The car of the future challenges radio’s prominent role in the dashboard: new connected cars will come with internet connections in-built and large touchscreens that make accessing entertainment other than live radio the easiest it has ever been. Radio’s role in the car is under threat.
Jamie Chaux, Head of Digital, Commercial Radio Australia (CRA), spoke on what does audio entertainment look like in the future connected car? What is being done right now to ensure radio is as best placed for the rise of the connected car?
Speaking about VR, he said: “The car is the original VR experience. The cabin is the VR screen and what’s going on around it is the experience.”
More than 80 percent of the people surveyed across the world in a WorldDAb 2021 Car Buyers Survey said they typically listen to the radio in a car and broadcast radio is a must have in cars. When considering which car to purchase, radio is the most important audio feature to have ahead of USB ports, Bluetooth, Android Auto and CarPlay.
“In car radio is one of the easiest ways to consume radio in the world,” he said.
Giving an example of an initiative to improve the car radio experience, he discussed a pilot project by NAB, US, of which CRA is a member, working with google to design the user experience based on what consumers expect from radio in car. In Australia, DTS has partnered with radio so that radio comes through broadcast, but visuals, artworks and information comes through IP. CRA is also in talks with local government for regulatory support. In Europe, DAB has already been mandated in all new cars.
“Radio needs to have depth of content and look really nice. The fact that usage can be measured will also be beneficial in terms of analytics for creating content.”
Photo – John Maizels
Cars now come with a SIM, which brings a new interface and helps understand the consumption of the car. New models don’t have physical buttons in the dashboard, only touchscreens, “cars have become an extension of your phone without connecting to it.”
What does the automotive industry think of all of this? Its aware that consumer expectations are high, but is concerned about the role of big tech in the car –
- Who is collecting the data in the car?
- Should you let big tech have access to all data points?
- How do you manage a logged in driver’s data?
- Who is ultimately writing revenue from the consumer?
Speaking about what broadcasters can do he said everyone should be prepared for fragmentation in all the different ways the connected car will go beyond broadcast radio. They need to see if their audio content is fit for the purpose of the future connected car and what other hybrid content they can have ready for car radio.
On how competition will evolve, he said: “With touchscreens, you may not be competing with just other stations. The users may not switch stations, they may go to something totally different on their screen.”
This story first appeared on RadioInfo.asia