Bob Struble knows that the “connected car” is the buzz right now. He takes on that topic in a post-CES commentary.
The president/CEO of iBiquity Digital says that while broadcasters face huge risks from competing digital technologies, HD Radio presents an opportunity to build a more interactive medium.
Struble writes that the Internet connectivity planned for vehicles is of course a threat to traditional radio, as listeners and advertisers get more choices on where to spend their infotainment time and ad dollars, but also an opportunity.
“With HD Radio digital broadcast technology and smart applications development, we can pair the low cost and ubiquitous reach of the broadcast radio ‘data download’ with the one-to-one responsiveness of the Internet back channel.”
Soon, every new car will have multiple compelling infotainment applications built in, he says. That’s why iBiquity’s partner companies “are building the same connectivity and applications into their devices. So the two traditional product categories relied on by broadcasters — car and home radios — are being loaded with new, competitive digital infotainment applications.”
That activity will result in a richer, more customized, more immediate experience for mass appeal, according to the technology developer. His company is convinced HD Radio technology is a prerequisite to the connected arena and that “analog technologies cannot play effectively in the digital CE world.”
Look for more post-CES discussion and opinions in pending issues of Radio World.
