Infinity to Split Radio Frequency By Using Digital Technology
By SARAH MCBRIDE Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
May 12, 2005
http://online.wsj.com/article/0,,SB111586690391431476,00.html?mod=todays_us_marketplace
In an early step toward splitting radio frequencies into high-definition niches, Viacom Inc.'s Infinity Broadcasting is dividing the frequency of a Chicago radio station into two and using the extra space to air a new station targeting younger listeners.
Although several public radio stations have embraced the technology, known as multicasting, and some other stations have experimented with it on a temporary basis, Infinity's Chicago-based WUSM is the first commercial station to adopt multicasting full-time. WUSM is one of the nation's top-rated country music stations and its new sister station, WUSM HD-2, will focus on new country music from existing stars as well as up-and-comers. New high-definition digital radio technology makes the multicasting possible.
While the secondary station will first air without advertising, Infinity executives hope to add commercials in the future, creating a new revenue stream. They also hope to generate some buzz around both stations and build their audiences.
Only Chicago-area listeners who own a high-definition radio will be able to hear the station, and that is a small group. A handful of HD radios are in cars. The first table-top models, Boston Acoustics' Recepter Radio and Radiosophy's MultiStream Radio, should be hitting store shelves next month. Prices should start around $250 for the MultiStream; the Recepter's price hasn't been announced. National Public Radio stations that currently multicast include KUOW in Seattle and WOSU in Columbus, Ohio.
"If we can make it cooler, hip, (and do) different things in HD, we can attract more younger listeners," says Joel Hollander, Infinity's chief executive. He believes the secondary station will bring in more 18 to 34 year olds, a demographic where radio has lost some ground in recent years.
Multicasting is Infinity's latest experiment to keep regular radio relevant in the face of competition from Internet radio, satellite radio, and other forms of entertainment. The company has moved aggressively to introduce new radio formats in recent months, adopting technologies such as streaming of some stations over the Internet and podcasting, a hot trend that allows listeners to download programs to their iPods.
The radio industry in general has welcomed high-definition radio, including multicasting, as a way to create excitement among listeners and boost flagging advertising revenue. While many companies are broadcasting some stations using HD digital signals as well as analog, few have taken the next step of experimenting with multicasting.
================================ George Antunes, Political Science Dept University of Houston; Houston, TX 77204 Voice: 713-743-3923 Fax: 713-743-3927 antunes at uh dot edu
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