Guitarhacker
Recently, I tested for my amateur radio license and one aspect of the test was rules and regulations. One of those was in regard to the broadcast or rebroadcast of music. No music of any kind, from any source, including background music is permitted. So if you're in your home or car and need to talk on the radio, and you have music playing on the FM radio... you have to turn the FM off to prevent the inadvertant rebroadcast of music on the ham frequencies.....
yes, this is absolutely correct.
Guitarhacker
I imagine this is related closely to copyright laws......
No. The rule is the same even if you owned every possible right to the music.
It's to do with the purpose of amateur radio and its use as defined in the full terms of your license. To summarize, amateur radio is an exception to the general rules and requirements for the rest of the radio world to allow us to build our own equipment and perform operational tests and experiments for the advancement of radio technology. We can perform such "tests" by talking to each other on a one to one basis only. We are not allowed to broadcast. Broadcasting, as done by your local commercial radio station, requires a license of its own.
While it's true that once you press transmit everyone in range (which could be the whole world) can hear you, the amateur license allows you to communicate with one person at a time. By transmitting music you are deemed to be deliberately intending more than one person to hear it, which is broadcasting and against the terms of your license.
Radio "nets" where many people are involved get around this on a technicality by having someone act as a "controller". All communication is directed at the controller (that's the loop hole) who also keeps note of who is taking part and who can talk next.
The only exception I know of is for news bulletins by governing bodies. Here in UK the RSGB issues news every week (or used to, I haven't listened for a long time). This is broadcast on the amateur frequencies (usually 2m) by local amateur volunteers. Under the terms of the exception the news must be read word for word from a pre-prepared script without deviation. Which can produce some interesting Ron Burgundy moments... but rules is rules
Guitarhacker
The only exception to this is if you are talking with the folks on the ISS and they happen to have music playing in the background.... that is permitted.
If a spaceman called you and there was music in the background would you honestly tell him to turn it off?
