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[HCDX] European HD Radio examined



European HD Radio examined
http://www.rapidtvnews.com/link.asp?smenu=1&twindow=Default&sdetail=2
538&mad=No&wpage=1&skeyword=&sidate=

Kevin Hilton

Germany could be the key European country in the development of digital 
radio as this month sees the start of test broadcasts for both DRM+ and HD 
Radio.

This coincides with the second meeting of the European HD Radio Alliance 
this coming week in Amsterdam, reflecting the growing interest in the 
American-developed "HD Radio" system.

The first European trials of HD Radio took place in Poland and Switzerland 
last year and have been followed by tests in the Czech Republic, Ukraine, 
Romania and Bosnia. The latest test site is Heidelberg, which went on air on 
December 1 and is scheduled to run until February 29 next year. This 
overlaps with trials of DRM+, the extended version of the digital AM format, 
which began on November 20 in Hanover. A second DRM+ test will be held 
in Kaiserslautern from March 1 to May 31 2008.

HD Radio had been confined to the US, where the in-band, on-channel 
(IBOC) system was considered to be better suited to the country's radio 
frequency structure than DAB, which requires new transmission bands to 
carry the multiplexed signals. Although DAB is now well established across 
Europe there is concern within the radio industry that the cost of getting on a 
multiplex could be a barrier to small, commercial stations going digital.

As a consequence iBiquity Digital, the company that developed HD Radio, 
has been receiving enquiries from European radio stations. "DAB is very 
well suited to multiple programme supply, along the lines of RTL and the 
BBC," said Perry Priestley, director of broadcast business development at 
iBiquity Digital. "But it doesn't really suit commercial broadcasters with only 
one channel. We've been hearing from European broadcasters who say 
'DAB doesn't benefit us', partly because it's expensive to implement."

The European HD Radio Alliance, of which Priestley is treasurer, was 
formed at the beginning of October to promote the technology on the 
continent. Its chairman, Juerg Bachmann, former managing director of 
Energy Zurich in Switzerland and now head of digital projects at the station's 
parent group, Goldbach Media, explained the need for the Alliance: "With a 
number of countries in Europe testing or deploying HD Radio technology, we 
believe that now is the right time to form an organisation to share our 
experiences and help co-ordinate our collective marketing efforts."

When IBOC was first proposed for digital radio the European radio 
technology industry criticised it on the ground that it was unstable and prone 
to interference. Another objection was that the patents are owned by a single 
company, which charges fees for use. Perry Preistley at iBiquity responds 
that HD Radio is used successfully by 50 to 60 stations in New York, while 
on the licensing question he says, "DRM and DAB have licences for the 
technologies but the fees go to many companies through a patent pool. HD 
Radio is similar but the fees come to one company. We're using a different 
licensing scheme in Europe, with broadcasters contacting manufacturers 
direct and not paying an on-going fee."

HD Radio is not seen as a replacement for DAB or DRM but an alternative 
that could work for some European radio stations. A spokeswoman for the 
UK's Digital Radio Development Board said that "everybody is looking at 
everything", although there is currently no apparent interest in the country for 
HD Radio. The general interest in various digital radio systems is shown not 
only by the testing of HD Radio and DRM+ but also by Malta and 
Switzerland making commitments to implement DAB+, while trials of the 
upgraded version of DAB are being held in Germany, Holland, France, Italy 
and Monaco. - (c) Rapid TV News 2007________________________
http://zlgr.multiply.com (raidio monitoring site plus audio clips )
http://www.worldisround.com/articles/302315/ (Litohoro) 321199/Tinos 
http://www.flickr.com/photos/zachgr    pictures upload 
.
on my main : www.geocities.com/zliangas 
-tty-px.html : test of various TTY programs
-ethics.htm    : greek ethics , days and institutions 
-frape.htm: the greek way of cofee !!! 
Zacharias Liangas , Thessaloniki Greece 
greekdx @ otenet dot gr  ---  
Pesawat penerima: ICOM R75 , Lowe HF150 , Degen 1102,1103,108,
Tecsun PL200/550, Chibo c300/c979, Yupi 7000 
Antenna: 16m hor, 2x16 m V invert, 1m australian loop 


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