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HD Digital Radio

There’s a revolution brewing in the US broadcasting industry, and at its forefront is HD Digital Radio Alliance, an association of major radio broadcasters including CBS, ClearChannel and ABC. What this powerhouse group in the industry aims at is hasten the integration of HD radio into the fabric of America’s everyday life.

HD radio, a technology that combines the benefits of analog broadcasting with the advantages of the digital system, promises to win the consumers with its static-free, high-quality broadcasts. With the new system, music from HD radio stations on the FM band are received in CD-like quality, while those aired from the AM band sound just like coming from FM stations.

This wonderful innovation of digital radio broadcasting was developed by iBiquity Digital Corporation under the more techie-sounding nomenclature in-band on channel (IBOC) technology which was trademarked later as “HD Radio”. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) licensed this IBOC technology in 2002. Through active partnerships with broadcasters like those members of the HD Digital Radio, iBiquity is hoping for a quick and seamless adoption of this new technology in the broadcasting mainstream.

Early inroads of HD radio into the hearts and minds of the consumers have already started to materialize. The automotive industry and its upstream partners have already taken notice of the potential explosion of digital radio broadcasting in the market. Eleven auto companies including Mercedes-Benz, Mercury, MINI USA, Scion, Volvo, BMW, Ford, Hyundai, Jaguar, Lincoln, and Audi now have factory-installed HD Radio systems in their units. Additionally, major players in the electronics industry, like Kenwood, JVC, Audiovox, Sony, Dual, Alpine and Pioneer, have joined the HD Radio bandwagon, enabling the production of more affordable digital radio receivers for an increasing market, yet one development that should keep the war rooms of HD Digital Radio members in a 24/7 footing.