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 THE EVOLUTION OF KMUWLast month we included an article in Static about KMUW’s Signal Expansion Project. A major component of the project is the addition of digital FM broadcasting to Wichita Public Radio’s mission of public service. Digital FM is referred to as HD Radio™ which is, as the little symbol suggests, a trade mark from a company known as iBiquity Digital. iBiquity developed HD Radio technology and over 1,350 stations are currently transmitting a digital signal. “HD” may make you think of High-Definition, the terminology being used in the current transition of television services. The use of HD for radio doesn’t literally mean high definition, but the new technology is still a significant evolution in the world of radio broadcasting. On the TV side, stations have been required to convert to digital, and the existing conventional, or analog, service will be terminated in February 2009. On the radio side, as we mentioned last month, KMUW’s analog FM won’t go away. The digital signal will be combined with the analog signal at our new transmitter site, and delivered through a single antenna. The digital signal on our main channel will be a simulcast of our current analog service. To pick up the new digital service, however, you will need to acquire a radio capable of receiving HD Radio transmissions. A number of national, regional and online retailers offer a variety of home and car receivers. The NPRShop at npr.org offers HD Radio items, and your purchase from NPR also supports KMUW. Several auto manufacturers are including HD Radio receivers in their new products. Your new radio will pick up digital signals in your vicinity from stations operating an HD Radio transmitter, as well as the existing stations broadcasting only in analog. One characteristic of the digital service is that it doesn’t fade out like analog. When you’re out of digital range while listening to the main channel, your receiver will switch you to the analog mode and you shouldn’t miss anything. When you’re back in digital range, your radio will automatically switch back to digital. When KMUW implements HD Radio, we will increase the number of channels from 89.1 FM and be able to offer a variety of new data services to your radio. We have already acquired the license to use iBiquity’s technology and have a digital transmitter ready for installation. HD1 will be our primary digital channel – a simulcast of our current schedule of news, information, music and entertainment programming. A second channel, known for the moment as “HD2” will include a mix of music based on an A3, singer-songwriter, or World Café programming model. We are developing a music library for this channel and will program our own mix of music, while offering additional broadcasts of World Café, Global Village, New Settlers Radio Hour and more. When you’re tuned to Wichita Public Radio at 89.1 HD1, you will simply tune up to HD2 on that FM channel to access the music mix on HD2. We’re also finalizing our set-up for “HD3” which will be based on a 24-hour broadcast of the BBC World Service. Knowing that many listeners find great value in access to global news and information, it seemed natural to use one of our digital channels to provide this level of world-wide coverage. Again, when you’re on 89.1, you’ll click on through to HD3 for round-the-clock global news. We’ll also have the option to include other news programs, specials and even local news on HD3. The channels will be available only in the digital mode – there will be no analog simulcast of HD2 and HD3 like there is for the HD1 main channel. Until we get the transmitter facility constructed and the antennas on the tower, we’ll offer you the chance to sample the programming for HD2 and HD3 by streaming them from our website. Those streams will be up and running this summer. Along with the compelling news and great music audio from our digital service, your HD Radio receiver will be capable of displaying text information on any of the three digital channels. We can offer weather updates, song title, artist, emergency alerts or the phone number to call to support Wichita Public Radio. Actually, we don’t plan to do on-air fundraisers on HD2 and HD3…right away. There will be additional expenses for the program content and the equipment necessary to make it all possible, but we will be able to offer these new program channels for a significantly lower cost than what it would take to run three separate radio stations. You can help us get these additional channels off the ground and on the air by sending a contribution to KMUW for the Signal Expansion Project. After you do that, be sure to check our website for additional information and updates, and check back here next month for the latest on the Evolution of KMUW. |
      
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