TORONTO, Canada/WASHINGTON, D.C -- The North American Broadcasters Association (NABA) today published new information on the penetration of FM chips in smartphones for the North American market. Working with the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) and using data compiled by research and consulting firm ABI Research, this sales data shows the extent of FM chip penetration in the top-selling smartphones for Canada, Mexico, and the U.S. for the fourth quarter of 2015 and the first quarter of 2016.
As demonstrated by this data, most of the top-selling smartphones in all three countries include an FM chip, which means that these devices can receive free, over-the-air FM radio signals, depending upon whether the FM chip is activated in the device. For a variety of reasons, these FM chips are often not activated, most notably in all of Apple’s iPhone products (which are top sellers). Broadcasters are working with smartphone device manufacturers and cellular carriers to increase the number of models that have the FM chip activated so that more consumers have access to FM radio on their smartphones.
“NABA believes that providing statistical data on FM chip activation in smartphones for North America is an important step for raising awareness of this technology among radio broadcasters and consumers,” said NABA Director-General Michael McEwen.
“FM radio is enjoyed around the world and is a global standard. This fits well with smartphones where FM chips are already installed and sold globally. We applaud NABA for their work to build awareness on the benefits of activating FM chips in North America,” commented NAB Executive Vice President and CTO Sam Matheny.
This data is available on the NABA web site at http://www.nabanet.com/nabaweb/committees/radio-fm-chip-in-smartphone-data.asp. Future quarterly updates will be posted here when available. For more information on broadcaster’s efforts to increase the activation of FM chips in smartphones go to http://freeradioonmyphone.ca/ (in Canada) or http://freeradioonmyphone.org/ (in the US). For more information on FM chip in smartphone penetration in the U.S., go to http://nabpilot.org/work/projects/fm-radio-in-smartphones/.
About
NAB
The National Association of Broadcasters is the premier advocacy association
for America's broadcasters. NAB advances radio and television interests
in legislative, regulatory and public affairs. Through advocacy, education
and innovation, NAB enables broadcasters to best serve their communities,
strengthen their businesses and seize new opportunities in the digital
age. Learn more at www.nab.org.
About
NABA
NABA is a non-profit association of the most influential broadcasting organizations throughout North America committed to advancing the interests of broadcasters at home and internationally. Network broadcasters, both public and private, in the United States, Mexico, and Canada, work together to provide a common voice for the North American broadcast community. For further information about NABA, please visit www.nabanet.com.