Seven of the top U.S. radio companies today announced a strategic alliance to accelerate the rollout of HD Digital Radio, the terrestial competitor to satellie radio services like XM Radio and Sirius.Seven of the top U.S. radio companies today announced a strategic alliance to accelerate the rollout of HD Digital Radio, the terrestial competitor to satellie radio services like XM Radio and Sirius.
The HD Radio Alliance will be composed of Bonneville International, Citadel Broadcasting, Clear Channel Radio, Cumulus, Emmis Communications, Entercom, Greater Media, and Infinity Broadcasting.
Statons that use the new technology will be referred to as "H2" stations. The service will be free, although consumers wishing to tune in will need to buy a new stereo, such as the iBiquity Digital radio based on a Texas Instruments chip.
Originally approved by the FCC in 2002, HD Radio is a high-definition free alternative to the satellite radio services that digital audio broadcasters like XM provide. To date, a few hundred stations already broadcast in the new format, mostly independent operators. It remains to be seen, however, what translating today's music into a free-to-air digital signal will mean for the content industry; legislation has already been proposed to limit HD radio recordings.
Although some experts have predicted that HD Radio would be widespread in the market by year's end, the HD Radio Alliance said that they would announce market-specific "HD2" programming line-up early in the new year, including launch dates, specifics on specialized multicast signals, and a nationwide consumer marketing campaign. The announcement will likely be made at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas in January.
The pull of digital radio is that it allows broadcasters to transmit the digital signals in the same frequency bands as their analog counterparts, and add digital "side-channels" that would allow an "A" or a "B" channel to transmit supplementary news or information, or provide an alternative music channel to the mix the broadcaster was currently airing.
The Alliance's charter will include coordinating the rollout of HD digital radio, including the new HD2 formats; securing design wins of the new HD2 stereos within automobiles; and marketing the format. Member companies will also devote more than $200 million in commercial
inventory on their own stations in 2006 to promote HD digital radio and the new HD2 multicast channels, the organization said.
Other terrestial services include the Eureka-147 service marketed in parts of Europe, and Digital Radio Mondiale, designed to bring FM-quality sound to AM stations.
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