Number of HD radios sold

[700WLW]

"Will Digital Radio Boom in U.S.?"

"In the United Kingdom, more than 4.7 million digital radios have been sold since 1999... Part of the reason is political. While the U.K. government -- which controls much of the country's broadcasting industry -- was able to influence a national shift to digital, for-profit U.S. broadcasters were hesitant to embrace the unproven and expensive technology until satellite radio emerged as a competitive threat. (IBiquity estimates it costs $80,000 to $100,000 to upgrade a radio station to HD Radio.)... HD Radio receiver sales reached the "low hundred thousands" in 2006, a significant jump from 2005, but miniscule next to XM's and Sirius' more than 13.5 million satellite radio subscribers."

http://www.wired.com/news/technology/0,72514-0.html?tw=wn_index_3

"HD Radio Will Be Affordable in 2005"

"But the big fly in the ointment was the receiver: approximately 35,000 HD receivers, all car-audio models, were sold in 2004. But 2005 will be the break-out year with devices like the Boston Acoustic Receptor Radio appearing in second quarter for about $300.

http://technology360.typepad.com/technology360/digital_radio/index.html

Of course, that article was written, by you know who...

Someone here quoted 35,000 for 2006, but that number may have been for 2004:

"At today's prices, about $500 or more, they appeal mostly to technophiles. But if prices tumble as expected, sales should pick up. And if automakers start offering them, as some plan to do next year in higher-end cars, sales could surge to 4 million units in 2007 from 35,000 this year, research firm In-Stat/MDR said."

http://www.radio-info.com/smf/index.php/topic,59203.10.html

This was from a Washington Post article, dated 2004:

"The Dawn Of HD Radio"

"And if automakers start offering them, as some plan to do next year in higher-end cars, sales could surge to 4 million units in 2007 from 35,000 this year, research firm In-Stat/MDR said."

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A29597-2004Nov5.html

Since, Ferrara is spending his valuable time reading/writing blogs:

http://jacobsmedia.typepad.com/jacobs/2007/01/peter_ferrara_p.html

Let's try to be, as accurate as possible, but we would assume, these numbers are obviously inflated !

 

[Len14043]

I am the one who posted the quote indicating that 35,000 HD radios were sold in 2006. If 35,000 radios were sold in 2004 instead of 2006, I stand corrected. Perhaps the sales were better for 2005 and 2006.

 

[700WLW]

I am the one who posted the quote indicating that 35,000 HD radios were sold in 2006. If 35,000 radios were sold in 2004 instead of 2006, I stand corrected. Perhaps the sales were better for 2005 and 2006.

Sorry, it wasn't intended, as a knock, or anything - just don't want Ferrara laughing at us, if we got the figures wrong. I don't remember hearing about HD Radio, until 2006, so it is VERY hard to believe, that 35,000 were sold in 2004. Interesting, that no figures were reported for 2005 - this leads me to believe, that 35,000 is probably an accurate figure for 2006, not 2004.

 

[Mike Walker]

Also BS about American radio's acceptance of HD. The first time I heard a working prototype of iboc was at the NAB Radio Show in New Orleans in October of 1995! Broadcasters I know have based most of their buying decisions since the mid 90s largely upon "is it good enough for when we go digital". EVERYONE I know was looking forward to this technology. And everyone outside of large, corporate owned (or well financed public) stations was disappointed at the price of the gear once available. It's REALLY cost-prohibitive!

But your sequence is wrong. The technology WAS NOT AVAILABLE until after satellite radio was fairly well established. Satellite radio was three years old in 1994 when the first terrestrial stations became able to experiment with what came to be known as HD. One cannot embrace what isn't available! (Except for the IDEA that digital was the future...which has been embraced by every broadcaster I know for more than a decade! A friend of mine bought a transmitter in 1997 from Harris with the guarantee that if it wasn't cable of being converted to digital, he could swap it for one that was! And this was an AM station) DUH!

 

[700WLW]

Also BS about American radio's acceptance of HD. The first time I heard a working prototype of iboc was at the NAB Radio Show in New Orleans in October of 1995! Broadcasters I know have based most of their buying decisions since the mid 90s largely upon "is it good enough for when we go digital". EVERYONE I know was looking forward to this technology. And everyone outside of large, corporate owned (or well financed public) stations was disappointed at the price of the gear once available. It's REALLY cost-prohibitive!

But your sequence is wrong. The technology WAS NOT AVAILABLE until after satellite radio was fairly well established. Satellite radio was three years old in 1994 when the first terrestrial stations became able to experiment with what came to be known as HD. One cannot embrace what isn't available! (Except for the IDEA that digital was the future...which has been embraced by every broadcaster I know for more than a decade! A friend of mine bought a transmitter in 1997 from Harris with the guarantee that if it wasn't cable of being converted to digital, he could swap it for one that was! And this was an AM station) DUH!

Google Trends, indicates that consumers became aware of HD Radio, starting the beginning of 2004:

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

As we can see, for the past two years, consumer interest in HD Radio and MSN Direct are flat - the 35000 figure, for 2004, is probably accurate for 2006.

 

[dbdigital]

Apparently, iBiquity is at the 'make or break' point for IBOC. They don't have much longer.

Notice this quote:

"I have read business news articles that suggest that Ibiquity Digital is stretching the investor model to the limit and may be close to the “make it or fold it” mark. Typical investor return models call for a five-to-seven-year plan. Original investments in AM FM digital schemes (USA Digital Radio and Lucent Digital Radio) are now 20 years old.

More than $100 million is on the line here. Analysts say Ibiquity has now received the last of its venture capital and the funding is being used to push marketing and sales rather than more technical advancement."

http://www.rwonline.com/pages/s.0044/t.777.html

So public acceptance for HD Radio (which is where it ultimately counts) is going to have to happen quickly. There is some speculation that portable HD Radios will be available in 2009.

I don't think iBiquity has the luxury of that much time.

db

 

[arnoldevns]

So public acceptance for HD Radio (which is where it ultimately counts) is going to have to happen quickly. There is some speculation that portable HD Radios will be available in 2009.

I don't think iBiquity has the luxury of that much time.

db

They don't have that much time. Portable radios need to be coming out in the next few months if this is going to fly. They should have had this stuff ironed out long ago.

The problem for ibiquity and the stations is that so many other media gadgets are hitting the market right now that HD radio is getting lost in the shuffle. They have failed to generate interest in this product and have probably just about lost their window of opportunity to do so.

 

[RadioStarOne]

Do any of you fellow posters on this board ever read the business section in your local newspapers or even on the internet? In Just the last quarter of 2006 over "21 million I-Pods" were sold! Before 21 million HD radios can be sold they have to manufacture 21 million HD radios and how many have been produced so far? I've seen The BA, the Sangean, and the radio shack radios and they IMHO, are all over priced empty plastic boxes.
Now I'm aware that the I-Pods are empty too but can soon hold thousands of songs or pictures giving the buyer that value for the dollar that I feel HD radio just can't do in the same measure.

Hey AM/FM radio companies the battle is over! You lose! Why because the portable music players of all kinds give the buyer way more value per dollar. Not only that but you can take your music anywhere you go! For this HD radio to be widely accepted the HD radio tuners have got to be installed in every radio being made and sold, and this is far from being the case! And that will be true for a long long long time!

Now if Apple or Dell or any number of other companies would just put the HD radios in their music players that would be way cool but isn't there a problem with enough battery life to make it happen? I thought so!
Bottom Line HD radio is a little too late for the party! And the party is over! What a shame they were so slow rolling out the technology.

Lets see 21 million minus, lets say, even 300,000 HD Radios = only 20,700,000 to go to equal I-Pods sales in just the final quarter of 2006! Like I said the partys over!

 

[SUPERCASTER]

I am the one who posted the quote indicating that 35,000 HD radios were sold in 2006. If 35,000 radios were sold in 2004 instead of 2006, I stand corrected. Perhaps the sales were better for 2005 and 2006.

Sorry, it wasn't intended, as a knock, or anything - just don't want Ferrara laughing at us, if we got the figures wrong. I don't remember hearing about HD Radio, until 2006, so it is VERY hard to believe, that 35,000 were sold in 2004. Interesting, that no figures were reported for 2005 - this leads me to believe, that 35,000 is probably an accurate figure for 2006, not 2004.

The answer is that HD radios are being returned as fast as they are sold.
35,000 sold in 2004. 35,000 still in users hands in 2005. Still only 35,000 total sold in 2006.
2007? Still only 35,000 in total will have been sold. The rest were returned.

 

[700WLW]

I am the one who posted the quote indicating that 35,000 HD radios were sold in 2006. If 35,000 radios were sold in 2004 instead of 2006, I stand corrected. Perhaps the sales were better for 2005 and 2006.

Sorry, it wasn't intended, as a knock, or anything - just don't want Ferrara laughing at us, if we got the figures wrong. I don't remember hearing about HD Radio, until 2006, so it is VERY hard to believe, that 35,000 were sold in 2004. Interesting, that no figures were reported for 2005 - this leads me to believe, that 35,000 is probably an accurate figure for 2006, not 2004.

The answer is that HD radios are being returned as fast as they are sold.
35,000 sold in 2004. 35,000 still in users hands in 2005. Still only 35,000 total sold in 2006.
2007? Still only 35,000 in total will have been sold. The rest were returned.

"How many HD radios have actually been sold?"

http://www.hear2.com/2007/01/how_many_hd_rad.html#comments

I wonder, if Ramsey is reading this board ?

 

[clouseau]

"How many HD radios have actually been sold?"

http://www.hear2.com/2007/01/how_many_hd_rad.html#comments

I wonder, if Ramsey is reading this board ?

Might very well be. There's more people reading and posting on this HD board then there are on HIS Self Glorifing Blog. And he has plenty of time to respone to alomst every post over there. Makes sense, though. While he claims to be working for every single large radio company in the country (As well as Sirius) The fact is, As for as I know, no one in the industry gives a rat's posterior about his opinions in the industry. Then again, I'm sure that those of us in the industry have no clue what we are doing. Hail Ramsay. Vote Quimby!!

Clouseau

 

[dbdigital]

I am the one who posted the quote indicating that 35,000 HD radios were sold in 2006. If 35,000 radios were sold in 2004 instead of 2006, I stand corrected. Perhaps the sales were better for 2005 and 2006.

Sorry, it wasn't intended, as a knock, or anything - just don't want Ferrara laughing at us, if we got the figures wrong. I don't remember hearing about HD Radio, until 2006, so it is VERY hard to believe, that 35,000 were sold in 2004. Interesting, that no figures were reported for 2005 - this leads me to believe, that 35,000 is probably an accurate figure for 2006, not 2004.

The answer is that HD radios are being returned as fast as they are sold.
35,000 sold in 2004. 35,000 still in users hands in 2005. Still only 35,000 total sold in 2006.
2007? Still only 35,000 in total will have been sold. The rest were returned.

"How many HD radios have actually been sold?"

http://www.hear2.com/2007/01/how_many_hd_rad.html#comments

I wonder, if Ramsey is reading this board ?

...and you can't buy what isn't offered or advertised.

Just skimmed through the Circuit City and Best Buy suppliments from my Sunday paper and, again, NO HD Radio advertised in any category. BUT Denon is offering a line of home stereo receivers that are "XM-Ready". And in a perversely funny twist they are referring to it as "XM-HD".

No doubt about it, "HD" is going to become the most abused abbreviation (and concept) of this decade.

db

 

[700WLW]

I am the one who posted the quote indicating that 35,000 HD radios were sold in 2006. If 35,000 radios were sold in 2004 instead of 2006, I stand corrected. Perhaps the sales were better for 2005 and 2006.

Sorry, it wasn't intended, as a knock, or anything - just don't want Ferrara laughing at us, if we got the figures wrong. I don't remember hearing about HD Radio, until 2006, so it is VERY hard to believe, that 35,000 were sold in 2004. Interesting, that no figures were reported for 2005 - this leads me to believe, that 35,000 is probably an accurate figure for 2006, not 2004.

The answer is that HD radios are being returned as fast as they are sold.
35,000 sold in 2004. 35,000 still in users hands in 2005. Still only 35,000 total sold in 2006.
2007? Still only 35,000 in total will have been sold. The rest were returned.

"How many HD radios have actually been sold?"

http://www.hear2.com/2007/01/how_many_hd_rad.html#comments

I wonder, if Ramsey is reading this board ?

...and you can't buy what isn't offered or advertised.

Just skimmed through the Circuit City and Best Buy suppliments from my Sunday paper and, again, NO HD Radio advertised in any category. BUT Denon is offering a line of home stereo receivers that are "XM-Ready". And in a perversely funny twist they are referring to it as "XM-HD".

No doubt about it, "HD" is going to become the most abused abbreviation (and concept) of this decade.

db

But, according to clouseau, no one uses Google to search the Internet (thus, voiding Google Trends), but read the newspaper and magazines, to get their information, instead !

 

[dumber than a box of hair]

While he claims to be working for every single large radio company in the country (As well as Sirius) The fact is, As for as I know, no one in the industry gives a rat's posterior about his opinions in the industry.

The fact is: Mercury Radio Research is used by EVERY SINGLE ONE of the top-20 group owners in the US. If "no one in the industry gives a rat's posterior about his opinions," then why would those owners spend that kind of money?

 

[dumber than a box of hair]

Denon is offering a line of home stereo receivers that are "XM-Ready". And in a perversely funny twist they are referring to it as "XM-HD".

There's nothing "perversely funny" about it. Two of XM's channels ARE offered in HD (surround sound): 76 ("Fine Tuning") and 113 ("XM Pops"). Home receivers capable of reproducing those two channels in 5.1 surround went on the market last spring.

 

[calstymes]

Some odds and ends and snippets of some rather amusing postings in this thread:

700WLW revealed:

I don't remember hearing about HD Radio, until 2006,

Well now THAT explains everything about SayNoToIBOC. Yes, yes I know I broke my own rule but I just had to. That was way too funny not to react!

Mike Walker revealed:

The first time I heard a working prototype of iboc was at the NAB Radio Show in New Orleans in October of 1995!

That impresses me! If that is the case then you might remember the names of some of the people who were at that show (people who no longer have anything to do with the "technology").

If you have been following it closely since then, you will know that the birth of "the cartel" was a not altogether easy thing to accomplish, that some people who were involved with the development of this technology had to be "compensated" so as not to compete in a fair and open environment and that come hell or high water, the people that were being lined up to speculatively invest in the newly formed company would be compensated when it had enough sales to break into the black and go public.

If you want to know the "rest" of the story, look for industry "news" that the bloggers don't hear about. Find the people who were in it at the beginning and then subsequently bullied out of the running and get their take on it. Follow the money. It works the same here as it does in politics.

SUPERCASTER observed:

The answer is that HD radios are being returned as fast as they are sold.
35,000 sold in 2004. 35,000 still in users hands in 2005. Still only 35,000 total sold in 2006.
2007? Still only 35,000 in total will have been sold. The rest were returned.

I would have returned my two equally bad-performing BA Receptors but they were gifts and I had no idea to whom they should be returned. Maybe I'll get a 12-volt model next.

clouseau boldly proclaimed:

The fact is, as far as I know, no one in the industry gives a rat's posterior about his [Ramsey's] opinions in the industry.

dumber than a box of hair's comments notwithstanding, AFAIK, no one in the "industry" gives a rat's posterior about ANYONE'S opinions of the industry including those printed on this message board about this particular topic. Yes, this includes my own and those of others who are far more intelligent than I am.

dbdigital articulated:

...and you can't buy what isn't offered or advertised.

Just skimmed through the Circuit City and Best Buy supplements from my Sunday paper and, again, NO HD Radio advertised in any category.

This is a fascinating lesson in how not to do publicity, wouldn't you say? How can a consortium of broadcasters, who are experts at utilizing the medium of radio to reach the great public, be so inept at promoting itself?

 

[700WLW]

Some odds and ends and snippets of some rather amusing postings in this thread:

700WLW revealed:

I don't remember hearing about HD Radio, until 2006,

Well, Cal is back, with his usual snide comments - the Big HD Radio rollout didn't start until 2006, so as a general consumer, not being in the broadcast business, commercials didn't start, until last year. Once, I researched HD Radio/IBOC, and saw how destructive this technology is, then I realized the broadcast bands were doomed.

 

[Mike Walker]

Interesting that 700WLW missed THIS quote from the Wired article "HD Radio receiver sales reached the "low hundred thousands" in 2006, a significant jump from 2005..."

http://www.wired.com/news/technology/0,72514-0.html?tw=wn_technology_4

 

[700WLW]

Interesting that 700WLW missed THIS quote from the Wired article "HD Radio receiver sales reached the "low hundred thousands" in 2006, a significant jump from 2005..."

http://www.wired.com/news/technology/0,72514-0.html?tw=wn_technology_4

"Will Digital Radio Boom in U.S.?"

"In the United Kingdom, more than 4.7 million digital radios have been sold since 1999... Part of the reason is political. While the U.K. government -- which controls much of the country's broadcasting industry -- was able to influence a national shift to digital, for-profit U.S. broadcasters were hesitant to embrace the unproven and expensive technology until satellite radio emerged as a competitive threat. (IBiquity estimates it costs $80,000 to $100,000 to upgrade a radio station to HD Radio.)... HD Radio receiver sales reached the "low hundred thousands" in 2006, a significant jump from 2005, but miniscule next to XM's and Sirius' more than 13.5 million satellite radio subscribers."

http://www.wired.com/news/technology/0,72514-0.html?tw=wn_index_3

"HD Radio Will Be Affordable in 2005"

"But the big fly in the ointment was the receiver: approximately 35,000 HD receivers, all car-audio models, were sold in 2004. But 2005 will be the break-out year with devices like the Boston Acoustic Receptor Radio appearing in second quarter for about $300.

http://technology360.typepad.com/technology360/digital_radio/index.html

Of course, that article was written, by you know who...

Someone here quoted 35,000 for 2006, but that number may have been for 2004:

"At today's prices, about $500 or more, they appeal mostly to technophiles. But if prices tumble as expected, sales should pick up. And if automakers start offering them, as some plan to do next year in higher-end cars, sales could surge to 4 million units in 2007 from 35,000 this year, research firm In-Stat/MDR said."

http://www.radio-info.com/smf/index.php/topic,59203.10.html

This was from a Washington Post article, dated 2004:

"The Dawn Of HD Radio"

"And if automakers start offering them, as some plan to do next year in higher-end cars, sales could surge to 4 million units in 2007 from 35,000 this year, research firm In-Stat/MDR said."

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A29597-2004Nov5.html

Since, Ferrara is spending his valuable time reading/writing blogs:

http://jacobsmedia.typepad.com/jacobs/2007/01/peter_ferrara_p.html

Let's try to be, as accurate as possible, but we would assume, these numbers are obviously inflated !

http://www.radio-info.com/smf/index.php/topic,60913.10.html

I didn't miss anything - you missed my post, that originated this thread ! Why, did you start another thread, that was only redundant:

http://www.radio-info.com/smf/index.php/topic,61277.0.html

 

[700WLW]

Interesting that 700WLW missed THIS quote from the Wired article "HD Radio receiver sales reached the "low hundred thousands" in 2006, a significant jump from 2005..."

http://www.wired.com/news/technology/0,72514-0.html?tw=wn_technology_4

"hd radio and other crap"

"I have never heard anything so stupid in my life, until..."

http://www.irishwan.ie/forum/index.php?topic=1045.0