Digital Car Radio: Will It Take Off In Australia?

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May 11, 2009
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The launch of digital radio is happening this month across Australia, and pundits are pondering what its future holds. Will it flourish, or will it be assigned to the digital reject bin, like Mini Discs and HD-DVD?

Digital radio is an impressive enough format - possessing cleaner and improved sound, extra channels, track title and artist info, pause and rewind, downloadable music and images, just to name a few features.

Commercial Radio Australia’s CEO Joan Warner said that talks with the auto industry are underway, working towards a solution for the DAB+ (Digital Audio Broadcasting) system.

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Warner said, "Car manufacturers in Australia and overseas are aware that Australia's digital radio standard is DAB+ and we are switching on in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth this month."

"Mercedes, BMW, Jaguar and Audi have DAB receivers and Commercial Radio Australia (CRA) has contacted these manufactures to encourage them to add a DAB+ chip into those receivers for the Australian market."

 

digital-car-radio_02 In addition to this, Commercial Radio Australia is also looking at providing the car after-market with a number of options to enjoy DAB+.

Some of the ideas include in-car adaptors that could link a portable DAB+ receiver via Bluetooth in your car or portable navigation systems that may include a DAB+ solution.

 

"Other receiver manufacturers CRA has spoken with are working on DAB+ after car market options.

"CRA is also a member of the World DMB Car Manufacturers Task Force meeting in Stockholm shortly to further encourage DAB+ options in cars throughout the world," Ms Warner said.

 

Australia is following the European lead; with DAB+ being the preferred digital radio broadcast system, as opposed to HD radio in the US.

UK digital radio sales are going great guns, with sixty per cent of all radio listening coming via a digital signal.

The top-selling Ford Focus, Ford C-MAX and Ford Kuga are the first models to receive DAB+, with other models in the European Ford range to receive the option later this year.

ford-kuga_2008_european-model_02

On the Australian broadcasting front, Austereo (2DayFM and Triple M) are already trialling their new digital-only station, Radar, and now DMG (Nova and Vega) have announced their new digital stations: Novanation (dance) and Koffee (chill), but their management reasons that it will be four years before we know if their stations have truly been accepted.

Organisations like Commercial Radio Australia (and their lobbying) will help the acceptance of the new broadcast medium, and, of course, the carmakers who will decide whether to include or option it.

Carmakers will no doubt closely evaluate home digital radio sales figures before deciding whether to opt for it in their vehicles.

Ultimately, it’s in the hands of the fickle public, their acceptance of the marketing, the relative cost and the benefits of improved radio sound and helpful features.


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Comments

  • Carey [reply]
    1 year ago 0 points
    Sif it'll fail... Foxtel IQ is epic and if they can bring that to radio it'll go like gang busters... LIVE RECORDING... Triple J Live DJ Sets will never be missed again.
  • Greg [reply]
    1 year ago 0 points
    Doubtful - digital radio has stalled, or is failing, everywhere, including the UK:

    http://hdradiofarce.blogspot.com
  • Digital Car Radio: Will It Take Off In Austra [reply]
    1 year ago 0 points
    [...] Read More Tags: Australia Australia, Australia Radio, Broadcast System, Car Radio, Dab, Digital Broadcast, Digital Car, Digital Radio, Great Guns, Hd Radio, Motor Car, Radio Australia, Radio Broadcast, Radio Listening, Radio Sales, Radio System, Radio Uk, Uk Radio ← Digital Car Radio: Will It Take Off In Australia? - Motor Report [...]
  • Gidge [reply]
    1 year ago 0 points
    Should we be adopting the European standerd instead of the US Standard?
  • Mr Jason Shaw [reply]
    1 year ago 0 points
    I have brought a new Digital Radio & i think it's great but only some stations are broadcasting higher than 80 bit rates. If digital radio is going to be successul the stations need to lift there bit rates higher (should be at 128kbps or 192kbps) so quality sounds better than the current analog system at 80kbps.
  • R12s [reply]
    1 year ago 0 points
    We should be trying to get Satellite radio.
    I recently drove 4000 miles all around the west coast USA listening to the same 2 stations with barely any break in reception... and that includes places like death valley and other deserts.
    Really great stuff!

    But ok, I suppose the cost of a satellite for only 20Mil people may be a bit much ;)
  • Pulse-R [reply]
    9 months ago 0 points
    I think once DAB+ gets into the cars, then people will buy it.
    Alpine, Pioneer, Sony - hear this.
  • Mr Jason Shaw [reply]
    9 months ago 0 points
    I aggree with Pulse-R
    Digital Radio so i'm told will start to be installed in new cars in 2010 prob mid year but once i know what model cars i will post up here
  • Sambo [reply]
    9 months ago 0 points
    I've witnessed digital radio in the US first hand, it is fantastic and cannot wait for it here. If anyone knows where I can get even an after market setup for the car, i'd be keen to know.

    Cheers

    Sambo
  • Sean [reply]
    9 months ago 0 points
    cars here in australia should come out with dab+ stereo systems with fm analogue radio and move digital tv in the major cities to the uhf band like in europe and new zealand and country areas in australia will have no problems to start up digital radio brordcasts because digital tv is on the uhf band and leave band 3 for dab+ radio its like fm radio uses band 2 and alot of tv stations had to move to uhf because of demand of fm radio in the 80's and 90's
  • Sean Zappulla [reply]
    9 months ago 0 points
    I think foxtel and another company should bring out satellite radio it would be interstring and have a sim card like in foxtel cable boxes and but you should be able to buy your own like mobile phones and in car stereo systems and its populua in the usa and have it in the dab+ standed like foxtel and austar uses dvb standed for pay tv
  • Mr Jason Shaw [reply]
    8 months ago 0 points
    So far 41 stations here in Melbourne are on DAB+ so that's good. Stations like "Edge Digital" (R&B), "Novanation" (House Music), "Koffee" (laid back cafe music), "Hot 30 Jelli" (Vote to hear what stays on air), "3MP" (easy music in digital stereo 'no AM static'), "3AW" (talkback), "Goldplus" (Gold 104.3 / 2nd digital station), just afew stations on DAB+
  • Roch [reply]
    8 months ago 0 points
    I got my 1st DAB+, I'm thinking of tinkering it to fit into the car, if lucky might go into the dash. :)
  • Sean [reply]
    8 months ago 0 points
    I would like the gold coast to get digital radio stations and have the radio transmitters on mount tamberine and currumbin on the gold coast and if made all of the cities to have digital tv on the uhf band it would make things alot easer and alot of dab+ radios are for sale in the shops on the gold coast
  • Jason [reply]
    8 months ago 0 points
    Hi Roch,
    The Pure Highway digital radio looks alright, it transmitts to the car radio via FM frequency that it selects (finds)
  • Roch [reply]
    8 months ago 0 points
    Yes Jason, I had a look at that too. Few drawbacks with that are; not a 'true' a car radio (in dash), battery powered meaning need replacing halfway if gone flat, or hook via the ciggy - which is an eye sore. Searched high and lo for a true in dash DAB+, disappointed with results. Hope all stations will join the digital band wagon otherwise worthless.
  • Jason Shaw [reply]
    8 months ago 0 points
    Seems to be a few leads everywhere around the dash. The major commercial stations are in digital community stations will be next to go digital but over time. I think Ford Fiesta will be the first car to have DAB+ which should be starting to be put in new Cars middle of 2010. As for a Digital (DAB+) in a car tuner / cd / USB it shouldn't be long before major brands release DAB+ Car Tuners. Pioneer, Jensen, Sony

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