How far will they go?
Daniel R. Messano, KE4RAP, is an amateur operator in Augusta, GA, and holds a Technician class lice nse from the FCC.
The messages being solicited make no mention of Swatch, only that the 'beat' must be included. So a .wav file is transmitted that says " My heart beats for for my girlfriend Pam" what is so wrong with this, as long as the station identifies with an amateur callsign?
Let's see... Next time, they put up a sat that is slightly more "suggestive", but that doesn't actually say Swatch. They wait a few months, or even a year, put up a sat with even more "suggestive" messages, maybe even putting the name Swatch in it this time.
In reference to another statement I read earlier, I strongly disagree with how commercial interest could benefit the amateur satellite program. This could benefit us in the short term. Perhaps we get a 12 band Geo-Sat out of it. COOL! Next time, they ask for a slight mention of their corporation at :15 and :45 minutes past the hour. Pretty soon, and a couple of sats down the line, their name is all over it. NOW HAVE WE, or HAVE WE NOT, made a STRONG case for the little LEO folks? Best of all, we encouraged it.
The point is, if you don't nip it in the bud, there's no telling how far they will go the next time. I agree that this BEATNIK sat is not the full blown billboard that some might claim it is, but the seeds are being planted for just that scenario.
I feel bad for those at AMSAT France that worked hard on this project. All of their hard work is very appreciated, and it's a shame that it will be overshadowed by the vileness of a bunch of sell-outs. I hope this doesn't make them reconsider doing a similar project in the future with a much more RELIABLE organization. NASA maybe?
73, de Danny
Daniel R. Messano
ke4rap@arrl.net