HD Radio^TM Electronic Program Guide Project Begins Second Phase

LAS VEGAS--(EON: Enhanced Online News)--A project demonstrating the viability of an HD Radio Electronic Program Guide (EPG) ecosystem for AM and FM U.S. radio broadcasting has received approval and funding to proceed to a second phase, culminating in an on-air EPG field trial later this year.

The project is the work of a consortium led by BIA Advisory Services of Chantilly, VA (www.bia.com) and Broadcast Signal Lab of Boston, MA (www.broadcastlab.com), with the cooperation of Unique Interactive, a UK-based company (www.uniqueinteractive.co.uk), and is funded by the National Association of Broadcasters Flexible Advanced Services for Television and Radio On All Devices (NAB FASTROAD) technology advocacy program. In the consortium’s first phase of work last year, it researched the industry’s needs and preferences on this subject, and developed a comprehensive proposal for an HD Radio EPG service architecture. This proposal, delivered to NAB FASTROAD last fall, included several key findings, which are detailed in the project’s Business Requirements and Use Cases document. It is available for industry review at www.nabfastroad.org/NAB_FASTROAD_EPG_FINAL.pdf.

The project has already generated a number of important conclusions. For example, implementing an EPG was found to be inherently more difficult for radio than for television broadcasting due to a number of factors, including the mobile nature of radio listening and the wide variation in radio receiver displays. Taking these challenges into account, the consortium has proposed a design for the U.S. HD Radio EPG system that incorporates several potential design architectures accommodating a range of delivery styles.

In the project’s second phase, the consortium will continue to collect feedback from the industry on the evolving concept of an HD Radio EPG architecture, and move toward end-to-end trial operation of an EPG service in both laboratory and on-air environments. The proposed system builds upon an EPG-delivery specification developed by iBiquity Digital Corporation for its HD Radio technology, and expands its scope to interface with broadcast data authoring methods currently employed at radio stations. The proposal also considers EPG delivery to a wide variety of receiver types and displays (including fixed and mobile IP-connected devices), and accommodates the possibility of third-party “service bureaus” providing EPG data for stations or groups.

Later in 2009, the project will conclude with several months of on-air field trials in the Boston and Providence, RI markets, which were selected for their substantial numbers of HD Radio stations on-air, including many with coverage areas that overlap into the adjacent market (which provides additional challenges to mobile receivers in keeping a current EPG).

The consortium invites comments on its work to-date. Interested parties can review the consortium’s initial conclusions in the document at the link above, and provide comment to rducey@bia.com.

About BIA Advisory Services, LLC

BIA Advisory Services, LLC, a subsidiary of BIA Financial Network, provides research, data, analysis, and financial and strategic consulting to media, telecommunications, technology, directory publishing, and local search companies. BIA Advisory Services includes: The Kelsey Group, experts in traditional and online local media and advertising; BIA Research, providers of competitive and comparative market information and analysis through data services, specialized reporting, engineering studies and mapping; and, BIA Consulting, specialists in business intelligence and corporate growth strategy, and the nation’s leading communications appraisal and valuation firm. Additional information is available at www.bia.com. BIA’s blog is located http://blog.bia.com/bia and the company can be found on Twitter http://twitter.com/BIAfn.

About Broadcast Signal Lab

Broadcast Signal Lab provides a full range of broadcast engineering services from FCC application engineering, through facility design & construction, to continuing signal quality monitoring & maintenance; including migration to digital broadcasting. BSL is a member of the National Radio Systems Committee and is actively involved in the science, standardization and innovation in digital terrestrial radio broadcasting. BSL’s managing partner, David Maxson, wrote The IBOC Handbook, which lays out the entire structure of this digital transmission system. See www.broadcastsignallab.com for additional information.

About Unique Interactive

Unique Interactive is all about Digital Radio & Interactive Media technology. It supplies technology products and services to broadcasters in the UK and around the world. Specializing in data services for broadcasters, it supplies systems that integrate with existing technology, adding extra value to broadcasts and creating solid revenue opportunities. Unique Interactive currently supplies DLS Display Text services to nearly 50% of UK broadcasters and has provided EPG services to Canada, Australia and Korea, while supplying the UK market with EPG services for over three years. It is a market leader in broadcast data service provision, and an innovator in a new and emerging field of Interactive Radio. Unique Interactive is part of the UBC Media Group plc, a UK public company quoted on the London Stock Exchange. See www.uniqueinteractive.co.uk for more information.

HD Radio is a trademark of iBiquity Digital Corporation.

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