On Feb 4, 11:23 am, Rfburns wrote:
Just finished having a little chat with a general manager for several
radio stations here in West Virginia. A few of them are transmitting
HD. This poor fellow is still under the illusion that HD radio is set
to take off like a rocket. He sites Ford's decision to make HD radio
an option for '08 and thinks that other auto manufacturers are on the
verge of announcing their introduction of HD radio as an option. I
informed him that the local Best Buy has had the same two RCA HD-100
radios on the self for several months with no takers and that the
local Ford deal was unaware of the HD radio option. How detached can
these people be? It's no wonder listeners are dropping like flies.

The interesting thing about all this is that one of the HD FM stations
has a very annoying buzz on the analog transmission side that I
suspect is being cuased by poor implementation of the Hybrid Digital
equipment and it's been there for months. This poor fellow informed
me that it's a defective microphone in one of the studios. Funny
thing, it occurrs during music and remote network news. Who does he
think he's fooling. It's obvious to me that he nor anyone else is
listening close enought to discover the wonders of HD radio.

jw

Here's the scoop on Ford and HD Radio:

"DEAD AIR: Radio's Great Leap Forward stalling in the Valley"

"Nearly two years after the Valley's four Clear Channel stations went
HD, several high-end car manufacturers have promised to offer HD
radios as an option on new models. But while Ford announced in
September that it offers the radios as dealer-installed upgrades -- as
have Mini, Volvo, Jaguar and BMW -- local Ford and Lincoln dealers had
not heard of HD and said they don't offer the option."

http://www.themonitor.com/news/radio...gital_new.html

"Are Ford and HD Radio in Sync?"

"The radio industry will, of course, promote Ford for free in exchange
for this development as part of the presumably soon-to-expire pledge
of airtime to the HD radio effort."

http://www.hear2.com/2007/09/are-ford-and-hd.html

"Ford, Lincoln And Mercury vehicles to feature factory-installed HD
Radio Technology in 2009"

"Ford Motor Company today became the first US automaker to announce
the availability of factory-installed HD Radio(tm) technology as a
standard or optional feature on Ford, Lincoln and Mercury vehicles
beginning in calendar year 2009."

http://www.prdomain.com/companies/F/...0081851249.htm

"No HD for Ford 2009"

"Kind of a downer to close out the year, and a possible warning for
the future... a family member works in Detroit on auto designs for
future years, and the audio systems that go in them. During a recent
holiday chat, he informed me that he was just about to wrap up the
work for Ford 2009 models. 'So they have HD tuners, right?' I asked.
Well, no they don't he responded. They are loaded and ready for Sirius
radio, THX sound as an option, many other lovely audio treats, but
unless requested custom by the buyer, HD will not be included in the
2009 audio systems. I find this bit of news to be very very troubling.
It also adds to my growing fears that while it 'seemed like a good
idea at the time' spending $250,000 to upgrade our signal to HD was a
HUGE waste of time and money. Sure, we did some much needed upgrading
of our transmitter site, beefed up the infrastructure and wiring, but
I think we could have done it for less than a 1/4 mil. It would be
less than kind to suggest that we're being taken for a ride on this,
but with virtually no interest from consumers and no support from
industry leaders, it sure feels that way."

H(D)appy New Year
Joe Vincenza
WUWF Public Media, Pensacola

http://lists.radiolists.net/pipermai...er/065882.html

"Ford Gets More Sirius"

"Sirius Satellite Radio and Ford announced today that they are
targeting a 70% installation rate for the Ford and Mercury brand of
automobiles. Ford had previously announced that their Lincoln brand
was effectively at standard equipment. This commitment with the Ford
and Mercury brands is a substantial step for Sirius, as it brings Ford
up to a similar installation pace as Chrysler."

http://siriusbuzz.com/ford-gets-more-sirius.php

"Ford to make Sirius Factory Standard in Canada"

"Here's some incredible news for Sirius Canada: Ford of Canada has
announced that they will make Sirius Satellite Radio a factory-
standard feature in virtually all Fords sold in Canada, by the end of
2007. That's a total of 20 vehicle lines. Absolutely great news, and
hopefully a sign of things to come for the U.S."

http://www.orbitcast.com/archives/fo...in-canada.html

"Ford SYNC, HD Radio and the state of competition"

"Now here's the killer: Ford is making SYNC available as a factory-
installed option for just over $300. And for the top-end trim levels,
like the Focus SES, it'll be a standard feature."

http://www.orbitcast.com/archives/fo...mpetition.html

"Radio: Internet Radio or HD Radio. You choose!"

"The first video is a pitch from Ford for their new optional SYNC,
which, among many other things, allows one to listen to any Internet
Radio from anywhere in the world... I searched in vain for a Ford
pitch video on HD Radio but, wisely, they didn't do one."

http://gormanmediablog.blogspot.com/...blog-post.html

"iBiquity Digital Investor Information"

"iBiquity's investors are global leaders in the technology,
broadcasting, manufacturing, media and financial industries all
supporting the development and rollout of HD Radio broadcasting:
Leading Manufacturers include Ford Motor Company, Visteon
Corporation...."

http://www.ibiquity.com/about_us/investor_information

"Lincoln Mercury, Visteon and iBiquity to Showcase HD Radio?"

"Both Ford and Visteon have agreements with iBiquity Digital, the sole
developer and licenser of digital AM and FM radio in the United
States, with Visteon already developing HD Radio capable OEM receivers
for the 2004 model year."

http://www.ibiquity.com/press_room/n...eases/2002/100