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For One and All,
WHY - The Eton E1 AM & FM Shortwave Receiver with XM Satellite Radio Does NOT have "DRM" Digital Radio Mondiale reception feature. READ : DRM - Do the Right Marketing ! [ DRM - What Went Wrong in the USofA ] Why Digital Radio Mondiale (DRM) needs a Brand Name - Commentary by Andy Sennitt, 13 January 2005 RNW = http://tinyurl.com/4cona http://www2.rnw.nl/rnw/en/features/m...drm050113.html "Eton Corporation, the company that brought Grundig radios into the US, showed the Eton 'Elite' E1 XM portable Receiver. It combines AM, FM, Shortwave Receiver, and XM Satellite Radio into one ultra high-performance unit, which - although portable - is sized at 13.1 by 7.1 by 2.3 inches and weighs 4 pounds." .. OBSERVATIONS ABOUT - The 2005 International Consumer Electronics Show (CES), the world's largest consumer electronics event, ended a week ago in Las Vegas. .. Unfortunately, due to the decision of the US to adopt iBiquity Digital's HD Radio instead of DRM as the standard for digital AM, a major opportunity to promote Digital Shortwave Broadcasting in the US market has been lost. .. But the Shortwave receivers in these new devices are only for AM, because the digital system chosen for use in the US - iBiquity Digital's HD Radio - is aimed at the AM (Medium Wave) and FM bands. So even if a digital AM receiving capability is added to these sets in the future, it's not likely to benefit Shortwave Broadcasters. .. Also at the CES, 21 of the top radio broadcast groups in the US announced an historic agreement with iBiquity Digital to accelerate the conversion of 2,000 AM and FM stations to HD Radio Technology. .. So it looks as if the US domestic market is firmly shut to DRM, despite its status as a world standard endorsed by the International Telecommunication Union. .. Unless this marketing issue is addressed, only a subset of existing Shortwave listeners are likely to be interested in DRM. Consequently sales of DRM-capable receivers - when they eventually appear in significant numbers - will be low, and the momentum will be lost. .. The majority of consumers will not even be aware that there's a digital AM Broadcasting System out there, especially as they need to buy a new receiver before they can hear it. .. And since the total number of hours aired by the International Broadcasters continues to fall, the selling of the medium in terms of listener choice becomes harder and harder day by day. .. DRM needs a brand name, preferably one that works in a number of major languages, that will explain what the technology is for, and cannot be confused with something else. .. As we're less than a year away from the release of the first 'portable' DRM Receivers in significant quantities, I hope attention now turns to how the technology is going to be sold to the consumer, especially in the US. A lot of time and effort has been spent getting to this point, but it could all be rendered ineffectual by poor marketing. .. |