RAB2009 will be remembered as a turning point in the
adoption of FM-based radio and data for cellphones and
other devices. NAB President/CEO David Rehr said in a
recent issue of Radio Inkmagazine, “Providing FM broadcast
reception capability in mobile handsets creates multiple
benefits for broadcasters, mobile network providers,
and consumers alike.” Those benefits include
emergency alerts and information without having to
makes changes to the mobile infrastructure, a low-cost
value-added feature for handsets, and incremental
revenue for mobile providers through tag-and-buy
services. Rehr continued, “FM broadcasters can provide
significant public promotion for new handsets with FM
reception capability.”
Local emergency management personnel use radio
and television, cable, and wireless cable systems, along
with land mobile radio and cell dispatches, to distribute
information to local responders. While the Department
of Homeland Security, along with state and local
emergency operations, is working to provide resources to
promote the development of a better comprehensive
emergency alert messaging system, the recent Minneapolis
bridge collapse was a sobering reminder that the traditional
communications systems simply don’t hold up under
catastrophic conditions.
Many people are still surprised when cell networks
can’t handle the extra load during emergencies, but the
reality is that cellphone networks were not designed to
handle the burdens put on them today. But wireless carriers do
have the potential to help safeguard individuals and
communities by activating the standard FM receiver chip
that exists in most cellular handsets. That chip is capable of
receiving personal alert messages from the standard FM
radio tower that people use to listen to their favorite music,
and it won’t interfere with normal cellphone use.
FM chips for cellphones are readily available and are used
extensively outside the U.S. In Europe and Asia, consumers
can get easy access to FM stations and data through an
“open service” business model. That means carriers offer
users an a la cartemenu of services without tying them to a
particular phone or service plan. That has resulted in over 40
percent of the market’s using FM radio over cellphones.
The FM chips available now are sensitive enough to
receive FM radio signals without relying on an external
headset antenna. Coupled with tuning and battery-saving
software provided by such applications as Radiolicious and
AlertFM, the tuner “wakes” and “goes to sleep” through a
station-synchronization technique developed over 20
years. The same battery-preserving software is used in GPS
receivers, NOAA weather data receivers, alert receivers,
smoke detectors, and other consumer devices.
Emergency communication channels will continue to
receive close scrutiny, and the role of broadcasters will
advance as the FM network infrastructure is shown to
provide efficient and solid support for the delivery of
time-critical, life-saving messages.
The AlertFM system, which uses the data subcarrier
of existing FM stations (along with text and e-mail),
doesn’t conflict with the demand for more features on
handsets, higher-quality music players, or feature-rich
devices in ever-smaller sizes. In fact, the projected music
opportunities for cell handsets over the next three years
are an added plus for broadcasters and will complement
the deployment of AlertFM.
Global Security Systems (the software developer for
Radiolicious and AlertFM) was on the Commercial
Mobile Alert Services Advisory that was born out of the
Warning Alert Response Network Act, which required
the development of emergency alert technologies for
wireless devices such as cellphones. The FCC has taken a
number of steps to facilitate consumers’ receiving
emergency alerts through their wireless phones, and in
2008, the commission issued a series of orders with
requirements for a Commercial Mobile Alert System.
AlertFM Is Not EAS
The AlertFM service, using the FM broadcast
infrastructure, has been deployed for two years,
covering over 60 million citizens in the United States.
With the cooperation of state and local emergency
managers and Northrop Grumman, our government
partner, AlertFM will help keep radio broadcasters
relevant and provide encouragement for inserting FM
radio chips in wireless devices.
There are no start-up costs and no license fees —
AlertFM is provided at no charge to the public by the
station and GSS. Federal, state, and local governments
provide the funding as part of their responsibility to
protect and provide information to U.S. citizens.
TJ Lambert is EVP/COO of Radiolicious. E-mail: tj@tjlambert.net
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