[cma-l] Eddie on DAB v FM

Fri Sep 4 09:45:03 BST 2015

As we've come to expect - Alex has injected a level of common sense and sanity.
Even the smallest and simplest FM stations have the capacity from a simple cheap RDS encoder to transmit data in their PS, PI, PT and MS codes to identify their programming and stance to receivers - but most either can't or don't use that information without a deal of input from the listener.
So he's right - there's only a lack of application by lethargic and uninspired manufacturers to prevent station selection now by name and also by  four other sorting criteria,.
At the risk of being branded an eternal Luddite, I'll restate my mantra that in the UK we have probably the best terrestrial digital radio infrastructure anywhere with lots of potential spectrum available for use.
We bravely jumped very early and adopted Eureka 147, branded as "DAB" - which is now accepted as archaic and expandable.
No-one else anywhere appears to be prepared to commit to a world-wide system in which manufacturers can have total confidence.
Are we not now in a position where we can make the next bold jump to convert our comprehensive but tired DTR system to a new format - and again show the world the way?

Ian Hickling
Partner

Office: 01635 578435  (7am-11pm UK time)Carphone: 07530 980115 (only responds when driving)6 Horn Street, Compton, NEWBURY, RG20 6QS

From: tlr at gairloch.co.uk
To: cma-l at mailman.commedia.org.uk
Date: Thu, 3 Sep 2015 18:34:12 +0100
Subject: Re: [cma-l] by the way - Eddie on DAB vs FM

Exactly Glyn, but that isn't the situation 
unfortunately.

When the '50% of all listening digital' and the 
DAB 'tick mark' criteria were being consulted on, I submitted that it should 
also be a requirement that all radios tune by default using the names of 
available stations, regardless of whether they were on FM or DAB, but this has 
not been done, so there will an increasingly tilted playing field.

As you know, there is no reason any FM radio 
shouldn't tune by name just like DAB (using RDS to get the names). My old car 
radio does this by default as well as showing current show titles. 

There's also no technical reason, and only a tiny 
financial one, why pause/rewind/programme info, even 'playing now', 
shouldn't be supported on FM reception just as well as on DAB. I have a 12 year 
old pocket MP3 player with FM radio that offers record/pause/rewind on FM and 
the whole thing cost only $10 even then.

Given the extra production costs would be tiny 
compared with the larger profit margins on DAB sets compared to commodity 
FM sets, an obvious reason for why DAB set manufacturers don't generally do 
these things is that it would take some of the shine of the supposed benefits of 
DAB! The government should have mandated it if it was serious about a level 
playing field for FM and DAB.

Alex

  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: 
  Associated Broadcast 
  Consultants 
  To: The Community Media Association 
  Discussion List 
  Sent: Thursday, September 03, 2015 11:16 
  AM
  Subject: Re: [cma-l] by the way - Eddie 
  on DAB vs FM

  Eddie,  In a true multi-platform future that James 
  envisages, the radios will tune independently of channel - ie: in theory all 
  DAB and FM (and possibly internet) stations in one list.  The listener 
  should not need to know about the underlying technology delivering the 
  services.

  Big "IF" - IF the manufacturers implement multi-platform properly.

  Glyn

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