With T-Mobile and AT&T now on board and 60 million new phones set to be activated in 2016, the NextRadio initiative to put broadcast radio on handheld devices is hitting “critical mass,” said President Paul Brenner.
At a Thursday afternoon Radio Show session, “After AT&T and T-Mobile: Next Steps for NextRadio,” Brenner told a packed room that greater station participation in the NextRadio system will help persuade the last holdouts in the wireless world to come on board.
Working with the New Jersey Broadcasters Association, Brenner says NextRadio has been increasing the number of spots it runs in Verizon’s home state, putting pressure on that large carrier to activate FM chips in its phones.
As for Apple, Brenner says it’s the one phone maker that can dictate terms to carriers instead of the other way around. But he says the momentum is building as more consumers catch on to the interactive features that stations can use through NextRadio.