HD Radio Blog

Who's zoomin' who? October 2, 2007 09:36

Are radio broadcasters way behind the technology curve? October 4, 2007 11:27

 
The National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) annual Radio Show was held in Atlanta recently. This convention lead to some interesting comment by Ken Dardis on Audiographics.com.

The way Ken sees it, and I couldn't agree more, is “the radio industry needs to be brought up to speed on new media, literally, overnight. Admittedly, some people within radio have knowledge, but we're talking here about getting executives to grasp how big the Internet has grown. Then they need to believe its impact on everyone who falls into that category of "desirable" to advertisers.”

Dardis went on to list seven other things the industry needs to do in order to survive and prosper. I'm not going to detail all of them as you can read the article yourself by clicking on the URL link. But one point he made that I thought worth mentioning is “Let go of the past. Reproducing what radio was isn't what the audience wants. Also, quit the rhetorical call that radio is producing "compelling" programming. The audience isn't falling for the same repetitious chest-thumping that it did years ago.”

I think this supports what I have been saying for some time and that HD Radio is a where broadcasters should be testing new, innovative programming. Instead, what many of them are doing is just replicating their standard programming but with a slight twist.

Time and technology wait for no man, and that includes radio broadcasters.
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Is AM HD radio about to go bye-bye? October 5, 2007 13:20

 
HD AM radio has encountered a problem that apparently no one at iBiquity foresaw.

As I understand the problem it's that nighttime HD AM broadcasting can interfere with the station's regular AM signal - causing numerous listener complaints.

Citadel Broadcasting, the third largest broadcaster in the U.S. , just pulled the plug on HD AM radio when, in their words, the "results were disappointing."

This can't be good news for the HD Radio Alliance.

According to John Gorman, "iBiquity insists there were only a few complaints about their HD Radio AM folly. Let’s listen in on their response, The vast majority of the feedback we’ve received on AM nighttime broadcasting has been positive."

Could this particular ostrich be sticking its head in the sand?

It makes you wonder.

Has the sound of HD Radio(TM) been lost in the noise of all the other hype? October 11, 2007 09:06

 
I found a well written piece on RWOnline yesterday. The author, Guy Wire (Oh, really), had some very pertinent things to say.

Among them was this, "It hurts to admit it, but HD Radio and all of its marketing effort so far is virtually lost in the noise of all the other hype surrounding hot new consumer electronic 'bling' offerings. Radio to most consumers is a familiar but low-tech commodity, just like water from the tap and electricity from the wall socket. It’s very hard to put any glitz on the product and get the average person’s attention. Is it any wonder HD Radio sales so far are pathetically low?"

Wire also said, "As more stations add HD transmission and HD2 channels, Ibiquity and the HD Digital Radio Alliance are urging stations to do all they can to promote HD Radio sales. Ostensibly, some $200 million in 2007 and $250 million for 2008 has or is being spent on ad schedules and promotions to create awareness of HD with all the new “secret channels.

"Most of that money represents unsold inventory rather than hard dollars. It would appear that very few stations have committed real promotion budgets to independently advertise HD Radio. That’s a tall order with bottom-line industry growth rates mired in single and occasionally negative digits."

And this comes from an HD Radio supporter. More information that makes you go, hmmm.

If you'd like to read the entire, thoughtful article, just click on the Go to URL link

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iBiquity says HD Radio (tm) manufacturing capacity has doubled in the past year October 14, 2007 10:39

 
Ibiquity Digital reports that the demand for HD Radio receivers has resulted in a doubling of partner manufacturing capacity in Asia during the past year.

That's the blurb I read earlier today. However, I was unable to find any article or any post supporting this announcement or any information as to which manufacturers have increased their capacity to what degree.

So, I guess we just trust iBiquity.

Assuming this is true, that's good news for consumers as more capacity generally translates into more competition which translates into lower prices.

We can only hope.

Here come more big bucks - $230 million to be exact October 17, 2007 08:51

 
The HD Digital Radio Alliance has renewed its charter and committed to an additional $230 million in marketing funds for 2008.

If my math serves me correctly, and it often doesn't, this means an expenditure of about $2.3 million a week, every week between now and the end of the year.

Sounds pretty impressive, right? Not necessarily. When stations talk about marketing funds to promote HD Radio, what they're really talking about is something called unsold inventory. In other words, they will advertise HD Radio in whatever time slots are left after the best ones have been sold to advertisers. For example, advertisers love morning and afternoon drive times so don't look for a lot of HD radio ads during these times.

Will this help HD Radio? It certainly can't hurt but whether it will drive millions of people out to buy $200 or $300 radios remains to be seen. I stick to my conviction that HD radio won't take off until there are a lot more HD car radios available, as cars are where most people listen to the radio. And last time I checked, there were only a handful of HD car radio and tuners available. Of course, there could be a number of new product announcements between now and Christmas which would change things dramatically.

It makes for a real mouthful but it's an interesting announcement October 19, 2007 15:04

 
AAMP of America (and no, it's not a muffler company) has announced that it will soon be showing its brand-new Peripheral Electronics Automotive Multimedia Gateway. Wow! Some mouthful.

AAMP says that ''(The) Automotive Multimedia Gateway (is) for numerous late-model Ford, GM and Toyota vehicles. The Gateway seamlessly integrates iPod™, HD Radio™, USB devices and many other portable media products into the factory audio system—without losing any of the factory features and controls.'' It boasts rear-seat entertainment controls and has an extra auxiliary input that supports many other portable electronics, from navigation and game systems to satellite radio tuners and DVD players.

An HD Radio tuner will also be shown by AAMP at an upcoming trade show. AAMP says the tuner plugs into the Gateway and receives analog and digital HD Radio stations, as well as provides complete control of AM and FM tuning through the factory radio.

The release found made no mention of price but you can bet the farm that this will be another expensive unit – which, of course is just what HD Radio needs.

On the other end of the spectrum is the Radiosophy HD100, a nice little unit at a nice, little price. Click on the button below for complete details.

Best Buy now advertising HD Radios October 21, 2007 09:38

 
Imagine my surprise when I opened this week's Best Buy supplement and found ads for not one, not two but four HD Radios.

The four are the Sony Radio Receiver at $199.99, the JFC 50-watt CD Deck with built-in HD tuner, the Sony HD-ready CD Deck and here was the big surprise – the Insignia HD Radio Shelf System with an iPod dock.

Why was I surprised by the Insignia unit? It was because I had never heard of it until the Best Buy ad. I follow HD Radio(TM) pretty closely so had a hard time imagining that there was a new unit that had just slipped by me.

The Insignia Shelf System retails at Best Buy for $149.99, a pretty attractive price. It is described as a complete component system with progressive-scan DVD/CD/MP3 player, 2 speakers and digital AM/FM/HD radio tuner. In addition it Plays DVD, DVD-R, DVD-R DL, DVD+R, DVD+R DL, DVD-RW, DVD-RW DL, DVD+RW, DVD+RW DL, CD-R/RW, CD, VCD/SVCD, JPEG, MP3 and WMA formats.
Whew! I would hope that about covers it.

The Insignia system comes with a remote and shows song information on the front panel. I had two audio inputs, and outputs for composite video, S-video, component video an digital optical output. Best Buy also advertised that the Insignia offers progressive-scan video output that maximizes DVD picture quality when used with a digital TV or monitor.

I have to admit that I am unfamiliar with the Insignia brand but this shelf system seems to deliver a lot of features and capability at a very attractive price.

You might want to get yourself down to your nearest Best Buy and check out this radio.

PC World reviews the new Visteon HD Pulse HDT200 radio October 25, 2007 15:44

 
Yesterday, I found a good review of the new Visteon HD Pulse tabletop radio. The reviewer, Kathy Lu, found some good things to say about this new unit but also found some things she didn't care for much. Click on the URL link below to read important excepts from this review.

Well, at least we'll get one free October 26, 2007 09:13

 
It's always interesting to watch what's going on behind the scenes between big radio and the FCC.

The latest is that both the FCC and the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) have agreed to a ruling that requires digital radio stations to maintain at least one free digital channel (author's italics).

There is a bit of jockeying going on regarding the idea "that stations should be free to develop digital radio in new ways, including potential subscription services." That's according to the NAB. The NAB has gone on to say that "the current (public interest) obligations (work fine and no new ones are necessary."

You think?

Don't get me wrong. I'm all in favor of digital subscription services. The broadcasters need this alternative in order to get a payback on their HD investment. Beyond that, I think that subscription channels could lead to some great and imaginative programming.

But that's just MHO.

This week in brief October 31, 2007 07:42

 
I'm busy this week working on a new project so haven't been able to write as many posts as usual. However, there has been news in the world of digital HD radio, and here are the highlights.

LG announces three new HD car radio components
Korean consumer electronics manufacturer LG Innotek is now offering a series of HD Radio modules for the auto market. The three modules include an aftermarket unit, an ultra small module and an universal tuner box. Each will be on display at LG Innotek's suite at this year's Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) Show in Las Vegas.

Marantz America
Marantz America has announced that" it has begun shipping its highly anticipated Model SR8002 audio/video receiver, The new 7.1-channel receiver, which carries a suggested retail price of $2,099.99, features advanced HDMI 1.3 repeating capability, as well as a host of leading-edge technologies such as HD Radio."

AudioGraphics thinks HD-R is dying
I found an article on the AudioGraphics titled "A Significant Sign in the Death of HD Radio," where in the author made the case that HD Radio must be dying because "HD Radio is not being promoted on radio station web sites." I guess the author has missed the millions of dollars that broadcasters are spending to promote HD Radio, plus the almost weekly news of more manufacturers jumping into HD Radio (see announcement sabove). I've corresponded with the guy behind AudioGraphics who freely admits he has never written anything good about HD Radio. I guess his HD radio glass is just half empty.

But, in all fairness to Ken (the author), you can read his entire article by clicking on the URL link.

On a lighter note, I still like the HD100 rardio from Radiosophy. I think it delivers good value for the money and so far, I have heard from only one unhappy buyer. You can read my review of the HD100 on my website (hd-radio-home.com) and/or click on the button below for more informaiton.

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