U.S. Industry Adopts Standard for Digital Radio

The National Radio Systems Committee (NRSC), a U.S. standards setting organization sponsored by the National Association of Broadcasters and the Consumer Electronics Association, recently adopted a standard for In-Band On-Channel broadcasting based on iBiquity Digital Corporation’s HD Radio™ system. The standard, known as NRSC-5, designates the technology use for digital broadcasting in the AM and FM bands. HD Radio technology was approved by the Federal Communications Commission in October 2002 as the U.S. system for digital AM and FM broadcasting, but the recent NRSC action represents formal industry specification of the details of the HD Radio system. The FM implementation of the HD Radio system is included in Recommendation ITU-R BS.1114 and the AM implementation is included in Recommendation ITU-R BS. 1514.

The HD Radio system allows broadcasters to simultaneously provide programming in analog and digital formats. The system inserts digital carriers on either side of the existing analog signal and uses advanced coding techniques to avoid interference between the analog and digital signals. The result is CD-quality sound for FM broadcasts and FM-quality on the AM band. The system also supports a number of new features not provided with analog radio. HD Radio technology permits “multicasting” whereby the broadcaster transmits several program streams over a single FM frequency. This will allow broadcasters to offer new programming and potentially new formats without the need for additional spectrum allocations. The system also supports program associated data such as artist and song title information as well as new data services ranging from text based weather alerts and stock quotes to real-time traffic reports broadcast by local stations and visually displayed on a vehicle’s navigation system.

This new technology is appealing particularly in countries where there is no available spectrum for the introduction of digital AM and FM broadcasts. The HD Radio system introduces the digital signal in the existing AM or FM band, thereby eliminating the need for new frequency allocations. Any disruption from the transition to digital is minimized for both broadcasters and consumers by using the existing infrastructure and spectrum and at the same time preserving the existing analog service for as long as needed. This means listeners can continue listening to local AM/FM stations on existing analog radios as well as on new HD Radio receivers, with all the added services and benefits that HD Radio offers

New features under development for use with HD Radio broadcasts include surround sound, store-and-replay technology, on-demand programming and the “buy” button. Store-and-replay features will allow listeners to rewind a song they just heard or record an entire program to play back at a more convenient listening time. The system supports on-demand capabilities that will give listeners instant access to news and information rather than requiring them to wait for a specific program to be provided in particular time segment. Inclusion of a “buy” button will turn the radio into an interactive device for e-commerce, allowing for instant purchases of everything from concert tickets to advertised products.

Currently there are almost 400 stations in the U.S. broadcasting using HD Radio technology. It is projected that 600 stations will be offering HD Radio broadcasts by the end of 2005 and more than 1,200 stations by the end of 2006. Several automobile aftermarket and home receivers are commercially available and additional receiver models, including new tabletop receivers, will be commercially available later in 2005.

Although the HD Radio system was first tested in the United States, recent demonstrations in Mexico and Brazil have demonstrated the applicability of HD Radio technology for other markets. Broadcasters in Asia and Europe also are considering HD Radio solutions for those markets.

Further information about HD Radio technology is available at www.hdradio.com. Details about NRSC-5 can be obtained at www.nrscstandards.org.

Albert Shuldiner
iBiquity Digital Corporation
8865 Stanford Boulevard
Suite 202
Columbia, Maryland 21045
USA
410-872-1536
shuldiner@ibiquity.com