Well on some of the Iheart owned stations there have been a more aggressive push to get it's listeners to download their apps and they were promoting their podcasts in between segments though. This has to be an indication that the median audience for the iheart outlets don't even have HD Radio and is primarily listening to them on apps and browser though.
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The Beginning of the end for HD Radio
- Thread starter stewie
- Start date
Well on some of the Iheart owned stations there have been a more aggressive push to get it's listeners to download their apps and they were promoting their podcasts in between segments though. This has to be an indication that the median audience for the iheart outlets don't even have HD Radio and is primarily listening to them on apps and browser though.
Except for some relatively small licensing fees, and a bit of technical maintenance by the existing engineering staff, it really does not cost any more to have an HD2 or HD3 if you have HD installed for your analog signal simulcast.
The greater cost is in creating programming and having someone take hours out of their work week to keep it updated.
Almost all HD gear today is built into the analog transmitter and is fed through the same plumbing to the same antenna. A few stations have separate transmitters and antennas, but that is now rather rare. Perhaps Mr Fybush can contribute his observations about how many stations have fully separate HD equipment today.
If you look at the Nautel site, you can see some functional diagrams of FM transmitters with integrated HD (at least they had them last I looked). There is an additional cost for the HD "module" but in the case we are talking about, the HD2 and HD3 and HD4 services, any station that wants HD for the analog station will already have the transmission gear.
If you have HD at all, adding HD2 and beyond is pretty much a bandwidth allocation setting.
That's true, other than a transmitter running analog and HD together needs to be sized to include HD. For example: If an analog station was running 28kW TPO analog, they would need to purchase a 40kW transmitter to account for the -10 HD digital sidebands. The only additional cost would be the importer/exporter, which runs about $15K.
Anymore if a station plans on replacing their legacy tube transmitter with a solid state, the upgrade to HD isn't that much additional cost, considering the benefits.
If I want, I can stream Pandora, XM, Spotify....et al....in my car. The consumer has choices. Many of them. Promoting HD radio is a clunky proposition, and the interest just hasn't shown itself beyond a few die-hards and some anomalies. That is ultimately the point.
I mentioned Northern CA, it literally happened overnight for dozens of stations I listen to. Not format changes but the removal of the HD2 carrier. I'm sorry to say, if some of these companies just shut them off like that, no one is listening.
One advantage to turning off the HD2 and HD3 and beyond channels: the bandwidth for the digital (HD1) channel for the analog station is much improved.
Couldn't agree with you more, it's excellent when the entire bandwidth is allocated to the analog. Now if we could get some (not all) engineers to back the compression down just a wee bit and process their stations more like a web stream, then we're REALLY cooking with gas.
Couldn't agree with you more, it's excellent when the entire bandwidth is allocated to the analog. Now if we could get some (not all) engineers to back the compression down just a wee bit and process their stations more like a web stream, then we're REALLY cooking with gas.
Yeah that's an issue which many station engineers feel caught in-between. The same audio processor which processes the analog audio also provides an HD output. The idea is when a receiver on the fringe switches between HD, back to analog, and back to HD, that the change won't be too jarring from a processing perspective. Problem is; many stations have PD's that still want to be louder than the other guy down the street. It's old school thinking that isn't valid when one is competing against streaming and playlists on a phone. They're just driving listeners away, and any benefits of having digital audio with wider frequency response is greatly diminished.
That could have been more a choice of programming than technology. The broadcasters that made that choice may have simply decided to double down on their main channel production, rather than divide their production dollars between different channels. At least with HD, they can just bring those channels back with a settings change when the market place makes that an advantage.
In the analog world, you'd be making hardware changes (transmitter, feed-line, antenna, etc.) to restore extra channels, unless you maintained the equipment for the other channels while they weren't being used.
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IIRC, HD Radio has a built-in 5 dB difference in level between the analog and digital audio streams, so that the digital stream can be just as loud as the station's analog signal without needing to use as much compression/limiting/clipping. But it was quickly discovered that if you actually took advantage of this, the difference in texture and tonal balance between the analog and digital signals would become very noticeable and annoying in fringe areas where the receiver is constantly switching back and forth between analog and digital.Couldn't agree with you more, it's excellent when the entire bandwidth is allocated to the analog. Now if we could get some (not all) engineers to back the compression down just a wee bit and process their stations more like a web stream, then we're REALLY cooking with gas.
So on many FM stations, the only thing you notice when the HD signal kicks in (assuming it is actually properly time-aligned) is a reduction in background hiss and increase in digital compression artifacts. However I also come across a number of stations where the HD audio is very noticeably and annoyingly louder and brighter than the analog signal.
ALL OTA will all go away in the future but HD Radio still has an opportunity now
I recently purchased an HD tuner for my home. The issue with HD Radio is the same with OTA television. People gravitated to CD's, Cable and Satellite services and Internet streaming services, and today's younger generation has less tolerance than previous generations as to what they will listen to. They want "personal choices." I can't imagine getting into a vehical with a 20 or 30 year old and seeing them adjust an FM radio for a station. It's just not going to happen. For that age group, it's all about streaming, or prerecorded content on their phone. They have no concept of any OTA services. FM, VHF, UHF mean nothing to them.
But for slightly older generations however, the cable and streaming costs are gouging them while they are trying to wrestle with other family expenses. In this 30 and 40 age group there are more and more cord cutters looking at OTA options, instead of Cable. And, many are finding that OTA services for television are good enough and they don't need cable. This would be a good time to market FREE HD Radio as an OTA option for their paid music streaming services as well.
Now, if we move up to the 50s and 60 year old age group, we find that the streaming services are dropping the 60's and 70's content music we enjoyed back in OUR day BUT they are reappearing on HD Radio in many communities. Our huge, high end music systems with floor mounted speakers sit idle because the analog FM dial has shifted mainly to Hip Hop or music of this new generation. Where did our music go? It went to HD Radio in my area.
I purchased a car with HD Radio 2 years ago. I wasn't too impressed with the HD choices at that time, but TODAY there are more choices than ever. In fact, in my area I now get (6) 70's style music stations (1 is IHeart of them) on HD channels and even the old DJ's I listened to from the 70's are BACK ON THE AIR! (probably doing their broadcasts from assisted living facilities...) I was so blown away by these great HD Radio choices I desparately wanted one for my giant home sound system. Sadly though, I found only 2 reasonably priced choices for a compotent tuner.
The 50's and 60 age group need to be aware that their generation music has shifted to HD Radio, but HD isn't in all cars, and stores don't market HD radio, so how would they know? This is a new marketing challenge. I did see a billboard yesterday advertising a new HD2 70's format music station that just hit the airwaves. At least that billboard is a start. Many people though will scratch their head and ask themselves, "how do I get 98.7 HD2???"
So the idea that HD Radio is dead depends specifically on the content it has to offer and the generation it intends to serve. The older generation, if they know about it, will probably appreciate the music choices, as I do.(Demand) And, this age group has more disposable income which should attract advertisers.(Potential Revenue) Better HD Radio marketing is only part of the answer. Radio manufacturers also need to add that capability to newly manufactured radios. Years ago, didn't the govt. mandate that all car radios also pick up FM after a certain date? It would help to have that mandate again with HD Radio. Auto manufacturers shouldn't be providing AM/FM radios without this capability, but many still do and it's not serving the customer!
Proper marketing and programming, coupled with the availability of HD radio devices, could make HD profitable for the next 10 years with the older age groups, Sadly though, after that, I believe our younger generation will then turn their back on ALL OTA services and embrace 5G services (while paying the bill). FM, VHF, UHF free services are just not in their vocabulary. I also believe the FCC will eventually re-allocate the FM band and the commercial TV bands to the telcoms. Meanwhile though, I'm sure enjoying the wonderful HD radio music choices!
I recently purchased an HD tuner for my home. The issue with HD Radio is the same with OTA television. People gravitated to CD's, Cable and Satellite services and Internet streaming services, and today's younger generation has less tolerance than previous generations as to what they will listen to. They want "personal choices." I can't imagine getting into a vehical with a 20 or 30 year old and seeing them adjust an FM radio for a station. It's just not going to happen. For that age group, it's all about streaming, or prerecorded content on their phone. They have no concept of any OTA services. FM, VHF, UHF mean nothing to them.
But for slightly older generations however, the cable and streaming costs are gouging them while they are trying to wrestle with other family expenses. In this 30 and 40 age group there are more and more cord cutters looking at OTA options, instead of Cable. And, many are finding that OTA services for television are good enough and they don't need cable. This would be a good time to market FREE HD Radio as an OTA option for their paid music streaming services as well.
Now, if we move up to the 50s and 60 year old age group, we find that the streaming services are dropping the 60's and 70's content music we enjoyed back in OUR day BUT they are reappearing on HD Radio in many communities. Our huge, high end music systems with floor mounted speakers sit idle because the analog FM dial has shifted mainly to Hip Hop or music of this new generation. Where did our music go? It went to HD Radio in my area.
I purchased a car with HD Radio 2 years ago. I wasn't too impressed with the HD choices at that time, but TODAY there are more choices than ever. In fact, in my area I now get (6) 70's style music stations (1 is IHeart of them) on HD channels and even the old DJ's I listened to from the 70's are BACK ON THE AIR! (probably doing their broadcasts from assisted living facilities...) I was so blown away by these great HD Radio choices I desparately wanted one for my giant home sound system. Sadly though, I found only 2 reasonably priced choices for a compotent tuner.
The 50's and 60 age group need to be aware that their generation music has shifted to HD Radio, but HD isn't in all cars, and stores don't market HD radio, so how would they know? This is a new marketing challenge. I did see a billboard yesterday advertising a new HD2 70's format music station that just hit the airwaves. At least that billboard is a start. Many people though will scratch their head and ask themselves, "how do I get 98.7 HD2???"
So the idea that HD Radio is dead depends specifically on the content it has to offer and the generation it intends to serve. The older generation, if they know about it, will probably appreciate the music choices, as I do.(Demand) And, this age group has more disposable income which should attract advertisers.(Potential Revenue) Better HD Radio marketing is only part of the answer. Radio manufacturers also need to add that capability to newly manufactured radios. Years ago, didn't the govt. mandate that all car radios also pick up FM after a certain date? It would help to have that mandate again with HD Radio. Auto manufacturers shouldn't be providing AM/FM radios without this capability, but many still do and it's not serving the customer!
Proper marketing and programming, coupled with the availability of HD radio devices, could make HD profitable for the next 10 years with the older age groups, Sadly though, after that, I believe our younger generation will then turn their back on ALL OTA services and embrace 5G services (while paying the bill). FM, VHF, UHF free services are just not in their vocabulary. I also believe the FCC will eventually re-allocate the FM band and the commercial TV bands to the telcoms. Meanwhile though, I'm sure enjoying the wonderful HD radio music choices!
No...what happened was the patent on FM ran out in 1966. At that point, manufacturers that has avoided it, most notably RCA, started adding FM to portables. What the FCC did was mandate that co-owned AM-FM combos in major markets could no longer simulcast programming. So all of a sudden, there were more program choices available on FM, most with lower commercial loads. That drove the popularity of FM radios. People started buying FM converters for their car radios. Plus the home stereo boom happened around the same time. So it was a combination of factors. Until the patent on HD radio runs out, I don't see many manufacturers rushing to add it to devices.
There were, indeed, four major events in the 60's that culminated in greater opportunities for popular programming on FM.
1. FM stereo adopted in the early 60's.
2. Automatic frequency control eliminated constant drift in the mid 60's.
3. The Armstrong patents expired.
4. The FCC order the end of most large market 100% simulcasts.
By the end of the decade, FM, now nearly 30 years after its introduction before WW II, had a chance.
I could see a similar confluence of circumstances happening in the next decade:
1) The HD Radio patent runs out in about 5 or 6 years.
2) The music royalty rate increases to a point where free streaming is no longer viable.
3) Those royalties increase subscription rates for digital services such as Sirius, Pandora, and Spotify to over $25 a month.
4) An electronics manufacturer comes up with a cool portable that includes HD Radio.
If those four things happen, we could easily see an increase in demand for HD radio.
What is the recording industry's end game here? To eventually force satellite and online services out of business? Then what happens? Does the focus then become over-the-air radio? Or do the industry people truly believe they can turn back the clock and return to the happy days of Tuesday releases of $17 CDs by superstar artists packing the record stores and resulting in oodles of quick profits? That's going to be hard to do. For one thing, they'll have to bring back the record stores.
They're not thinking about that at all. The thought is to get paid what they feel is a fair price for what they do. In their defense, they don't set the royalty rates. They're set by an independent set of royalty judges at the Library of Congress. So they really don't have any say in how much they make or how their music gets used. The big phrase I keep hearing is "Music has value." They feel that free streaming devalues what they do. So they see no upside to having streaming companies give away music for free. In their view, the only reason people don't pay for streaming is because they can do it for free. So if that gets eliminated, then the only issue is the price. Streaming companies can charge whatever the market will bear. It's not regulated the way royalty rates are. Sirius subscription rates can only increase to offset royalty increases. That was set by the government as part of the Sirius-XM merger deal.
iHeart shut off WRIT HD2 in Milwaukee at the end of last year. They just shut off WKKV HD2 in Milwaukee yesterday.
Keep in mind the rates and restrictions on terrestrial radio streaming are in part based on an outdated legal framework that considers a low bitrate radio station's stream with imaging and voices over songs to be equivalent to a "digital copy" that they're assuming people will record as opposed to buying a paid download of the song.
That's right. A download. That's how behind the curve these laws are, and independent broadcasters that don't have voice with the labels can't do much about it. Do you know anyone paying to download music in 2020?
That's right. A download. That's how behind the curve these laws are, and independent broadcasters that don't have voice with the labels can't do much about it. Do you know anyone paying to download music in 2020?
Did they shut off HD1? If they didn't go back to analog, it sounds like it's just a change in programming. That's the advantage of HD Radio. You have flexibility to add and remove program streams without making significant changes to the broadcast equipment.
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