Alliance Renews; Puts Value of Next Year’s Promotion at $250 Million

As its one-year anniversary approaches, the HD Digital Radio Alliance has renewed its charter.
It also is set to announce Monday (Dec. 4) that member companies have increased their commitment to $250 million in advertising support for 2007, a $50 million increase over this year. The bulk of that figure is radio advertising inventory.
Alliance members will continue to promote HD Radio. More than 1,000 stations are broadcasting in analog and digital and more than 500 are multicasting.
Alliance President/CEO Peter Ferrara credited Ibiquity and retailers such as RadioShack for getting the word out about HD Radio; however the consumer experience in some retail outlets seems to be hit or miss. Some engineers report to RW Online they have helped RadioShack managers place the Accurian in a better position to receive a signal in stores and explained the technology to store personnel.