HD on the move

…if you’re a radio station, anyway.

Today the HD Alliance announced another group of markets to go HD. More market announcements are soon to come, they say, as are new technology advances from iBiquity which will provide more ways to use the radios that will, presumably, be in the hands of consumers at some point.

Most of the announcements regarding HD are in the following categories:

1. New markets added 2. New formats added to HD stations 3. New advances from iBiquity 4. New merchants to carry HD radios 5. New ads to sell HD to consumers

But here are the headlines I’d like to see:

1. “Consumer requests for HD radio flood auto showrooms” 2. “One-million HD radios sold. On track for 10 million by 2010.” 3. “Research indicates listeners understand what HD radio is and why they must have it” 4. “‘Price is no object,’ says Columbus OH HD fan, ‘the benefits of HD radio are worth the price of the receiver'” 5. “Consumers report newfound and desperate need for many new channel options and higher audio fidelity”

When you see those headlines, please alert me.

To be fair, everything has a beginning. But to be equally fair, some technologies emerge stillborn.

Some evidence of consumer response (in the form of demand, not awareness) is highly relevant to our industry’s evaluation of whether or not this effort is destined to be effective and how broadcasters should invest their scarce time and money in the years to come.