High-definition (HD) FM radio, popular among 700 radio stations in the US and emerging in many countries worldwide, would not be possible in SA.
This is according to Charles Kelly, the Illinois-based director of international sales at radio components firm Broadcasting Electronics, who was speaking in Johannesburg yesterday.
Broadcasting stations on the FM frequency must be spaced 400KHz apart in order for HD FM to be feasible, he said. "Currently South African stations are spaced apart by only 300KHz, I understand."
The Independent Communications Authority of SA confirms that 300KHz is the average spectrum space separating radio stations on the FM spectrum. It says re-planning the whole frequency spectrum to 400KHz spacing would entail a lengthy process.
"HD radio stations are in regular full-time operation in the US, Thailand, Brazil, Mexico, Australia, Indonesia and the Philippines," said Kelly, adding that the technology is in the testing stage in France, Switzerland and Poland.
How it works
"HD FM radio is an orthogonal frequency division multiplex system which creates a set of digital sidebands each side of the normal FM signal - the combined FM and HD radio signal fits in the same spectral mask as is specified for conventional FM," said Kelly.
Though the analogue and HD signals are separate signals at different power levels, the receiver picks up both and provides the digital signal if available, he added.
Kelly believes that in general HD FM radio offers quality benefits for the consumer, presents few problems for regulators since there are no new frequency assignments, and is easy to implement for stations because existing towers, antennas and licences can be used.
Today many avenues compete for the same listening audience, such as satellite radio, webcasts, podcasts and even cellphones, so radio must evolve, adding more value for listeners, he noted.
For further technical details, visit www.bdcast.com/HDRadio.
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