FCC Should Grant Digital AM HD Petition, Say NAB and Broadcasters

Grant Bryan Broadcasting’s petition for the FCC to allow AM stations to voluntarily transition to all-digital HD radio, commented NAB, posted Friday in RM-11836. “We agree with the Petitioner that all-digital AM service will allow broadcasters to provide substantially improved sound quality that could help AM stations to retain and attract listeners in the increasingly competitive audio marketplace.” There's broad support for the proposal among broadcasters, NAB said. The FCC should provide an incentive for AM stations to make the jump since HD Radio receiver penetration hasn’t reached 50 percent in any market, said engineering consulting firm Communications Technologies Inc. “Promptly” issue an NPRM on allowing a transition “on a voluntary basis under an expedited, simplified elective process,” said the California and Missouri broadcasters associations. Transmitting using all-digital MA3 mode as the petition suggests would help AM “achieve aural and visual parity with other services found in vehicle entertainment systems,” said Hubbard Radio.