Responding to growing international interest in HD Radio, Broadcast Electronics (BE) and Metro Radio, in cooperation with iBiquity Digital, conducted the first HD Radio demonstration at the ITU Telecom World 2006 conference this week. Demonstrations took place in Hong Kong, the gateway to the Pacific Rim and the world centre for radio receiver manufacturing.
Metro Radio, one of the largest commercial broadcasters in Hong Kong, demonstrated HD Radio as a digital broadcast standard compatible with analogue transmission on the host frequency as well as adjacent channels. For the demonstration, BE supplied a BE FMi 106 transmission system, which broadcast HD Radio at low-power on 100.1 MHz. Digital signals were picked up by an HD Radio receiver for the duration of the conference.
Initial testing revealed to ITU conference-goers that HD Radio can be broadcast at the same time as analogue FM on an existing licensed FM frequency, without causing prohibitive interference to the analogue FM broadcast or neighbouring analogue FM stations.
The Pacific Rim interest in HD Radio centres on the ability to piggyback digital broadcasts onto existing FM frequencies without interrupting analogue FM service currently available to listeners. Also drawing interest by receiver manufacturers is that HD radios currently designed and mass produced for the US will receive HD Radio broadcasts by stations elsewhere around the world. BE has installed HD Radio systems in Europe, Asia and Latin America, including France, Philippines and Brazil, among others.
(Source: Broadcast Electronics/R Netherlands Media Network Weblog)