The news from Norway is that the country plans to dump FM and go all digital by 2017. The United Kingdom isn’t quite ready to do the same, but over fifty radio outlets have responded to the UK’s invitation to apply for a digital experiment for smaller broadcasters. Ofcom, Britain’s broadcast regulator, has announced trials to […]
See our most recent update to this story: FM in Norway Isn’t Dead, Says Norwegian Local Radio Association Last Thursday Norway’s Ministry of Culture announced the national transition from analog FM to digital DAB radio beginning on January 11, 2017. This move, akin to the digital television transition the US made in 2009, has been […]
We got some interesting e-mail and Facebook updates this week from various developers who wanted to catch our eye (or ear). These included: Boomboxfm. “Let us introduce you to your next favorite song,” the site explains. “Get free, downloadable songs every week directly to your inbox, personalized to your tastes. . . . We scour the world […]
It’s 2015, and that means Howard Stern’s SiriusXM five-year contract is up for renewal again. Last time around, in 2010, Stern milked the protracted “will he or won’t he” drama nearly right up to the end, finally signing on at the beginning of December. Back then the biggest rumor swirling around was that Apple had […]
As if it wasn’t already obvious, online audio of all types is growing by leaps and bounds. In fact, 44% of all Americans over age 12 listen every week. It’s most popular with young people, though also quickly gaining traction with everyone under age 55. This is according to the the 2015 edition of their […]
The United Kingdom’s broadcast regulator has announced trials to help smaller, community based radio stations access the UK’s digital audio broadcasting (DAB) system. According to Ofcom, nearly half of adults in the UK (48.9 percent) say they own a DAB radio set. But getting access to a DAB “digital multiplex” service area is expensive; most […]
HD Radio is back on my mind after reading a recent article in Current about how public stations are using the technology. iBiquity, the company behind HD Radio, has hired the former director of NPR Labs to survey stations on the technology, obviously with the hope of encouraging more use. Writer Scott Fybush talks to […]
A number of prominent musicians have complained loudly about the royalties they receive from streaming music services like Spotify and Pandora, from indie rock veteran David Lowery to pop star Taylor Swift, who pulled all of her music from Spotify. Mike Masnick at TechDirt decided to look closer at the numbers and determined that “Yes, […]
If you received a new Sonos then you’ve got a great portal for listening to radio, music and podcasts with nice sound quality. This is our recommendation guide to the sources available on the system. I’ve tried every one of them and provide a short capsule review for each. In addition to sound quality and […]
Six more low-power FM construction permits were issued this week, brining the total to 1302. But the big news is that the FCC released the list of 111 MX groups of applicants competing for frequencies in 24 eastern states and the District of Columbia. Yesterday Matthew took a quick look at what could turn out […]
