🚀 go-pugleaf

***********************************************************************
*      RADIO-L :  a discussion of Digital Audio Broadcasting (DAB)    *
*---------------------------------------------------------------------*
*   send discussion/contributions to: RADIO-L@tc.umn.edu (Internet)   *
***********************************************************************

Date:  02 October 1998
From:  skippiz@MICROSOFT.COM
Subject:  RE: The Manufacturer's point of view

I must confess that I'm inclined to agree with many of the misgivings
about DAB's acceptance that Tim Brown <Tim.Brown@MICROCELL.CA> so
eloquently expressed.

In a recent presentation, Tomlinson Holman (of THX, Ltd., USC, and
previously, Lucasfilm) cited research claiming that for average
(i.e., non-enthusiast) consumers to make the switch to a new
technology, a perceived 10-fold improvement over their current system
must be demonstrated. How this is measured is obviously quite
subjective, but DAB may be hard pressed to hit this value without
significant non-aural elements or other features included.

Remember, today's new formats will be judged not only against
earlier broadcast formats, but against new (interactive, multimedia,
etc.) ones. A purely qualitative improvement of audio fidelity may
not be enough to achieve penetration beyond the audiophile community.
Naturally, cost is also an issue, and without subsidies from
government or other "angels," economies of scale on receiver
production will not kick in unless significant numbers of early
adopters buy.

Finally, in a world increasingly dominated by media applications that
run on general-purpose "platforms" (i.e., computers, which will soon
migrate beyond their current desktop/laptop form factors), any new
system that requires the purchase of dedicated "appliance" hardware
will become an ever-harder sell.

Personally, I anticipate the day when I can access the world's
offerings of digital media with the convenience of today's radio. I'm
just not sure the current direction of DAB will succeed in adequately
serving this desire, particularly for the typical consumer of the
near future.

Skip Pizzi
Audio Technology Manager
Media Services Engineering
Microsoft Corporation

***********************************************************************
*  Check out RADIO-L and other DAB resources on the World Wide Web    *
*                       http://www.magi.com/~moted/dr                 *
***********************************************************************