Greely pirate radio station’s plug has been pulled
The Ottawa Sun is reporting that Jayhaed Saadé’s pirate radio station is off the air. It’s unclear what finally caused the plug to be pulled, just that he was being “forced to go off air”. Industry Canada’s threat of fines in the order of $5000/day probably played a role.
I didn’t hear his last broadcast, but people in the Digital Home forum said that someone could be heard in the background telling him to turn it off. Whether it was his father or someone from Industry Canada is unknown. He apparently is confident that his application for a broadcast license will be granted, something that most of the posters in the forum think is highly unlikely.
One of his parting comments was something to the effect that when he’s back he’ll have “new equipment”. Does this mean that the equipment he’s been using has been confiscated for good? Hopefully this is exactly what it means because if it were left there, the temptation to turn it back on would probably be too great for him to resist.
And he’s posted the following on his pirate station’s website:
I wish to apologize to the Canadian Radio Television Commission for broadcasting on radio waves 91.9 fm without proper permission and license. At their request, I have voluntarily shut down and will remain so until I can properly obtained their permission to broadcast.
I have disconnected my transmitter and excitor and have put it into third party storage until I can legally operate again. I have hired a broadcast consultant to work with me so that I can get back on the air with the approval of the CRTC.
Even though I am 14 years old and have had a life long passion – a life calling as it were – to be in the radio broadcast industry, I was in the wrong and should not have broadcasted without proper legal permission from the CRTC – our federal government commission that regulates the radio / TV airwaves for the benefit of all Canadians.
My passion for the industry led me from operating on theinternet since I was 7, to desiring to broadcast on the airwaves. I wanted to continue to learn and experiment in this exciting radio industry, but I have come to understand that I was in error and wrong to operate without a proper license.
I sincerely apologize to all concern for my mistake and hope that my youthful enthusiasm will explain and hopefully mitigate somewhat this error.
I want to be a broadcaster amd wish to make it my lifelong career. I will be dedicating myself in the years to come to learn the industry so that I can become the best broadcaster possible.
Sincerely,
J. Saade
So, it looks like we’ve heard the last of him for a while. Hopefully he really has learned from this and isn’t posting this simply to appease Industry Canada.
Time will tell.
A tip o’ the hat to Bob (VA3QV) for writing about the story in the Ottawa Sun.
AKA Keeper of Maps, I'm a geocacher who lives in Ottawa, Canada.
This little twit was back on the air on Dec 24th and Christmas Day. He’s broadcasting copyrighted music and radio shows without permission, without a license, and his letter was completely insincere. If you had seen some of the things this kid has written on radio forums, you’d be appalled. He should be facing time in juvenile detention but it doesn’t seem like anything much is being done about his and his father’s complete disregard for Canadian law.
He was, eh? Hmm… I guess he either has a second transmitter or the “third party” to whom the transmitter was entrusted to has failed to do their job.
Industry Canada needs to drop on this kid and his family like a ton of bricks, seize everything related to the operation of the pirate radio station, impose the fines and explore the other penalties that can be imposed.
You are all Losers! The kid isn’t hurting you! Leave him alone!
Why should he be allowed to continue breaking the law, particularly when he has been given two cease-and-desist orders? Shouldn’t he be held to the same standard that everyone else in the country is?
There are rules pertaining to FM broadcast stations and he should be following those rules.