NAB wants the FCC to release information related to what it says are satellite radio’s violations of rules governing FM modulators and terrestrial repeaters.
NAB filed a Freedom of Information Act request with the FCC seeking the information earlier this year.
“The information at issue here is inextricably linked to the pending application of XM and Sirius to merge” and become the nation’s sole satellite radio provider, states NAB in the filing.
The trade group says following a ruling that granted the partial release of the requested information, the satellite radio companies and several current and former employees filed applications for review, delaying the release of the information.
A year ago, as RW reported, Sirius told the SEC that some of its employees disclosed they asked manufacturers to produce radios that were not within FCC interference-reducing parameters.
A 2006 study conducted for NAB of wireless devices commonly used to transmit audio signals from satellite radio devices and MP3 players to in-dash car equipment showed that 13 of the 17 devices exceeded field strength limits. Both satellite companies say they have reworked the devices since.
