Hi all,
This is me being serious for once...
I have been striking a number of repeater licenses held by a variety of clubs and individuals that (a) have never been made operational, and (b) are unlikely to ever be made operational.
Please... if you know someone who falls into this category tap them on the shoulder & tell them to cancel the license.
Why?
It is holding back your fellow amateurs who are trying to license repeaters which they actually are wanting to make operational.
I have a number of repeater applications that I'm having to either defer or allocate an inferior frequency to- all because of dormant licenses. In land mobile land we call this Spectrum Banking... and it is seriously frowned upon. It is bl@@dy selfish and holds back others who are trying to provide a service.
Come on guys?
Not naming names... YOU know who you are!
Cheers
Richard
VK2AAH
(wearing my hat of WIA Co-Repeater & Beacon Co-ordinator).
Dormant Licenses
Re: Dormant Licenses
Richard,
Perhaps the WIA should pursue a policy with ACMA that amateur repeaters can be de-listed if they are dormant/off air for more than 1 year? After all, if someone wants a service they can surely get it back to air it if fails within that time frame?
I know in the past when I was involved with SANTTAC we politely used to ask repeater systems licensees to drop frequencies from their applications or would refuse to amend an existing frequency where they were also squatting on other frequencies and not using them (this was unofficial but had the desired result). It isn't fair that people squat on repeater pairs and don't use them. (It is even worst when they are ATV pairs where the spectrum scarcity is much greater).
I would encourage the WIA to make such an approach policy and then take it up with ACMA for endorsement/enforcement.
Regards,
Grant VK5GR
Perhaps the WIA should pursue a policy with ACMA that amateur repeaters can be de-listed if they are dormant/off air for more than 1 year? After all, if someone wants a service they can surely get it back to air it if fails within that time frame?
I know in the past when I was involved with SANTTAC we politely used to ask repeater systems licensees to drop frequencies from their applications or would refuse to amend an existing frequency where they were also squatting on other frequencies and not using them (this was unofficial but had the desired result). It isn't fair that people squat on repeater pairs and don't use them. (It is even worst when they are ATV pairs where the spectrum scarcity is much greater).
I would encourage the WIA to make such an approach policy and then take it up with ACMA for endorsement/enforcement.
Regards,
Grant VK5GR
-
VK2JDS
- Forum Diehard
- Posts: 432
- Joined: Wed Feb 15, 2006 8:17 am
- Location: qf46pv nsw central tablelands
- Contact:
Re: Dormant Licenses
This is so true, a frequency we needed for the town repeater in Orange has been held unused for quite a while, by the remnants of the old Orange radio club, whilst the new regional club required it.
Sadly the surposed 'owner' wouldnt release the frequency, so we had to adopt a frequency that our cavities werent optimised for (notch and peak wrong way round)
Its a great idea to impose a 1 year 'use it or loose it' plan, as this would solve the problem. the remains of the old club have no firm plans or resources to reactivate a repeater on the old frequency, so after a chat on the local club net tonight we are in agreement this is a great plan worth implementing.
73 from Dave vk2jds repeater officer, Amateur Radio Central West Group
Sadly the surposed 'owner' wouldnt release the frequency, so we had to adopt a frequency that our cavities werent optimised for (notch and peak wrong way round)
Its a great idea to impose a 1 year 'use it or loose it' plan, as this would solve the problem. the remains of the old club have no firm plans or resources to reactivate a repeater on the old frequency, so after a chat on the local club net tonight we are in agreement this is a great plan worth implementing.
73 from Dave vk2jds repeater officer, Amateur Radio Central West Group
Re: Dormant Licenses
Nice idea Grant and I'd love to see it happen but...
I can foresee an enormous excrement altercation if they did it. Who is going to act as Repeater auditor? Having now witnessed a number of inter and intra-club bunfights you couldn't depend on locals for a hand on the bible report...
My original post was a spleen vent in the hope that good sense and basic amateur courtesy could happen more often. I still hope it will, there is still a faint trace of idealism left in me...
Cheers
Richard
VK2AAH
I can foresee an enormous excrement altercation if they did it. Who is going to act as Repeater auditor? Having now witnessed a number of inter and intra-club bunfights you couldn't depend on locals for a hand on the bible report...
My original post was a spleen vent in the hope that good sense and basic amateur courtesy could happen more often. I still hope it will, there is still a faint trace of idealism left in me...
Cheers
Richard
VK2AAH
Re: Dormant Licenses
Richard,
Yes I know it would cause the you know what to fly in some cases.
I still believe that at the very least, the WIA should adopt a use it or loose it policy, even if it is used in the future to justify what some would perceive as "alleged sub optimal interference management practices" that in reality wouldn't manifest themselves because the actual repeater they would be interfering with wasn't on air in the first place.
Something I will discuss with SANTTAC and have represented at the next WIA AGM I think.
This is one of the steps that in my humble opinion should have been outlined in the 2m bandplan revamp in 2012 instead of the way the digital voice repeater allocation problems actually haven't been solved by what was done.....
Regards,
Grant VK5GR
Yes I know it would cause the you know what to fly in some cases.
I still believe that at the very least, the WIA should adopt a use it or loose it policy, even if it is used in the future to justify what some would perceive as "alleged sub optimal interference management practices" that in reality wouldn't manifest themselves because the actual repeater they would be interfering with wasn't on air in the first place.
Something I will discuss with SANTTAC and have represented at the next WIA AGM I think.
This is one of the steps that in my humble opinion should have been outlined in the 2m bandplan revamp in 2012 instead of the way the digital voice repeater allocation problems actually haven't been solved by what was done.....
Regards,
Grant VK5GR
Re: Dormant Licenses
There is an important point to remember & that is that the WIA could only "suggest" such a policy to the ACMA. The WIA has, as far as I can see, only a recommendation role- once the license is issued by the ACMA the WIA has absolutely no authority or standing between the ACMA and the license holder. While the license holder keeps paying to renew it, and while ACMA keep allowing it to be renewed, nothing in any ACMA instrument would permit a license to be terminated through lack of use.
I hope there are some good contentious licensing & spectrum issues at the AGM... I love a good debate!
Cheers
Richard
VK2AAH
I hope there are some good contentious licensing & spectrum issues at the AGM... I love a good debate!
Cheers
Richard
VK2AAH
Re: Dormant Licenses
Of course there is...every amateur licence has NO Renewal gaurantee...VK2AAH wrote:nothing in any ACMA instrument would permit a license to be terminated through lack of use.
Re: Dormant Licenses
Non-use has never been a reason for that to happen Trent. I would love to be a lawyer when they choose not to renew an otherwise perfectly valid license... there is nothing in any regulation that I know of that gives ACMA that power for non-use.
Cheers
Richard
Cheers
Richard