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HD Radio comes to 17 new markets

Gee...according to that, Howard Stern must have the 20 million or so listeners he had on terrestrial radio. Wait...there are only six million TOTAL Sirius subscribers...far less than the number of listeners to terrestrial radio in any one of the largest markets.

Weekly listening to terrestrial radio: more than 200 million.

Weekly listening to satellite radio: well...there are only 13-15 million total subscribers!

The vast majority of terrestrial stations are profitable.

XM and Sirius are money-pits...burning stockholder money as if it were firewood! Internet radio is a black hole into which investors pour money, and yet nobody ever makes back a cent. (And I am a loyal listener to both satellite AND internet radio. Thank God my money is otherwise invested!)

Post, and post, and post away. While more radios are introduced, AND SOLD, more stations convert to HD, and the bandwagon rolls on. Later this year, Detroit rolls out HD in a big way. Say what you like, GM and Ford trump ANY Japanese manufacturer...and HD is going in vehicles from both. It isn't there yet, but soon HD will reach "critical mass", where the momentum is so great, there will be no turning back. And the technology has got a wind at it's back.

The salesperson I spoke to at Radio Shack this weekend didn't know about HD2 streams. After I spoke with her, she said she'd probably take home an Accurian herself. And she certainly will know how to sell the technology to future customers. I even showed her how to get HD in the mall (a pair of ten dollar "wabbit ears")

And HD rolls on! ;D
 
Mike said:
It isn't there yet, but soon HD will reach "critical mass", where the momentum is so great, there will be no turning back. And the technology has got a wind at it's back.
HD radio has no momentum, and can't gain traction even with a half Billion in promotion and advertising.
A technology like HD radio that depends on lies and deception to peddle itself, can't compete, is doomed, and that "wind at its back" is just flatulence.
 
Mike Walker said:
Gee...according to that, Howard Stern must have the 20 million or so listeners he had on terrestrial radio. Wait...there are only six million TOTAL Sirius subscribers...far less than the number of listeners to terrestrial radio in any one of the largest markets.

Weekly listening to terrestrial radio: more than 200 million.

Weekly listening to satellite radio: well...there are only 13-15 million total subscribers!

The vast majority of terrestrial stations are profitable.

XM and Sirius are money-pits...burning stockholder money as if it were firewood! Internet radio is a black hole into which investors pour money, and yet nobody ever makes back a cent. (And I am a loyal listener to both satellite AND internet radio. Thank God my money is otherwise invested!)

Post, and post, and post away. While more radios are introduced, AND SOLD, more stations convert to HD, and the bandwagon rolls on. Later this year, Detroit rolls out HD in a big way. Say what you like, GM and Ford trump ANY Japanese manufacturer...and HD is going in vehicles from both. It isn't there yet, but soon HD will reach "critical mass", where the momentum is so great, there will be no turning back. And the technology has got a wind at it's back.

The salesperson I spoke to at Radio Shack this weekend didn't know about HD2 streams. After I spoke with her, she said she'd probably take home an Accurian herself. And she certainly will know how to sell the technology to future customers. I even showed her how to get HD in the mall (a pair of ten dollar "wabbit ears")

And HD rolls on! ;D

Prove, that HD is going to be in vehicles ! With in-dash Wireless Internet, as Ford announced, is being offered in their 2008 models - no one is going to spend hundreds on in-dash crappy, local HD Radio, when they can have complete access to the Internet. See you miss the point -- broadcasters can broadcast away in HD, and zillions of in-dash and table-top HD radios can be made, but consumers ARE NOT INTERESTED:

http://www.google.com/trends?q="hd+radio",+"internet+radio",+sirius,+xm,+podcast

:D
 
Mike said:
And HD rolls on!
Like sticky, stinky, old, deodorant, Mike?

HD radios that may be put in cars are not standard, but optional.
Radio has been negotiating—with little success—with automobile manufacturers to get HD radios installed in new cars. Without HD radio as a standard option in cars, it seems unlikely that these radios will reach critical mass anytime soon.
http://www.mediaweek.com/mw/current/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003535365
If you offer something that’s cheap, convenient and of high quality such as the CD, they will spend billions. But not on a digital (HD) radio that plays the same stuff their FM radio already plays.
http://www.fmqb.com//article.asp?id=335154
Mike also said:
Internet radio is a black hole into which investors pour money, and yet nobody ever makes back a cent. (And I am a loyal listener to both satellite AND internet radio. Thank God my money is otherwise invested!)
Yet, from: http://www.mediaweek.com/mw/current/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003535365
In an effort to increase revenues, nearly every radio station has created a Web site and many are broadcasting audio streams of their programming on those sites. While this new play is still in relative infancy, stations have been successful in generating modest bottom line additions. Through a combination of selling banner ads, e-mail blasts and streaming commercials, stations are adding revenue that now equal to approximately 0.50-0.75 percent of a station's overall revenues.
That's a lot more money then HD Radio, which has been a Billion dollar drain on revenues.
Proving, conclusively, once again, that HD radio supporters are in denial, and will say anything to support their defective, destructive HD radio technology.
 
Prove HD will be in vehicles? Oh goodie, can I?

Alright...there's this http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/070107/nysu061.html?.v=1

And this http://www.twice.com/article/CA6405250.html

And this http://www.ibiquity.com/press_room/news_releases/2007/405

And this http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=109&STORY=/www/story/01-07-2007/0004500973&EDATE=

And this http://www.autospies.com/news/BMW-to-Be-the-First-to-Offer-HD-Radio-10951/

Ok it's largely the same (BMW) announcement from different sites. But that's what we journalists call "confirming sources". GM will be including HD too, but I couldn't find any info online (read it in Radio World, I believe). Further proof that there's a whole world beyond what one can "Google". (Admittedly it's an increasingly smaller world. It's amazing what CAN be found on Google!)
 
Mike Walker said:
Prove HD will be in vehicles? Oh goodie, can I?

Alright...there's this http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/070107/nysu061.html?.v=1

And this http://www.twice.com/article/CA6405250.html

And this http://www.ibiquity.com/press_room/news_releases/2007/405

And this http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=109&STORY=/www/story/01-07-2007/0004500973&EDATE=

And this http://www.autospies.com/news/BMW-to-Be-the-First-to-Offer-HD-Radio-10951/

Ok it's largely the same (BMW) announcement from different sites. But that's what we journalists call "confirming sources". GM will be including HD too, but I couldn't find any info online (read it in Radio World, I believe). Further proof that there's a whole world beyond what one can "Google". (Admittedly it's an increasingly smaller world. It's amazing what CAN be found on Google!)

We already know about BMWs - but HD Radio is an expensive $500 option, and only considered a luxery item. You still have not provided proof, otherwise, concerning the other car manufactures, but I can prove there has been little progress:

"MediaWeek: It's the Talent, Stupid"

"Radio has been negotiating—with little success—with automobile manufacturers to get HD radios installed in new cars. Without HD radio as a standard option in cars, it seems unlikely that these radios will reach critical mass anytime soon."

http://www.mediaweek.com/mw/current/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003535365

But, you quoted of iNiquity's website ! :D
 
Prove HD will be in vehicles? Well it's imossible to prove what hasn't happened yet. Only that which exists, or has existed can be "proven".

But name an audio technology that HASN'T reached the autmotive sector. HD ALREADY HAS (the aftermarket is HUGE, and has been for decades). The only one I can think of (that hasn't really reached cars) is internet radio. After all...we've got analog am and fm, cassette, cd, hell there have even been car audio systems that played phonograph records! We've got mp3, ipod docking stations, HD, XM and Sirius, analog AM stereo (yes there are CURRENT vehicles that still include AM Stereo). What's missing? Internet radio. But I wouldn't rule that out. It'll get there. So will FACTORY INSTALLED HD. Sooner, rather than later. Car audio systems help sell the vehicles themselves. So eventually EVERY technology that SOMEONE might want makes it to cars. GM even installed DAT players in cars! Do you really think with an installed base of more than a thousand stations, HD WON'T make it into dashboards? I'd bet the grocery money on it. It's not a matter of it, but when. My guess is late this year (although BMW certainly counts! I see plenty of 'em on the roads...they're certainly real, production cars! HD is on the roads NOW!)
 
Mike Walker said:
But name an audio technology that HASN'T reached the autmotive sector. HD ALREADY HAS (the aftermarket is HUGE, and has been for decades).

Gee Mike, have you purchased a new car in the last few years? In all but very basic models, the radios in most cars are integrated into the vehicle in so many ways it’s unbelievable. It is going to make after-market installations very difficult for all but the very enthusiastic (and well heeled). It is no longer a do it yourself product. Most new cars have four or five computer systems, some of which will not be happy if you start messing with them. Interestingly, they are frequently integrated into your factory car radio. My car has GPS, cell phone, On-Star, a six CD changer, XM, AM & FM as well as a security system and visual displays of car diagnostics all routed through what looks like the car radio. Basic functions can be controlled from the radio or from the steering wheel. Further, there are separate controls in the back seat for rear passengers, which allow them to listen to something different through headphones. This is coupled with a bunch of active (powered) speakers located throughout the car as well as a subwoofer, which is very well hidden. It is a remarkably complicated system, and this is in a "midrange" Chevrolet. There are lots more complicated factory systems out there.

I'm pretty handy with a soldering iron, but there is no way I'd contemplate removing it and replacing it with after market equipment. It is definitely a job for someone who really knows what they are doing and has a good schematic of the cars existing system. The days of spending a Sunday afternoon under the dash of your car installing a new radio are going the same way as tuning up your Model T Ford. It used to be easy, but it isn't any more. This leaves most of the “do it yourself” after-market products to the owners of older and simpler cars. If you are under 25 and drive a ‘97 Ford Taurus, installing a new HD radio might be in your future. If you have a new car, it probably isn’t. There is most likely a message in those demographics. Maybe the guy who said it is foolish to program HD for anyone over 30 is absolutely correct.

I know there will always be a few people who are willing to spend more on a car's sound system than they did for the car. Bless their hearts. There is an entire industry that depends on these folks. If one half of one percent of all car radios are after market, then you are right, it is a huge market, but that is not enough to make IBOC a success. Until these radios become standard equipment on every new car, you are just spinning your wheels.
 
Chuck wrote: "...Basic functions can be controlled from the radio or from the steering wheel.  Further, there are separate controls in the back seat for rear passengers, which allow them to listen to something different through headphones....It is a remarkably complicated system...There are lots more complicated factory systems out there."

I think you'll find this automobile entertainment system that was announced last September quite interesting, thanks to Intel, StreetDeck and VW. Watch the YouTube video at the link below:

http://www.streetdeck.com/node/12

No HD radio to be found either.
 
Mike Walker said:
Mediaweek reports that HD Radio will be on in 17 new markets by the end of the month. That brings to 85 of the top 100 markets with HD. In fact, HD so far seems to be ONLY in top-100 markets. Here's a link to the article

http://www.mediaweek.com/mw/news/tvstations/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003535531

"HD Radio Adds 17 More Markets (Zzzz)"

"Some of HD2 stations in my area only seem to broadcast the same exact thing as the HD1 stations... or just the lovely sound of silence. Only a handful provide unique HD2 content."

http://www.orbitcast.com/archives/hd-radio-adds-17-more-markets-zzzz.html

ZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzz... :D
 
vsa said:
Chuck wrote: "...Basic functions can be controlled from the radio or from the steering wheel. Further, there are separate controls in the back seat for rear passengers, which allow them to listen to something different through headphones....It is a remarkably complicated system...There are lots more complicated factory systems out there."

I think you'll find this automobile entertainment system that was announced last September quite interesting, thanks to Intel, StreetDeck and VW. Watch the YouTube video at the link below:

http://www.streetdeck.com/node/12

No HD radio to be found either.

This baby is so advanced, it has no AM radio capability.
Take a look at the feature list.
FM radio is listed, as is everything else short of a digital nose-blower.

But no AM. This is an even bigger problem.
 
chuck said:
If one half of one percent of all car radios are after market, then you are right, it is a huge market, but that is not enough to make IBOC a success. Until these (HD) radios become standard equipment on every new car, you are just spinning your wheels.
Chuck is right. HD radio supporters are in denial, and just peddling defective, destructive, fantasies.
 
You're right. I made it up. HD wasn't just introduced to 17 new markets. It's not now in 85 of the top 100. There aren't a thousand stations, half of which multicast. It's not just being introduced as a factory installed option. There aren't more new manufacturers, models, and stations all the time. My bad.
 
Mike Walker said:
Mediaweek reports that HD Radio will be on in 17 new markets by the end of the month. That brings to 85 of the top 100 markets with HD. In fact, HD so far seems to be ONLY in top-100 markets. Here's a link to the article

http://www.mediaweek.com/mw/news/tvstations/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003535531

And as HD Radio boasts about being in 17 new markets comes this new report on internet radio:

(JP Morgan Securities analyst John) "Blackledge’s study finds that the Internet radio audience has grown to about 30 million listeners per week in January 2006, up from 20 million in January 2005. Internet radio's monthly audience has increased about 27% annually since 2000.

“Overall, unique visitors to all of Internet radio grew 22% year over year in December 2006, to about 59 million,” Blackledge reports. “Since December 2005, the Internet radio audience has grown at a 1.6% monthly compounded rate.”

So the competitive pressure continues to build on both HD Radio and satcasters.

db
 
Mike Walker said:
You're right. I made it up. HD wasn't just introduced to 17 new markets. It's not now in 85 of the top 100. There aren't a thousand stations, half of which multicast. It's not just being introduced as a factory installed option. There aren't more new manufacturers, models, and stations all the time. My bad.

Yeah, but is anyone really listening?
 
I don't understand why so many people on this board hate HD radio technology and want it to fail. As with any technology, it has its pros and cons.

Internet radio is limited by the bandwidth crunch of the internet. Therefore, the broadcasters can not stream in a high bitrate such as 384 kbps. Especially if you live in an urban area, you can bet that the WiMax or bandwidth spectrum will be crowded and there will be stream delay.

Satellite radio has nationwide coverage, but neither companies are making a profit, subscriber churn is high, and consumer adoption has slowed significantly. I really hope satellite radio is successful but the future is not so bright for either company.

Ipods are nice, but you have to have some source to add new content to your library otherwise listening to the same content gets old quickly. Internet radio in the car will kill the need for an iPod because you can listen to content on demand, of any format, from anywhere!

What would make you guys accept HD radio???

What if, through R&D, HD radio was able to improve the reception issue and work out the AM interference??

What if Ibquity were to open source their technology so that community stations and smaller markets can adopt the technology faster and there were no royalties involved??

What if HD radio were to fail and disappear and every company were to give up completely? I know that would make most of you happy but as consumers, how will we benefit???

I personally have nothing to gain if HD radio were to succeed or fail, and my life will not be affected either way. Keep in mind that this is a business, not a religion!
 
louisNatl said:
What would make you guys accept HD radio???

What if, through R&D, HD radio was able to improve the reception issue and work out the AM interference??

What if Ibquity were to open source their technology so that community stations and smaller markets can adopt the technology faster and there were no royalties involved??

That would work. Unfortunately, Ibiquity's version of HD Radio does none of the above. Fix that, and you have winner. If you think they can or will do that, I'd like to have some of whatever you are smoking. Pass the pipe...
 
I'm with Chuck on one point. I don't think the AM problem is solvable. But FM is a different matter. It works spectacularly well for me...and others. My greatest consistent distant reception of HD is 80 miles, but I've read of others (in flatter terrain than mine) getting reception to 90 miles or greater. Now Ibiquity makes no such claims to this effect. But in the real world, HD is proving to work better than predicted in some specific circumstances. Including multipath. HD is DEFINITELY less succeptible to multipath problems over most of a station's listening area. Denying the positive real world experiences of HD users doesn't bode well to anyone's fairness on the issue. If I posted that "HD is crap, and I can't get anything on my radio" I'm sure there are many here who would back-slap me, and perhaps name their firstborn Mike...even if it's a girl! A little fairness would go a long way!

Back to FM. I'm not saying there aren't problems. There are. Nobody really knows what real-world reception will be like until a technology is used widely in the REAL WORLD. We're now learning, and the technology will undoubtedly evolve accordingly...just as FM stereo did (noisy as hell in distant locations, but some great engineers came up with solutions...automatic blending under what would be noisy conditions, dynamic noise reduction...restricting highs when there's not much treble content, and then the "Asymmetrical Charge Coupled Decoder" from Carver...a bulls@it name for a product that miraculously quieted noisy fm!)
 
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