We've all been there. You're watching your favorite television program at a respectable volume. Suddenly, they cut to commercial only to have the volume seemingly doubled. You franticly turn the volume down, trying to not be blasted out of your seat.
These days might be over thanks to the FCC. The "noise" of TV commercials is set to be regulated in the hopes of eliminating those ridiculously loud commercials that far exceed the volume of the programming they are placed in. You may recall that the CALM act, or the act that would force television commercials to be the same volume as their programming, was passed over a year ago.
Now that the act is up and running we have just one thing to say - Finally.
Why did it take so long for the act to go into place? Basically, the FCC gave television companies time to make adjustments to the new regulations. According to this thread on Reddit, people are reporting that television companies had to go out and switch to new equipment in order to ensure the volume of all commercials is equal to the programming.
Will the new act be taken seriously by broadcast companies? It's too early to tell. The FCC has provided a phone number (888-225-5322) that you can call to report commercials that are too loud. The FCC will then look into these complaints and issue fines to the broadcast companies responsible. It has been reported that the group responsible for editing the commercial to have the overly loud volume will be the ones receiving the heaviest fines, but it has been noted that all those involved in the commercial airing are on the hook.
If you watch most of your programming through your DVR, this article might not mean much to you. However, for those of us that regularly watch live television what the FCC is doing is sweet music, and sweet relief, for our ears.
Now if only someone would do something about those radio ads that use dangerous sound effects, such as sirens, cars crashing, etc. Too many times I've been driving and looking for the police car or ambulance in the area only to realize it's a commercial for auto insurance. Eliminating that should be the FCC's next order of business.
