Industry
group Commercial Radio Australia is planning a commercial trial of the
service next year after teaming with technology and broadcast software
companies to develop the system.
Digital radio is to launch in Australia in 2009 and instead of
broadcasting music only, radio stations will be able to broadcast data
such as images, artist and track data, news headlines, weather and
competitions.
"Australian radio broadcasters are committed to getting digital
radio and its exciting multimedia features into mobile phones," CRA
chief Joan Warner said.
"When digital radio is launched we will be able to demonstrate some
of the exciting possibilities that digital radio is capable of bringing
to handsets."
One company that helped develop the visual digital audio broadcasting application was All in Media.
Its managing director, Chris Gould, said digital radio was a natural
feature to offer in handsets because more people were now listening to
radio through their mobile phones.
"The interactive visual DAB application demonstrates that radio is
not an audio-only platform but can offer exciting new multimedia
features to listeners," he said.
Research conducted in Australia two years ago showed about a third
of consumers had listened to radio on their mobiles, Ms Warner said.
"Digital radio could become a compelling reason to choose a handset
because it can deliver exciting new content to consumers free to air,"
she said.
Meantime, British digital radio manufacturer Pure has announced it
will establish an Australian division as it plans to release the first
DAB+-ready digital radios early next year.
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