More than 80 percent of the people surveyed across the world in a WorldDAb 2021 Car Buyers Survey said they typically listen to the radio in a car and broadcast radio is a must have in cars. When considering which car to purchase, radio is the most important audio feature to have ahead of USB ports, Bluetooth, Android Auto and CarPlay.
“In car radio is one of the easiest ways to consume radio in the world,” he said.
Giving an example of an initiative to improve the car radio experience, he discussed a pilot project by NAB, US, of which CRA is a member, working with google to design the user experience based on what consumers expect from radio in car. In Australia, DTS has partnered with radio so that radio comes through broadcast, but visuals, artworks and information comes through IP. CRA is also in talks with local government for regulatory support. In Europe, DAB has already been mandated in all new cars.
“Radio needs to have depth of content and look really nice. The fact that usage can be measured will also be beneficial in terms of analytics for creating content.”
Cars now come with a SIM, which brings a new interface and helps understand the consumption of the car. New models don’t have physical buttons in the dashboard, only touchscreens, “cars have become an extension of your phone without connecting to it.”
What does the automotive industry think of all of this? Its aware that consumer expectations are high, but is concerned about the role of big tech in the car –
- Who is collecting the data in the car?
- Should you let big tech have access to all data points?
- How do you manage a logged in driver’s data?
- Who is ultimately writing revenue from the consumer?
Speaking about what broadcasters can do he said everyone should be prepared for fragmentation in all the different ways the connected car will go beyond broadcast radio. They need to see if their audio content is fit for the purpose of the future connected car and what other hybrid content they can have ready for car radio.
On how competition will evolve, he said: “With touchscreens, you may not be competing with just other stations. The users may not switch stations, they may go to something totally different on their screen.”
Photos – J Maizels
Reporting – S Ahern
The evolution of the car's infotainment system has been discussed on this site before. This article summarizes the various sources of media content including broadcast radio, bluetooth, video files and audio files.
Mention was made of a sim card being connected to an infotainment system which is akin to connecting a mobile phone to the head unit through Android and/or Apple play.
Once IP communication is available on the head unit, it is no different to using a radio station's app on a mobile phone: the infotainment unit becomes a source of data on spoken word and music content to the broadcaster for analysis and targeted marketing.
Though there may be difficulty determining whether the driver and/or passengers is consuming the content, analysis based on demographics may be difficult.
Nevertheless, there is an issue of privacy when content is being delvered by IP.
As such, the head unit must have privacy controls to allow the consumer to disclose how much data is shared to the broadcaster in the sane way that one's browser and email service such as gmail allows one to control/disclose their privacy.
At the same time whether IP communication is through the head unit or a mobile phone is connected to the head unit, there may well be additional mobile data charges depending on the plan with the mobile company.
Another consideration is lack of mobile coverage in rural areas and suburban blackspots. Like poor radio reception, lack of mobile coverage is an interruption to continuous reception of content.
Then there is the issue of road safety. The head unit's visual controls and interactivity of the driver with the head unit is a distraction from the motorist concentrating on the road. A moment away from concentrating on the road may be fatal.
To illustrate, a user such as the driver should not be responding to competitions or promotions requiring interactivity with the head unit.
Thank you,
Anthony, of think of these ussues before putting these devices on the market, Belfield, in the land of the Wangal and Darug Peoples of the Eora Nation.