Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1927-09-05
RADIO IS PLACED
ON BUSINESS BASIS
Foreign Governments Retain
Air Communication as
MonopoIy'S Lease Rights.

Radio in practically all countries
is strictly a commercial proposition.
Retained by the government as a
monopoly, most countries give broad
cast. These companies maintain their
Quasi-exclusive concessions to broad
cast These companies maintain their
services and earn their profits
through license fees collected from
the owners Of receiving sets.
NJ. Etienne, director of the Interna-
tional Bureau of the Telegraph Union,
who is here from Bern, Switzerland,
to work on preliminary phases of the
international Radiotelegraph Confer
ence soon to convene in Washington,
is authority for the statement that
European programs are about of the
same quality as American. He says re-
Ception here is better, however, and
this he ascribes to greater progress in
the United States in the development
of efficient tranSmitterS.
The French authority's comment is
interesting in view Of the fact that
private broadcasting enterprise here
has free reign, while in Europe and
elsewhere, for the most part, 1t comes
directly under the purvieW of the gov
eminent. Foreign governments even
collect the licenses on the receiving
sets for their concessionaires, and en-
force penalties for failure to pay the
fees.
Canadian listeners must pay IL
cense fee of 81 a year, and the rates
imposed on listeners vary throughout
the world from l franc in France,
about 4 cents, to $50 in Salvador.
In his recent report on world use
of radio, Lawrence Batson of the
United States Department or Com
merce notes that direct advertising
Is a source of profit to stations in
few places in the world but does not
appear to be popular anywhere ana
shows a direct effect in dlmlnutloh
Of interests in radio. On the other
hand. he states, indirect advertising
il practically universal and appears
To he by far the most popular means
of having the costs of broadcaStlnS'
WRCs holiday bill is made up of
its customary regular Monday nlSht
attractions. Except for a talk by
William Green, president of the
American Federation of Labor. which
will open the evening broadcast at
q o'clock, there is nothing on the pro-
gram to emphasize the spirit OF
Labor day.
''The roxy" broadcast will feature
Anna Savina, Russian mezZo-so-
nrano. while the National Grand
Opera Co. will present a tabloid YER
sion of Wagner's opera "Lohengrln.
The Palais dor and Hofbrau Or
chestras will provide the late dance
music.
The c. NJ. T. C. Band from Fort
Washington, Nd, will make its radio
debut tonight through WMAL. A
special concert has been arranged for
the occasion, which will be broadcast
from $50 to $40 o'clock.
Several solos, vocal and instrument
tai. also are on WMAL'S schedule, the
most promising being a recital by Ar
senio Ralon. one of Washington's out
standing violinists. Intersperslng THESE
attractions will be a resume OF the re-
cent activities of TONY the Barber
by Ed Callow, and program ny the
students of the OConnor School OF
Expression.
Radio reception conditions started
<-he week propitiously. While static
xssat an incessant staccato on all the
wave channels and some of the sta
tions were affiliated with fading the
signals came through from all dlrec-
lions with sufficient volume and clar'
fty to overcome these bugaboos.
The Chicago stations particularly
were. exceptional vociferous, as was
KNOX at St. Louis. WAX in Jack
sonville and Zion City's WCBD also
came through strongly.