MXR and Command Audio Bring Local ``Personal Radio'' to UK; New Partnership to Deliver Revolutionary Service Via Digital Audio Broadcast System.Business Editors LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 14, 2001 Digital radio multiplex See multiplexing. operator MXR MXR Mixer MXR Munxar (postal locality, Malta) MXR Mail Exchange Record , has today reached exclusive agreement with Command Audio, the U.S.-based technology firm, to launch local on-demand audio. It will be available across the regional multiplexes operated by the consortium, which includes a potential 8 million listeners in the North East, the Severn Estuary estuary (ĕs`ch  ĕr'ē), partially enclosed coastal body of water, having an open connection with the ocean, where freshwater from inland is mixed with saltwater from the sea. & South
Wales South Wales south n → sud m du Pays de Galles and West Midlands West Midlands, former metropolitan county, central England. Created in the 1974 local government reorganization, the county embraced the Birmingham conurbation and comprised seven metropolitan districts: Walsall, Wolverhampton, Dudley, Sandwell, Birmingham, Solihull, , as well as being proposed exclusively as part
of future MXR licence bids, which include a further 18 million listeners
in the North West, Yorkshire and London.This deal will for the first time, provide digital listeners with totally local news, sports, traffic and travel and business bulletins (provided by MXR's data partner UBC UBC Uniform Building Code UBC University of British Columbia UBC Union of the Baltic Cities UBC United Brotherhood of Carpenters UBC Universal Battery Charger UBC Union of Baltic Cities UBC Universal Bibliographic Control UBC Used Beverage Cans Digital), wherever and whenever they want. In addition, by using Command Audio's unique technology, listeners will have full control over how and when they listen, scanning a whole spectrum of relevant programming. All of this can be personalised Adj. 1. personalised - made for or directed or adjusted to a particular individual; "personalized luggage"; "personalized advice" individualised, individualized, personalized by each individual listener, thereby providing a truly personal radio experience. Command Audio and MXR will use their combined technology and audience coverage to encourage manufacturers to include this technology into the next generation of radio receivers, which it is hoped will be available by the end of this year. Phil Riley Phil Riley has been Chief Executive of Chrysalis Radio since 1999, having played a major role in establishing Chrysalis Radio as one of the leading new entrants in the UK radio industry. Riley's radio career started in 1980, when he joined Birmingham's 96. , Chairman of the MXR Consortium said, "MXR are delighted to be working alongside Command Audio to bring personalised, on-demand and interactive audio to the UK's digital radio listeners. This groundbreaking deal offers a revolutionary service, guaranteeing a new and exciting radio experience for the future. "MXR has promised in each of its bids to be 'Local from Launch.' The importance of local programming is imperative to listeners as we discovered through extensive research undertaken across the country. By joining up with Command Audio, MXR are adding even more value to that promise." Don Bogue, Co-founder and CEO (1) (Chief Executive Officer) The highest individual in command of an organization. Typically the president of the company, the CEO reports to the Chairman of the Board. of Command Audio added, "By joining with MXR, Command Audio is ensuring that on-demand interactive audio will achieve the widest possible distribution in the shortest possible time. Since on-demand interactive capabilities give listeners a compelling new experience of personalisation, choice and control, they clearly differentiate digital radio services from any other media. As a consequence, we believe receiver manufacturers will want to make this innovative functionality available to consumers in their next generation products." About MXR MXR is a consortium founded by radio operators Chrysalis chrysalis (krĭs`əlĭs): see pupa. Radio, Capital Radio, jazz fm Jazz FM may refer to:
The radio operators have pledged to offer their existing analogue stations exclusively to the MXR consortium (Century and Galaxy in the North East, Century and jazz in the North West, Galaxy in Yorkshire, Heart in the West Midlands and Galaxy and Real radio in the Severn Estuary/South Wales Wales, Welsh Cymru, western peninsula and political division (principality) of Great Britain (1991 pop. 2,798,200), 8,016 sq mi (20,761 sq km), west of England; politically united with England since 1536. The capital is Cardiff. ), along with a range of additional digital-only programming. As a founding shareholder in MXR, Ford UK intends to fit digital radios as original equipment in Ford new cars sold in the UK by 2004, and to promote digital radio upgrade availability in its authorised Adj. 1. authorised - endowed with authority authorized lawful - conformable to or allowed by law; "lawful methods of dissent" legitimate - of marriages and offspring; recognized as lawful dealerships, subject to the technology meeting the Company's standards in terms of quality, affordability and market demand. Many of the Local Digital Radio multiplex licences covering the same areas as the regional licences listed above have already been awarded. Full details of all awards can be obtained from the Radio Authority. Digital radio is a new transmission system that provides the listener with bundles (multiplexes) of audio services to new portable radios, in-car receivers and personal computers, with unprecedently clear reception. Being digital, it can also broadcast data services, which may or may not be related to the radio programming. As such, digital radio will provide an excellent opportunity to both enhance the quality of existing radio services and introduce new services and formats across the UK. About Command Audio Command Audio developed launched and test marketed in the U.S. the world's first broadcast on demand interactive audio service. Now, it is the first company to enable digital broadcasters to deliver personalised on-demand interactive radio services. Command Audio brings to the new joint venture real world experience in delivering on-demand audio services and an extensive portfolio of intellectual property in on-demand media technology. Command Audio's U.S. operation will continue to provide on-demand interactive program production tools for broadcasters and the software and hardware solutions to receiver manufacturers that will enable listeners to receive personalised, on-demand radio. (Command Audio has recently partnered with Motorola to integrate on-demand interactive audio technology into Motorola's next generation telematics Originally coined to mean the convergence of telecommunications and information processing, the term later evolved to refer to automation in automobiles. GPS navigation, integrated hands-free cellphones, wireless communications and automatic driving assistance systems all come under the system, the iRadio, to bring on-demand functionality to the car.) Command Audio is a privately held company privately held company A firm whose shares are held within a relatively small circle of owners and are not traded publicly. backed by strategic investors Texas Instruments See TI. (company) Texas Instruments - (TI) A US electronics company. A TI engineer, Jack Kilby invented the integrated circuit in 1958. Three TI employees left the company in 1982 to start Compaq. and Motorola and leading financial investors, including Canaan Partners, Granite Ventures Granite Ventures is a private venture capital firm with offices in San Francisco California. It has backed such companies as Tumbleweed Communications, Plumtree Software, Sendmail, and Westbridge Technology. , J.P. Morgan Morgan, American family of financiers and philanthropists. Junius Spencer Morgan, 1813–90, b. West Springfield, Mass., prospered at investment banking. Capital Partners and Paul Allen's Vulcan Ventures. It is based in Redwood City, California Redwood City is a suburb located on the San Francisco Peninsula in the San Francisco Bay Area of California. Redwood City is the county seat of San Mateo County. As of the 2005 census, the city had a total population of 76,000. , near the heart of Silicon Valley. About Command Audio-UK Command Audio-UK, is the product of a joint venture between Command Audio, Capital Radio plc and UBC Media plc to proliferate pro·lif·er·ate v. To grow or multiply by rapidly producing new tissue, parts, cells, or offspring. personalised on-demand radio services across the UK. This joint venture is key to rapid digital radio deployment, putting in place the necessary licensing and content solutions.
Command Audio-UK and MXR Partnership Announcements
FAQ
February 14, 2001
1. Q: What are the announcements?
A: Command Audio, Capital Radio plc and UBC Media plc, have
formed a joint venture to proliferate personalised on-demand
radio services across the UK. This joint venture is key to
that deployment, putting in place licensing and content
solutions, while the MXR announcement secures the spectrum.
MXR has committed spectrum, and to exclusively bring Command
Audio's technology to MXR's multiplexes for delivery of
personalised on-demand radio services. This important
commitment enables on-demand personalised radio services to be
brought to life in the UK. This is a critical step for the
advance of digital radio in the UK, bringing differentiated
value added services to consumers.
2. Q: Why are there two separate deals?
A: Both of these deals are critical steps in bringing
personalised on-demand radio services to the UK. CA-UK is a
local market presence that will bring personalised on-demand
radio services to multiplexes throughout the UK. The MXR
agreement reserves bandwidth exclusively for delivery of
personalised on-demand radio services.
3. Q: What does Command Audio do?
A: Command Audio enables digital broadcasters to offer their
listeners' unmatched choice, control and personalisation.
Command Audio offers to broadcasters, content providers and
device manufacturers the broadcast systems, audio production
software and receiver reference designs that enable the
production, transmission, reception and navigation of
on-demand interactive audio. This system benefits broadcasters
by allowing them to differentiate their service, attract and
retain listeners, create a richer listening experience,
maximise the value of the bandwidth, extend the reach of their
programs, and create new advertising and revenue
opportunities.
4. Q: How does Command Audio work?
A: Command Audio's end-to-end system brings new capabilities to
the production environment, advanced methods of transmission,
and complementary technology in the receiver to present an
experience whereby the user can access personalised
selections, on-demand, whenever they want, wherever they are.
Some additional features include the ability to skip from
program to program, pause in the middle of a program, and even
scan by story within a program.
Programs will be wirelessly transmitted through the multiplex,
around the clock. CA-enabled digital radios will filter and
store the specific programs selected by the listener -- so
they can hear them exactly when they want to. When new
editions of programs are received, they automatically update
the programs stored in the receiver's memory. At the press of
a button the consumer can hear their favorite programs.
5. Q: Will other multiplexes or broadcasters be excluded from
offering these services?
A: MXR will have a period of exclusive rights for the delivery of
personalised on-demand radio services in the UK, where they
have local and regional multiplexes. Command Audio will
continue to enable delivery of personalised on-demand radio
services in the UK on national multiplexes, and on local and
regional multiplexes where MXR does not offer service.
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