The FCC has issued a citation to Absolute Toy Marketing, owner of Hobbytron, for apparently marketing unauthorized FM transmitters and ignoring the Enforcement Bureau’s request for information.
The commission ordered Hobbytron to provide the information and states that failing to do so could result in an $11,000 fine per violation or per day. The commission gave the company 20 days to respond.
The affected transmitters advertised on the HobbyTron.com Web site include models R-FM30B-WT, R-FM100B-WT and UX-150 manufactured by Ramsey Electronics in the U.S. and CanaKit in Canada, according to the agency. The commission said it issued a Notice of Apparent Liability for Forfeiture against the previous owner of HobbyTron, Gibson Tech Ed, for violating the same marketing rule.
In its November response, HobbyTron argued that some kits sold on its site have been assembled for export and the company believes it is allowed to market those because customers are required to fill out a form stating they will export the FM transmitter. It’s not okay, according to the commission, to market non-FCC authorized transmitters in the United States.
Several questions related to the investigation have gone unanswered, the agency stated, and it ordered HobbyTron to provide the information.
