Oh Well, On With The Experiment

Oh Well, On With The Experiment

by Barry McLarnon
Radio World
April 21 2010
Page 5

"The saga continues... on the AM side, the saga seems pretty much concluded: the ship has sprung a leak and is badly listing. The number of AM IBOC stations plateaued several years ago and now seems to be slowly declining. The system was torpedoed by poor nighttime performance, interference problems, and the lack of any real selling point, like new audio services And now we have the specter of an FM IBOC power increase."

Mexico is set to elect IBOC

The country's regulator is expected to formalize the decision this spring:

http://www.nxtbook.com/nxtbooks/newbay/rw_20100407/#/45/OnePage

Navigating Convergence: Charting Canadian Communications Change and Regulatory Implications

IBOC isn't getting a rousing endorsement north of the border...

http://www.crtc.gc.ca/eng/publications/reports/rp1002.pdf

Broadcast digital radio

Although broadcast digital radio was generally considered to have a key role in alleviating spectrum scarcity in major markets, the L-band DAB and IBOC technologies have been slow to evolve in Canada, to the extent that there is considerable doubt as to whether they will have a role to play in shaping Canada’s future radio landscape.

L-band DAB

Industry Canada and the Commission proposed L-band DAB, defined as 1452-1492 MHz, as a replacement technology in the mid-90s, believing that AM and FM radio stations would voluntarily migrate to L-band to take advantage of the superior sound quality associated with the technology.

The Commission licensed digital radio services (79 authorized, 44 on-air as of June 2007) using L-band DAB, based on the Eureka-147 standard. However, widespread migration to the L-band has not materialized as planned. From a consumer standpoint, L-band also has several drawbacks, including the lack of original services and the limited availability and cost of receivers on the market.

Furthermore, the U.S. did not follow Canada’s lead and in October of 2002, the FCC adopted IBOC instead of L-band DAB as the digital radio standard. Also, in a May 2007 letter to the Commission, Industry Canada announced that it had stopped issuing broadcasting certificates for L-band transmitters and is awaiting the results of a future policy review to determine the future of the L-band in Canada. This has led to considerable doubt about the future prospects of L-band in Canada.

IBOC

While a number of radio stations (1,750 out of 13,000 AM/FM stations) in the U.S. are operating IBOC transmitters, sales of receivers remain sluggish. Further, AM IBOC rollout has essentially stopped in the U.S. in 2008 due to interference issues.

For its part, the Commission, through its digital radio policy (Broadcasting Public Notice 2006- 160),89 stated that it would be prepared to authorize services using the IBOC technology. Industry Canada is preparing rules and regulations for the operation of IBOC which could include an amendment to FM Broadcasting Procedures and Rules (BPR-3). It is not actively looking at AM IBOC.

However, where the Canadian market is concerned, IBOC is at a very nascent stage and an eventual large-scale deployment in the Canadian market remains highly uncertain.

HD Radio To Go, Or Just Going, Going, Gone?

HD Radio To Go, Or Just Going, Going, Gone?

Have you, unlike what seems to be the majority of electronics customers, been pining for a cheaper way to try out HD Radio? A new portable model on sale now in Best Buy stores brings the entry-level cost for HD Radio to its lowest point ever, $49.99. But somehow, I don't think it's going to do much for this digital-radio technology's questionable prospects.

Insignia NS-HD01 portable HD radio hands-on and impressions

Insignia NS-HD01 portable HD radio hands-on and impressions

HD Radio has been desperately trying for years to become important in a world where most Americans are perfectly fine with tinny, 96kbps MP3s, and by and large, it's been unsuccessful.

HD Radio Crying Out to Be Heard

HD Radio Crying Out to Be Heard

By DAVID POGUE
Published: April 8, 2009

Q: How do you make an HD radio executive bang his head against the wall?

A: Ask him, “What’s HD radio?”

The HD radio alliance has spent millions of dollars on promotion, ads and educational efforts. Yet even after four years of this, most people still don’t have any idea what HD radio is.

HD Radio: The Brand Extension Is Dead

HD Radio: The Brand Extension Is Dead

A theory that's gaining momentum is that our time is running out to get the public interested in HD Radio. There have been numerous letters to the editor in this very publication where readers compare HD Radio to AM stereo technology. It sounded pretty good if you ever got the chance to hear it, but so what?