A working prototype of an integrated FM and digital station guide has been successfully developed, just five weeks after Digital Radio UK announced they were looking into it.
Listeners will be able to seamlessly tune between FM and digital frequencies and choose stations by name.
The integrated station guide automatically scans for both DAB and FM stations and then displays them in one alphabetical list to the user. The working prototype was developed by engineers at Frontier Silicon, the leading chip manufacturer, and demonstrated on a Roberts ‘ecologic 1’ radio.
As the radio industry moves towards a digital future, the development of an integrated station guide is a significant initiative in ensuring that local commercial and community stations which stay on FM are as accessible as those stations that have migrated to, or are only available on digital.
Ford Ennals, Chief Executive, Digital Radio UK, said: “It’s really exciting to see this project make such rapid and significant progress. Creating a secure and thriving future for all sectors of the radio industry is our primary objective, and ensuring that listeners can navigate with ease between their chosen stations, regardless of platform, is crucial to delivering that.”
Anthony Sethill, Frontier Silicon, said: “Our engineers have already made great progress in the development of the integrated guide. The prototype that we’ve demonstrated gives a really good working impression of how we can effectively and simply eliminate the need for a button or switch to navigate between digital and analogue.”
Leslie Burrage, Chief Executive, Roberts Radio, said: “It’s great to see the new integrated station guide in action on a Roberts radio and we’re very much looking forward to working with our colleagues in the industry to develop it further.”