That's great, seems like they're really thinking of broadcast service to the people! It seems the one rule there is that stations are no closer than 1km to each other, hundred watt class. I'm sure they don't mean that close on the same frequency, but it sounds like a way to keep the density down.

I don't think a whole lot of people in the US are looking for LPAM really, I've seen a couple of AM initiative sites out there, but you can just see that there's not a lot of talk and the masses aren't huddling around them, as good as the idea of LPAM might be.

I think AM's reputation isn't too good among listeners, and the same thing with some broadcasters who might use such a service for community broadcasting. I see constantly that AM is described as all 'sports talk and angry right wing programs', saying I guess that it's so specialized that most people don't want to tune it in. People don't even seem to want to put pirate stations on AM these days, it's all about FM for free radio now, but then that's a trend that's been happening for decades. It will just have to be proven by believers that AM is good.

Low power isn't too bad at the higher end of the AM broadcast band, where a 10 watt AM transmitter on a short antenna can cover a few square miles with a good signal, like tourist info stations do. At the high end frequencies, there's a good bit of groundwave attenuation with distance, so signals drop fast after a mile or two on TIS stations, which is good for local broadcasting and not interfering with others, keeping the strong signal within your community. That's the spirit of LPFM right, keeping the coverage within a few mile radius.

There's safety and economy in the low power used, and the idea that the AM antenna is mounted at ground level, so you don't have to pay for tower space, and have that tower lease as a monetary load on your station every month. The low profile AM antenna might be able to be placed right on your organization's own lot for a one time cost.

Very cool Australian 100 watt transmitter advertised on that page too. I went to the site and was impressed with the way the design looked, all new tech and high efficiency PDM, even if the power supply was open frame. It said to call for pricing, which is a warning that you probably can't afford it! Cool looking though.

Boomer