NAB and Xperi Want Higher Power Digital FM

The FCC should amend its rules on in-band/on-channel (IBOC) digital audio broadcasting to allow for higher digital FM power levels, said a non-docketed petition for rulemaking from NAB and Xperi posted Wednesday. The agency should “adopt an updated formula to determine FM power levels for stations seeking to exceed the currently authorized FM digital ERP of -14 dBc,” which would allow “more stations to increase digital power above the existing -14 dBc level, without the need for separate FCC authorization,” the petition said. The change would improve digital FM coverage and digital FM signal penetration of buildings while “continuing to minimize the probability of harmful interference to adjacent channel stations,” the petition said. Wednesday’s petition “dovetails” with a 2019 request from NAB, Xperi and NPR to permanently authorize FM radio stations to utilize IBOC with asymmetric sideband power levels, and the two petitions should be combined into a single rulemaking, NAB and Xperi said.