[BC] Question on Call Letters

[Bill Croghan]

Paul,
	They might, then again they might just change the format so that new
Broadcast calls could have 5 characters, i.e. WXYZA, KABCD, etc.  There is
no regulation, just convention that determines the format, just the opening
letters, BUT since we theoretically have about 17,000 possible combinations
beginning with W and the same number beginning with K, it's unlikely that
the US will run out of call signs for Broadcasters in those prefixes anytime
soon. Additionally, the four digit calls can be modified by just adding -FM
or -AM or _TV and that triples the possibilities.  A few combinations will
probably not be issued, such as KSEX or KRAP.  I'll let your imagination
fill in the others.
	Some of the more interesting calls have been tied up.  Back in the
40's when my 1460 AM station went on the air, the owner wanted KENO but
figured the FCC would not allow a gambling game for a call sign, even here
in Las Vegas.  That call was put down as the second choice and the first
choice was something else (no-one seems to remember what.)  When the FCC
checked, the first choice was already assigned to a ship at sea, so we got
KENO, and have held onto it ever since.

Bill
Bill Croghan CPBE WB?KSW
Chief Engineer, 
KOMP/KXPT/KENO/KBAD/KWWN
Lotus Broadcasting
Las Vegas, NV
Email to loteng (at) lvradio.com
Phone 702-315-3030
Fax      702-876-6685


> 
> In Amateur Radio, we have callsigns in the USA that start with A, K, N
> and W, and some government utility HF stations' callsigns begin  with >K,
N and W.   Is this the same with broadcast stations?  If  we were >ever to
run out of K and W callsigns (probably unlikely, but just for  > the sake of
the  argument),  would the FCC issue broadcast callsigns
> starting with  A or N?