Infinity Broadcasting Corp. on Monday became the first U.S. broadcaster to commit to offering visual radio, a mobile-phone service that lets consumers listen to radio programming while simultaneously receiving artist-related information and interactive services.
The service, developed by Nokia Corp. and hosted by Hewlett-Packard Co., has been available only in Finland on Nokia handsets. Visual radio, however, was tested last summer in the United Kingdom and Singapore, where the service will be available this year, along with Germany and Sweden.
Visual radio allows subscribers to tune in to a local FM station with their mobile phone and simultaneously receive interactive information and graphics that are synchronized with the broadcast. Subscribers can view the title and artist of a song playing, check upcoming concert dates, purchase ring tones or other content from the artist and participate in radio station promotions.
“It’s all about enhancing the FM radio listening experience,” Debbie Brackeen, director of HP-Nokia global alliance, said from the National Association of Broadcasters convention in Las Vegas, Nev.
For radio stations, visual radio can increase listener loyalty and advertising revenue, HP said. Wireless carriers, on the other hand, are able to increase data-services usage and revenue.
HP, based in Palo Alto, Calif., provides billing services for broadcasters and content providers, and also sells and markets visual radio worldwide.
Traditionally, U.S. consumers have been slower in using data services on cellular phones than people in Asia and Europe.
“We have very high hopes for the market in the U.S., but the use of mobile handsets for listening to the radio is a lot more prevalent in Europe and Asia,” Brackeen said.
Infinity has become the first U.S. broadcaster to commit to offering the service, Brackeen said. The New York-based company, a division of Viacom Inc., operates 183 radio stations, with the majority in the nation’s top 50 markets, according to Infinity.
Financial details, as well as the timetable for delivering the new service, were not disclosed.
Visual radio today is available only through select Nokia models. The Finnish handset maker has said it would license the technology to competitors, but no timetable has been set. Nokia plans to ship 100 million handsets that support the service by the end of next year, Brackeen said.
