Study Indicates Most People Are Clueless About HD Radio

[Barry]

A study by Mark Kassot & Co. that is being mentioned in many of the trades indicates that while a large portion of people have heard of HD radio, relatively few really understand what it offers. For example, only 8% of the respondents were aware of one of its most important features, the extra channels that it makes available. Of course HD Radio has been heavily promoted on many radio stations.
The study criticizes the website hdradio.com for offering too much confusing information, rather than clearly explaining the basics. But it indicates that HD Radio was perhaps a good choice of name for the technology, as many people do equate it with the clearer reception offered by the far better understood HD television.

HD Radio Study Summary: http://kassof.com/2012/knowledge-of-hd-radio-is-low/

 

[SonoSational18]

FM HD has been a Charlie Foxtrot (as they say in the miliary) from the get-go. Its one salvation may be to get into car radios. It's obvious that people aren't running out and buuying HD FM receivers, but if they find these "free" channels when scanning the dial when they buy a new Camry, they might stick around and possibly buy a receiver for home. The one thing that the industry should do immediately is to come up with better channel designations.... 107.7-dot-2 just doesn't cut it.... and god help the jingle singer who has to cut an ID for that station. I'd suggest numbering the channels..... 88.1 HD-1 is HD channel 100, 88.1 HD-2 is channel 200, 88.3 HD-1 is ch. 101.... and so-on.

 

[WNTIRadio]

The only way this would have worked is to mandate that all cars manufactured after 2007 were to include "HD" IBOC radio.

Of course, that doesn't factor in that the HD-2s and 3s stink in the real world. They're okay if you're stationary, but in a moving car they can really drive you nuts fast without any type of blend. I'll take static over digital drop outs. Had one guy buy a radio for his wife to hear an HD-2 and he emailed the station asking why it cuts out all the time.

The channels are already numbered with the 200's... that would confuse the FCC if there were more numbers that real people don't use.

 

[ansky212]

Of course, that doesn't factor in that the HD-2s and 3s stink in the real world. They're okay if you're stationary, but in a moving car they can really drive you nuts fast without any type of blend.

That's exactly the problem. Can you imagine the public outcry if HD radios became standard in cars. People would be flocking to their dealerships to fix "broken" radios.

 

[KeithE4]

The one thing that the industry should do immediately is to come up with better channel designations.... 107.7-dot-2 just doesn't cut it.... and god help the jingle singer who has to cut an ID for that station. I'd suggest numbering the channels..... 88.1 HD-1 is HD channel 100, 88.1 HD-2 is channel 200, 88.3 HD-1 is ch. 101.... and so-on.

Channel numbering on FM was tried back in the '40s & '50s, and it went nowhere. The only place it's used now is by the FCC for FM allocation listings and translator calls (W201XX on 88.1, etc.).

 

[recto101]

I'm not surprised about this because most people tend to listen to music and get news on their Smartphones. HD Radio has flop the same way that the AM stereo flopped. Also look Toyota has included web dashboard apps for Iheartradio. Also Ford and Tesla have their own version of web-dashboard. Ford dashboard system called the Sync.

 

[davideduardo]

I'm not surprised about this because most people tend to listen to music and get news on their Smartphones.

"Most people" don't get anything on a smartphone. "Most" means "the vast majority of." The majority of cell phone subscribers don't have smart phones. And not not everyone, although its seems incredible, has a cellular phone.

Many people get music and news and entertainment from a variety of sources. The average American age 6 or more spends around 12 hours a week with the radio. So blaming everything on the very gradual shift to new media (I first bought "Internet in a Box" around 1995... 17 years ago.).

Is new media the future of all media? Sure. But it is not happening tomorrow and it has not happened today.

HD Radio has flop the same way that the AM stereo flopped.

AM stereo failed because by the time all the litigation was over, most music listening had moved to FM. In this case, "most" means an absolute numeric majority.

Also look Toyota has included web dashboard apps for Iheartradio. Also Ford and Tesla have their own version of web-dashboard. Ford dashboard system called the Sync.

In recent data, it can be seen that the average age of a car in the US is now 10.5 years. That's a full decade and change. That means, if we depend on new-car dashboards, it will take over a decade just to get such systems in cars, assuming every model has them standard. And few people today put in dash-mount aftermarket devices as the electronics is now part of the OS of the whole car and not interchangable. Sure, many can plug their iPad in or use a wireless adapter... but a large, large percentage of people won't; those are the same people who could never set the time on their VHS.

Time to curb your euphoria, enthusiasm and hyperbole.

 

[Jeffrey]

I'm an advocate for HD radio and I realize I'm in the minority. I'm always surprised by the amount of people who pay for satellite radio when you have free HD radio. Basically most of the formats are on HD in some form or another and it's free. There may be the occasional drop out especially outside of urban areas but if your stationary it works even better. No commercials and very little talk. It can be great listening for those into niche formats.
Personally I would like to see it be the future of radio. There's no reason it can't work or at least be more popular than it is.

 

[hubcity]

Continuing David's comments regarding "most": If you're thinking "most" people do *anything*, check your income and your peers. You might realize that "most of them" doesn't translate to "most of the audience".

Here's an anecdote. In the recent Fox game show "Watch A Million Dollars Go Down A Hole" (okay, it was "Million Dollar Money Drop", but there was no way anyone'd ever get their hands on that money - probably the most depressing game show I've ever seen, but I digress) the big question was "What do teenagers do more, watch TV or use the Internet?"

The right answer, by a factor of three, was "Watch TV". The clearly weren't asking *my* teenagers, or anyone I know - but that's the data. You can try to accelerate it all you want, and there's no denying it's a trend, but it's not going to be there fast, and with data service prices going up, more people will be "watching the meter."

In fact, I'd say HD Radio in cars is coming at about the same rate as in-car online listening. But one of 'em, you've got to pay by the byte. Satellite doesn't even do that to you.

 

[badjef]

It is a good thing this board is targeted to "other than those incapable of setting the clock on a VCR".
I, for one, would have been lost on the explanations given.

I have HD: at home, in the car, and "some other place".
It is undependable in all three places. Digital does not like movement. In fact, digital doesn't like the real world, at all.

I drove a bus and 8 years ago, placed a digital TV tuner with the video system, it got carsick.
I put it in my house, it forced me to go back to the Radio Shack AM Stereo tuner for AM reception.
I put it in my taxi, my beloved WFLA on the hd-2 is 35 seconds behind. I'm told that's an error correction and it can't be helped. (oh, how I have a response for that!) But the error corection doesn't appear all the time on 970, but it is about 10 seconds on 620 WDAE. How can it be on one but not the other?

The technology is flawed. Sarnoff or Paley would have thrown the iBiquity people out the door.
(Well, maybe not Paley, he was too busy watching Gunsmoke...)

I just bought one of the small Prism 3" ATSC TVs at a $30 closeout at Walgreens.

I have driven all over Sa-ra-so-ta! and haven't picked up a blessed thing. I am between Tampa and Ft. Myers. I used to have about 50 stations all over the dial. Now? I have none.

Welcome to the Future. Tin foil hats included.

Jeff in Sa-ra-so-ta!

 

[SonoSational18]

"Channel numbering on FM was tried back in the '40s & '50s, and it went nowhere. The only place it's used now is by the FCC for FM allocation listings and translator calls (W201XX on 88.1, etc.)."
That was back when we had slide-rule dials and everything was pretty approximate. Anything between, say 98.7 and 99.9 could have been referred to as "99". Now with possibly 4 channels on a frequency we need a better way to differentiate. If you don't like channel numbers, how about 99.5-A, 99.5-B, etc? Just too many decimals in the current system and confusing to the consumer.
As for Mr. Eduarddo's comment about AM stereo failing because of regulatory gridlock.... that may have hastened it, but the bottom line is that FM stereo just sounded better. I had the chance to A-B between AM/FM similcasts on both KRTH and KIIS on a trip to LA in the late 80's. the AM stations sounded muddy when compared to the FM.

 

[wgliradio]

In recent data, it can be seen that the average age of a car in the US is now 10.5 years. That's a full decade and change. That means, if we depend on new-car dashboards, it will take over a decade just to get such systems in cars, assuming every model has them standard. And few people today put in dash-mount aftermarket devices as the electronics is now part of the OS of the whole car and not interchangable. Sure, many can plug their iPad in or use a wireless adapter... but a large, large percentage of people won't; those are the same people who could never set the time on their VHS.

Time to curb your euphoria, enthusiasm and hyperbole.

Actually, while the car is 10 years old on average, the dashboard is much newer. Most cars I've seen that are at least 5 years or older has aftermarket equipment which includes aux inputs on the front and USB jacks. Pioneer has Pandora and most are satellite radio ready.

What's ironic is the people who probably haven't updated their stereos, the same ones who couldn't set the time on their VCR's, have no reason to listen to the radio since they are 55 and older and ignored save for the 1kw daytimer that has nothing better to do than carry Dial Global's America's Best Music.

 

[Ai4i]

I'm always surprised by the amount of people who pay for satellite radio when you have free HD radio.
Basically most of the formats are on HD in some form or another and it's free.

Huh ??? You for real ??? No way!

 

[badjef]

"Channel numbering on FM was tried back in the '40s & '50s, and it went nowhere. The only place it's used now is by the FCC for FM allocation listings and translator calls (W201XX on 88.1, etc.)."
That was back when we had slide-rule dials and everything was pretty approximate. Anything between, say 98.7 and 99.9 could have been referred to as "99". Now with possibly 4 channels on a frequency we need a better way to differentiate. If you don't like channel numbers, how about 99.5-A, 99.5-B, etc? Just too many decimals in the current system and confusing to the consumer.

The numbering system has been confusing to the print people who were refering to the WSMR simulcast on WUSF's hd-2 as 89.72.

As for Mr. Eduarddo's comment about AM stereo failing because of regulatory gridlock.... that may have hastened it, but the bottom line is that FM stereo just sounded better. I had the chance to A-B between AM/FM similcasts on both KRTH and KIIS on a trip to LA in the late 80's. the AM stations sounded muddy when compared to the FM.

The receivers for AM were pretty crappy. An A-B comparison was not really fair as a result. But try to receive K-Earth in San Diego with the consistancy of KFI.

Jeff in Sa-ra-so-ta!

 

[badjef]

I'm always surprised by the amount of people who pay for satellite radio when you have free HD radio.
Basically most of the formats are on HD in some form or another and it's free.

Huh ??? You for real ??? No way!

In some markets, they have utilized HDs more than others.

Overall, the HDs have not shown to have any significant financial gain to the stations using them.

Confusion?
Well in the old slide rule tuning days, my step-father thought he was listening to "103" - it was 105.1 WRFM! (I was happy he never received a diary)

Jeff in Sa-ra-so-ta!

 

[chrish]

In addition MOST of the satellite formats are NOT on HD radio.

 

[Theater of My Mind]

I'm an advocate for HD radio and I realize I'm in the minority. I'm always surprised by the amount of people who pay for satellite radio when you have free HD radio.

Because it's about the content. Most HD Radio stations run poorly-executed automation, have zero identity or personality, and sound boring and/or amateurish. Who wants to listen to that, especially with all the signal problems thrown in? In New York the CBS HD2's broadcast in mono, and WWFS-HD2 was off the air altogether last time I checked (an all-too-frequent occurrence with HD Radio in general). SiriusXM invests much more into their programming, has some top talent, play-by-play sports, etc. Sure it's overpriced, but there's still no real comparison.

 

[davideduardo]

What's ironic is the people who probably haven't updated their stereos, the same ones who couldn't set the time on their VCR's, have no reason to listen to the radio since they are 55 and older and ignored save for the 1kw daytimer that has nothing better to do than carry Dial Global's America's Best Music.

The appeal of standards is definitely 65 to 70 and older. The first of the boomers were 9 or 10 when the first rock n roll hit the airwaves, and as teens they did not listen to big bands and crooners. I'm an early boomer (born 5 days after the "generation" began) and nothing will make me turn down the radio faster than standards.

But there is high radio usage by 55-64, about as high as any other adult demo. AC, classic hits, classic rock, urban AC, Spanish adult hits, Jack-type formats, country, and, of course, news, talk and sports have huge appeal in the senior demos.

 

[wgliradio]

Even Dial Global's ABM is playing much less Frank and more Manilow, Supremes, Beatles. I even heard a Phil Collins cut last week.

 

[davideduardo]

Even Dial Global's ABM is playing much less Frank and more Manilow, Supremes, Beatles. I even heard a Phil Collins cut last week.

As long as they play any standards, it's a 65+ format.