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1 year ago
in Fred Wilson Dot VC on A VC
It's interesting that they didn't quote Best Buy, Radio Shack, Circuit City, and Wal-Mart, where HD radios have not been selling, and have been put on clearance, or discontinued. HD Radio is a farce:
http://hdradiofarce.blogspot.com
http://hdradiofarce.blogspot.com
2 replies
fredwilson
I think that article is a fair and balanced view of what's going on with HD in the market.
Its not anywhere near a farce.
HD is moving at all the retailers you cite and they are enthusiastic about HD particularly the coming skus with itunes tagging which is the first of many digital services built on top of basic digital radio
Its not anywhere near a farce.
HD is moving at all the retailers you cite and they are enthusiastic about HD particularly the coming skus with itunes tagging which is the first of many digital services built on top of basic digital radio
1 year ago
in HD Radio In Your Car, Your Music Player, and Your Phone on A VC
“Can Sony Make HD Radio A Winner?”
“So, the old consumers don’t want HD. Young consumers think the concept is laughable. Big retailers can’t sell it. And radio companies won’t invest in it. Sounds like a winner to me.”
http://insidemusicmedia.blogspot.com/2007/05/ca...
“So, the old consumers don’t want HD. Young consumers think the concept is laughable. Big retailers can’t sell it. And radio companies won’t invest in it. Sounds like a winner to me.”
http://insidemusicmedia.blogspot.com/2007/05/ca...
1 reply
fredwilson
That's all true but when its in your ipod, car, or mobile phone all those things stop mattering and people will find a ton of free new content waiting for them
Fred
Fred
1 year ago
in HD Radio In Your Car, Your Music Player, and Your Phone on A VC
It is just the HD Alliance stations that have the FCC giveaway of our airways to this monopoly:
“HD Radio on the Offense”
“But after an investigation of HD Radio units, the stations playing HD, and the company that owns the technology; and some interviews with the wonks in DC, it looks like HD Radio is a high-level corporate scam, a huge carny shill.”
http://www.eastbayexpress.com/2007-03-07/music/...
iBiquity claims that there are 1500 HD stations, but:
"Have 200 HD Radio stations gone missing?"
"The HD Radio camp is advertising that there are currently over 1,500 radio stations now broadcasting in HD (from its website, to press releases as well as in various other promotions)... but yet only 1,300 have filed with the FCC."
http://www.orbitcast.com/archives/have-200-hd-r...
And, the AM-HDs are starting to abandom HD/IBOC:
"Editorial: AM IBOC in Distress?"
"Citadel Director of Corporate Engineering Martin Stabbert embodied questions about the efficacy of full-time AM HD when he ordered all his AMs that had already converted to cease transmitting HD at night, using language that must have given Ibiquity officials heartburn. Separately and for different immediate reasons, Cox, in a “let’s wait and see” move, has tried HD on most of its AM stations but is taking it off the air day and night, once tested at each facility."
http://www.rwonline.com/pages/s.0044/t.9917.html
“HD Radio on the Offense”
“But after an investigation of HD Radio units, the stations playing HD, and the company that owns the technology; and some interviews with the wonks in DC, it looks like HD Radio is a high-level corporate scam, a huge carny shill.”
http://www.eastbayexpress.com/2007-03-07/music/...
iBiquity claims that there are 1500 HD stations, but:
"Have 200 HD Radio stations gone missing?"
"The HD Radio camp is advertising that there are currently over 1,500 radio stations now broadcasting in HD (from its website, to press releases as well as in various other promotions)... but yet only 1,300 have filed with the FCC."
http://www.orbitcast.com/archives/have-200-hd-r...
And, the AM-HDs are starting to abandom HD/IBOC:
"Editorial: AM IBOC in Distress?"
"Citadel Director of Corporate Engineering Martin Stabbert embodied questions about the efficacy of full-time AM HD when he ordered all his AMs that had already converted to cease transmitting HD at night, using language that must have given Ibiquity officials heartburn. Separately and for different immediate reasons, Cox, in a “let’s wait and see” move, has tried HD on most of its AM stations but is taking it off the air day and night, once tested at each facility."
http://www.rwonline.com/pages/s.0044/t.9917.html
1 reply
fredwilson
Do you enjoy surfing the web finding negative posts about hd radio written by angry radio nerds who wish digital radio would go away?
Fred
Fred
1 year ago
in HD Radio In Your Car, Your Music Player, and Your Phone on A VC
Take a look at consumer interest in Pandora and Last.fm versus HD Radio - HD Radio has been flat-lined since inception:
http://siteanalytics.compete.com/hdradio.com+pa...
http://siteanalytics.compete.com/hdradio.com+pa...
1 reply
1 year ago
in HD Radio In Your Car, Your Music Player, and Your Phone on A VC
Pandora, Slacker, and Last.fm are all INTERACTIVE, which HD Radio is NOT - HD Radio has the same problems as satrad, being noninteractive and no graceful way to surf the overabundance of channels.
1 reply
fredwilson
That is true
1 year ago
in HD Radio In Your Car, Your Music Player, and Your Phone on A VC
Terrestrial radio can't even win back listeners with proogramming on their main analog channels. The HD channels are jsus clever reworks of the main analog channels and offer no compelling content. The HD channels would just fragment the listener audience fiurther:
"HD Hypocrisy"
"Here's a few more reasons why only iBiquity and a few clueless radio group heads could make a big thing out of HD radio tagging... The very damn radio stations that broadcast in HD offer no programming worth listening to. HD Radio is a virtual sewer of formats owners don't want on their terrestrial frequencies and other assorted garbage that no one sane would listen to -- let alone spend money for new radios -- tagging or not."
http://insidemusicmedia.blogspot.com/2007/09/hd...
"HD Hypocrisy"
"Here's a few more reasons why only iBiquity and a few clueless radio group heads could make a big thing out of HD radio tagging... The very damn radio stations that broadcast in HD offer no programming worth listening to. HD Radio is a virtual sewer of formats owners don't want on their terrestrial frequencies and other assorted garbage that no one sane would listen to -- let alone spend money for new radios -- tagging or not."
http://insidemusicmedia.blogspot.com/2007/09/hd...
1 reply
brucebarber
PocketRadio,
You'll get no argument from me that "big radio" has done a terrible job of rolling out the technology. Fred is right; people don't buy radios these days, "They buy cars, iPods, and mobile devices". Sirius and XM understand this, and they have done a great job of getting their hardware into new vehicles.
That said, I think "big radio" understands that they have no choice but to support HD Radio, They "get" the clear and present danger of losing audience to companies like XM, Sirius, Apple, not to mention the major wireless players.
The point I was making in my earlier post is that big radio probably isn't going to be the one to create the next wave of compelling content--we are!
Technology has made it so that Podcasters and former on air talent such as myself can produce programming that would have been cost prohibitive to create only a few years ago.
With a few thousand bucks and a little time on "the learning curve", it is now possible to record audio that sounds as good as anything on the big stations, and to distribute it for free over the Internet. (Used to be you had to press CD's and mail them out or rent satellite time.)
I live in an area that is greatly underserved when it comes to stations that play deeper cuts from established artists and turn people on to great new music.
And yet I have stood in a hallway across from a Public Radio program director that can't wait to put an "Adult Alternative" station on a sub channel when he starts broadcasting in HD.
My sense is that when the passionate music lover with a little technical acumen offers to provide him with a reasonably priced show for his sub channel, he'll buy it.
And if there's an HD radio pre installed in my 2010 Prius, I'll be listening.
You'll get no argument from me that "big radio" has done a terrible job of rolling out the technology. Fred is right; people don't buy radios these days, "They buy cars, iPods, and mobile devices". Sirius and XM understand this, and they have done a great job of getting their hardware into new vehicles.
That said, I think "big radio" understands that they have no choice but to support HD Radio, They "get" the clear and present danger of losing audience to companies like XM, Sirius, Apple, not to mention the major wireless players.
The point I was making in my earlier post is that big radio probably isn't going to be the one to create the next wave of compelling content--we are!
Technology has made it so that Podcasters and former on air talent such as myself can produce programming that would have been cost prohibitive to create only a few years ago.
With a few thousand bucks and a little time on "the learning curve", it is now possible to record audio that sounds as good as anything on the big stations, and to distribute it for free over the Internet. (Used to be you had to press CD's and mail them out or rent satellite time.)
I live in an area that is greatly underserved when it comes to stations that play deeper cuts from established artists and turn people on to great new music.
And yet I have stood in a hallway across from a Public Radio program director that can't wait to put an "Adult Alternative" station on a sub channel when he starts broadcasting in HD.
My sense is that when the passionate music lover with a little technical acumen offers to provide him with a reasonably priced show for his sub channel, he'll buy it.
And if there's an HD radio pre installed in my 2010 Prius, I'll be listening.
It is a farce with a just a few big radio conglomerates with a lot of money and free advertising unsuccessfully trying to force it down our collective throats. Maybe they're trying to jam a few of the little guys off the air? hmm....?? Check the yard sales in a few years Fred you'll have to hunt but you'll maybe find a free one. They didn't exactly fly off the shelves of the few stores which used to stock them.
Robert D Young Jr
33 S Main St 32B
Millbury, MA 01527
KB1OKL