to the east/west rule, such as KDKA in Pittsburgh and WFAA in Dallas-Fort Worth, but these are historical artifacts grandfathered from a rule change in the 1920s. Most of the exceptions are located in the media markets immediately adjacent to the river, in the state of Louisiana in the metropolitan areas of Baton Rouge and greater New Orleans, and markets north of the river's source such as Fargo-Moorhead and Duluth-Superior.

The westernmost station in the continental United States beginning with W is WOAI in San Antonio. WVUV-FM in Fagaitua, American Samoa, is the westernmost station with a W call sign. KYW in Philadelphia is currently the easternmost station with a K call sign.

Another exception to this is that NIST time-broadcasting stations have a three- or four-letter callsign beginning with WWV. The three current government-operated time stations, WWV (and longwave sister station WWVB), and WWVH, are located in Fort Collins, Colorado and Kekaha, Hawaii, respectively, both of which would normally use call signs beginning with "K". However, the rule dividing W and K only applies to stations governed by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), whereas U.S. federal government stations are governed by the NTIA. This means that like NIST, the hundreds of NOAA Weather Radio stations across the country have a random mix of W and K callsigns, as do traveler information stations operated by the National Park Service.

Central America

Costa Rica

Costa Rica uses TI call signs. Examples:

El Salvador

El Salvador uses YS, YX and HU call signs depending on geographical area. Examples:

Guatemala

Guatemala uses TG call signs. Examples:

Honduras

Honduras uses HR call signs. Examples:

Nicaragua

Nicaragua uses YN call signs. Examples:

Caribbean

Dominican Republic

The Dominican Republic uses HI callsigns. Examples:

Oceania

Australia

In Australia, broadcast call signs are allocated by the Australian Communications and Media Authority and are unique for each broadcast station. [2] [3]

The international VL prefix assigned to radio broadcasters has been skipped for many years, thus VL5UV would only identify as 5UV,[ citation needed ] and now simply Radio Adelaide. The digit often, but not always, indicates the state or territory, generally followed by two letters on AM and three on FM. Stations with call signs beginning in 2 are based in New South Wales or the ACT, 3 in Victoria, 4 in Queensland, 5 in South Australia, 6 in Western Australia, 7 in Tasmania, and 8 in the Northern Territory. [4]

South America

In South America call signs have been a traditional way of identifying radio and TV stations. Some stations still broadcast their call signs a few times a day, but this practice is becoming very rare. Argentinian broadcast call signs consist of two or three letters followed by multiple numbers, the second and third letters indicating region.

Argentina

Argentina uses the prefixes LR through LW, followed by a number. The exact prefix depends on the region where they operate (for example: the LS prefix is used for radio and TV stations in the Buenos Aires city). Stations with the LR prefix may also have an additional letter.

Examples:

Bolivia

Bolivia uses CP call signs. Examples:

Brazil

In Brazil, radio and TV stations are identified by a ZY, a third letter and three numbers. ZYA, ZYB, ZYR, and ZYT are allocated to television stations; ZYI, ZYJ, ZYK and ZYL designate AM stations; ZYG is used for shortwave stations; ZYC, ZYD, ZYM and ZYU are given to FM stations.

Chile

Chilean AM radio stations use the letter C, followed by one of the letters: A, B, C, D. The usage of each of those depends on the latitude of the cities where they operate (for example: the letter B is used for stations in the central region of Chile). FM stations use the XQ prefix, with the same A-E additional letters for AM stations. The resulting prefix is followed by a number which may not match their FM frequency. Television stations also have callsigns; however, they are mostly unknown, as they have never been shown on-air (instead, most Chilean TV stations identify themselves only with their names, similar to stations in Europe). TV call signs follow a similar pattern to those for FM stations, but begin with the XR prefix.

Examples:

Colombia

In Colombia, the radio stations or television channels are identified by HJ and/or HK with two additional letters. Examples:

Paraguay

Paraguay uses ZPV-(three digit number)-TV call signs. Example:

Peru

Peru uses callsigns OA-OC callsigns. In each, it is followed by another letter, a dash and the number 4, followed by another letter. Example:

Uruguay

Uruguay uses CXB followed by a number as a callsign.

Venezuela

Venezuela uses YV call signs. Examples:

Asia

Japan

In Japan, television and radio stations use calls beginning with JO.

Philippines

In the Philippines, stations may use callsigns in the following manner: callsigns beginning with DW and DZ represent all stations in Metro Manila and parts of Luzon. Calls beginning with DY represent all stations in Visayas, parts of Palawan and Masbate; and callsigns beginning with DX represents all stations in Mindanao. Originally from 1920 to 1940 callsigns beginning with KZ were assigned to all stations in the Philippines.

Taiwan

Taiwan uses BET followed by a number as a callsign. Examples:

Other regions

Most European and Asian countries do not use call signs to identify broadcast stations, but Japan (JO), South Korea (HL), the Philippines (DW, DZ, DY and DX) and Taiwan (BET) do have call sign systems (which are explained above). Britain has no call signs in the American sense, but broadcast stations are allowed to choose their own trademark call sign up to six words in length.[ citation needed ]

Callbooks

Page from an FCC callbook, 1919 Callbook 1919 excerpt.jpg
Page from an FCC callbook, 1919

A directory of radio station call signs is called a callbook. Callbooks were originally bound books that resembled a telephone directory and contains the name and addressees of licensed radio stations in a given jurisdiction (country). Modern Electrics published the first callbook in the United States in 1909. [5]

Today, the primary purpose of a callbook is to allow amateur radio operators to send a confirmation post card, called a QSL card, to an operator with whom they have communicated via radio. Callbooks have evolved to include on-line databases that are accessible via the Internet to instantly obtain the address of another amateur radio operator and their QSL Managers. The most well known and used on-line QSL databases include QRZ.COM, [6] IK3QAR, [7] HamCall, [8] F6CYV, [9] DXInfo, [10] OZ7C [11] and QSLInfo. [12]

See also

Related Research Articles

The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) allocates call sign prefixes for radio and television stations of all types. They also form the basis for, but may not exactly match, aircraft registration identifiers. These prefixes are agreed upon internationally, and are a form of country code. A call sign can be any number of letters and numerals but each country must only use call signs that begin with the characters allocated for use in that country.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Media of Canada</span> Overview of the media of Canada

The media of Canada is highly autonomous, uncensored, diverse, and very regionalized. Canada has a well-developed media sector, but its cultural output—particularly in English films, television shows, and magazines—is often overshadowed by imports from the United States. As a result, the preservation of a distinctly Canadian culture is supported by federal government programs, laws, and institutions such as the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC), the National Film Board of Canada (NFB), and the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC).

Call signs are frequently still used by North American broadcast stations, in addition to amateur radio and other international radio stations that continue to identify by call signs worldwide. Each country has a different set of patterns for its own call signs. Call signs are allocated to ham radio stations in Barbados, Canada, Mexico and the United States.

Station identification is the practice of radio and television stations and networks identifying themselves on-air, typically by means of a call sign or brand name. This may be to satisfy requirements of licensing authorities, a form of branding, or a combination of both. As such, it is closely related to production logos, used in television and cinema alike.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KYW (AM)</span> All-news radio station in Philadelphia

KYW is a commercial AM radio station licensed to serve Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is one of the oldest continuously operating radio stations in the United States, originating in Chicago before moving to Philadelphia in 1934. KYW's unusual history includes its call sign of only three letters, beginning with a K, rare for a station in the Eastern United States. It broadcasts an all-news radio format and is branded as "KYW Newsradio". KYW serves as the flagship station of Audacy, Inc. KYW's studios are co-located within Audacy's corporate headquarters in Center City Philadelphia and its transmitter and two-tower directional antenna array are located in Lafayette Hill.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aircraft registration</span> Registration and identification assigned to an individual aircraft by civil aviation authorities

An aircraft registration is a code unique to a single aircraft, required by international convention to be marked on the exterior of every civil aircraft. The registration indicates the aircraft's country of registration, and functions much like an automobile license plate or a ship registration. This code must also appear in its Certificate of Registration, issued by the relevant civil aviation authority (CAA). An aircraft can only have one registration, in one jurisdiction, though it is changeable over the life of the aircraft.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WBME-CD</span> MeTV station in Milwaukee

WBME-CD, virtual channel 41, is a low-power, Class A MeTV owned-and-operated television station licensed to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States. Owned by Chicago-based Weigel Broadcasting, it is sister to CBS affiliate WDJT-TV, Racine-licensed independent station WMLW-TV and low-power Telemundo affiliate WYTU-LD. The stations share studios in the Renaissance Center office complex on South 60th Street in West Allis, while WBME-CD's transmitter is located in Milwaukee's Lincoln Park.

In broadcasting and radio communications, a call sign is a unique identifier for a transmitter station. A call sign can be formally assigned by a government agency, informally adopted by individuals or organizations, or even cryptographically encoded to disguise a station's identity.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">QSL card</span> Amateur radio transmission confirmation card

A QSL card is a written confirmation of either a two-way radiocommunication between two amateur radio or citizens band stations; a one-way reception of a signal from an AM radio, FM radio, television or shortwave broadcasting station; or the reception of a two-way radiocommunication by a third party listener. A typical QSL card is the same size and made from the same material as a typical postcard, and most are sent through the mail as such.

Call signs in New Zealand are no longer generally used to identify broadcast stations. However, New Zealand's radio stations were once known by their call signs and would usually broadcast their call signs as a number followed by X, Y, or Z, and another letter. Call signs are regulated internationally by the ITU and nationally by the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE), formerly the Ministry of Economic Development. The ministry is also responsible for providing policy advice to Government on the allocation of New Zealand's radio spectrum to support, efficient, reliable and responsive wireless telecommunications and broadcasting infrastructure.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Broadcast relay station</span> Repeater transmitter

A broadcast relay station, also known as a satellite station, relay transmitter, broadcast translator (U.S.), re-broadcaster (Canada), repeater or complementary station (Mexico), is a broadcast transmitter which repeats the signal of a radio or television station to an area not covered by the originating station.

Call signs in Australia are allocated by the Australian Communications and Media Authority and are unique for each broadcast station. The use of callsigns on-air in both radio and television in Australia is optional, so many stations used other on-air identifications. Australian broadcast stations officially have the prefix VL- and originally all callsigns used that format, but since Australia has no nearby neighbours, this prefix is no longer used except in an international context.

Amateur radio call signs are allocated to amateur radio operators around the world. The call signs are used to legally identify the station or operator, with some countries requiring the station call sign to always be used and others allowing the operator call sign instead.

Call signs in Mexico are unique identifiers for telecommunications, radio communication, radio broadcasting and transmission. They are regulated internationally by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) as well as nationally by the Federal Telecommunications Institute, which regulates broadcast stations, wireless telecommunications and spectrum use.

Call signs in Asia are rarely used to identify broadcast stations. In most Asian countries, broadcast stations use other forms of identification. Japan, South Korea, Indonesia, the Philippines and Taiwan are exceptions to this rule. Amateur radio stations in India, Pakistan, Korea and Japan are allocated call-signs.

Call signs in South America are used for a variety of purposes, including identifying radio and TV stations. Argentina and Brazil both have broadcast call signs systems. Some stations still broadcast their call signs a few times a day, but this practice is becoming very rare. Call signs were first assigned to South American countries in 1913, and the call sign blocks were expanded to include amateur radio in 1947.

Call signs in Canada are official identifiers issued to the country's radio and television stations. Assignments for broadcasting stations are made by the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC), while amateur stations receive their call signs from Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada. Conventional radio and television broadcasting stations assignments are generally three, four or five letters long and almost exclusively use "C" call signs; with a few exceptions noted below, the "V" calls are restricted to specialized uses such as amateur radio.

Call signs in the United States are identifiers assigned to radio and television stations, which are issued by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and, in the case of most government stations, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA). They consist of from 3 to 9 letters and digits, with their composition determined by a station's service category. By international agreement, all call signs starting with the letters K, N and W, as well as AAA-ALZ, are reserved exclusively for use in the United States.

References

  1. ↑ http://www.trentu.ca/org/trentradio/ic/bpr01.htm.{{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  2. ↑ "Broadcasting transmitter (apparatus) licences". Australian Communications and Media Authority . Retrieved 20 June 2021.
  3. ↑ Australian Communications and Media Authority (April 2021). "Section 7: Television Callsign order (by state)" (PDF). Radio and television broadcasting stations: Internet edition (PDF). ACMA. p. 204-205. Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 June 2021. Retrieved 20 June 2021. CC-BY icon.svg Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) licence.
  4. ↑ Australian Communications and Media Authority (April 2021). "Section 2VHF FM RADIOCallsign order" (PDF). Radio and television broadcasting stations: Internet edition (PDF). ACMA. Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 June 2021. Retrieved 20 June 2021. CC-BY icon.svg Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) licence.
  5. ↑ Gernsback, H (May 1909). First Annual Official Wireless Blue Book of the Wireless Association of America (PDF). New York: Modern Electrics Publication. Retrieved 2019-02-27.
  6. ↑ "QRZ.COM" . Retrieved 2010-11-24.
  7. ↑ "Qsl Manager - Qsl Info on-line" . Retrieved 2010-11-24.
  8. ↑ "World Wide HamCall Callsign Server" . Retrieved 2010-11-24.
  9. ↑ "QSL INFORMATION by F6CYV". Archived from the original on 2011-07-20. Retrieved 2010-11-24.
  10. ↑ "DXInfo, your DX web resource". Archived from the original on 2010-11-11. Retrieved 2010-11-24.
  11. ↑ "QSL Search machine by OZ7C" . Retrieved 2010-11-24.
  12. ↑ "QSLInfo" . Retrieved 2010-11-24.
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