It is fascinating for us to watch the recent flurry of radio trade press revolving around the very real and truly existential threat posed by the world’s two biggest tech companies, Apple and Google, to both the automotive and radio industries.
DASH attendees have been buzzing about this for the past two conferences, as details about these platforms have come to the surface. The conditions that motivated both of these tech mega-companies to develop automotive ecosystems are very clear to those of us who follow this space closely.
The car companies all ran at breakneck speed to develop their own proprietary dashboard platforms. Sadly, many of them struggled with the UX – or user experience – as many consumers were perplexed about how to perform simple tasks, like pairing their phones, using voice commands, and even tuning in their favorite radio stations. We’ve seen this loud and clear in J.D. Power ratings, including a presentation at DASH of new research by that company suggesting that many consumers don’t even use digital dashboard features.
The lack of standardization and mediocre customer reviews were all Apple and Google needed to see. More so than the automakers, they understand consumer electronics and technology. And in short order, they developed platforms that mirror people’s favorite devices – their smartphones – in the dashboard.
You can see both Apple CarPlay and Android Auto in action in this video we shot last year at CES. They show both platforms – one in a Chevy and the other in a Volkswagen. You’ll also see how radio looks and how to get to it in the Volkswagen demo.
Email recipients: click here to watch video
While some automakers were resistant to giving up this in-car real estate to Apple and Google, it was obvious at CES 2016 last week that many now embrace these new in-dash platforms. Considered more like partners than predators, Apple and Google systems will now be installed right alongside automakers’ own systems. And why not? Consumers are married to their smartphones, and now they can get that familiar look and feel in the “center stacks” of the vehicles they drive.
And auto industry acceptance for both CarPlay and Android Auto is now widespread. An Apple webpage details the more than 100 makes and models where their CarPlay system now lives. And at CES, most of the car makers were excited to show off their Apple and Google-enabled dashboards.
At DASH this past November, consultant John Ellis was emphatic about the threat posed by both Apple and Google to automakers – and to the radio broadcasting industry. For the former, the danger revolves around the potential loss of branding, data, and even control of their dashboards. For radio, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto take consumers even further away from being able to easily access their favorite local radio stations.
The car was the one area where radio has historically ruled, with a simple two knob/six preset interface that a second grader could master. Today, that same elementary school student would be right at home in most “connected cars,” now sporting the familiar look and feel of iPhones and Android handsets.
Auto industry execs have nothing against broadcasters. Paul and I have easily interviewed more than 50 of them over the past few years at events like CES, Telematics Update, and of course, DASH. We have gotten to know several of them personally – at conferences, in their workplaces, and socially. I believe we have a pretty good understanding of what they’re thinking and what they hope to achieve in this fast-moving space.
To a one, they will all tell you that AM/FM radio is a primary piece of the dashboard content menu. Most have personally grown up with radio, and many enjoy favorite stations and radio personalities as they drove to work this morning.
But that said, they strongly believe that it’s essential for their cars to offer consumers myriad options and choices in the vehicles they buy and lease. That can mean satellite radio, streaming apps, and podcasts. And now it means a familiar interface that mimics the smartphones they eagerly carry in their pockets and purses.
As it happened, I bumped into Walter Mossberg at CES while roaming through the halls of the Las Vegas Convention Center. For years, Walt was the pre-eminent tech reviewer and analyst for The Wall Street Journal, until stepping away exactly two years ago to form a media side called Re/code. His take on Apple CarPlay and Android Auto is that the two tech companies are far more qualified to create in-dash ecosystems that consumers are comfortable using. In a new column, he noted Apple and Google should go even further:
“I don’t know how well the tech behemoths can someday build an engine or transmission at scale. But I am convinced that they do a much better job on designing familiar, workable, in-cabin user interfaces that intelligently link the car with those smartphone functions that are safe to use while driving. In fact, I’d love to be able to opt for Apple and Google to expand their role and take over the entire non-driving interface inside the car’s cabin.”
But John Ellis finds it all worrisome. Post- DASH, we wrote a blog post called “Dashboard Invaders” that detailed his concerns as well as the impact these two “connected car” platforms may have on radio. Once the consumer pairs her phone in either Apple CarPlay or Android Auto, that’s what they’ll see when they start their cars.
That takes AM/FM radio another layer away in most vehicle systems. And that’s the concern that we’ve expressed for two years now, since both Apple and Google unveiled their in-car platforms.
But there’s hope. Our mobile app development company, jācapps, recently cracked the Android Auto code, allowing any radio station app to have presence in the all-important screen space on these Google-powered systems. You can watch a short demo of how the WRIF app looks and feels in a new Kia equipped with Android Auto. The interface is a good one, and once again, radio (at least the stream) is back in business in the dashboard.
Email recipients: click here to watch jācapps demo
Apple CarPlay is a different story. Apple has not commented about the ability for app developers to pull off the same technical accomplishment we just did on their Android counterpart. And therein lies the rub.
Jacobs Media and jācapps will continue to make every effort to make radio apps compatible and available on Apple CarPlay. But we could use a little hand – from the NAB, as well as radio companies large and small. Obviously, Apple allows everyone’s apps on the iPhone, iPad, and the Watch, once they meet the approval process. We would hope that Apple CarPlay will be no different.
Yes, HD Radio, NextRadio, and other initiatives are important to the broadcast community. But for the radio industry to truly be everywhere, it’s going to take a concerted effort to work with Apple to make this a reality. Google’s acceptance via Android Auto is encouraging. But the green light for CarPlay will allow us to get a little sleep, knowing that radio is still front and center in cars, as has been the case for nearly a century. That’s the goal.
Fasten your seat belts.
Jacobs Media has consistently walked the walk in the digital space, providing insights and guidance through its well-read national Techsurveys.
In 2008, jacapps was launched - a mobile apps company that has designed and built more than 1,300 apps for both the Apple and Android platforms. In 2013, the DASH Conference was created - a mashup of radio and automotive, designed to foster better understanding of the "connected car" and its impact.
Along with providing the creative and intellectual direction for the company, Fred consults many of Jacobs Media's commercial and public radio clients, in addition to media brands looking to thrive in the rapidly changing tech environment.
Fred was inducted into the Radio Hall of Fame in 2018.
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Kinda scary for radio folks I would think. It would seem that radio should strive to be on the carplay/android auto desktop, as an icon that opens the radio UI or as a direct preset to a station on the RADIO, not the station app. Anything less than both and radio has lost its primary positioning in cars. Listening to the stream (as an alternative) costs too much, doesn’t reward advertisers and both are bad for radio. If there is any danger of that not happening, both auto manufacturers and Apple/Google should be lobbied aggressively. Take away the one touch direct access to good old AM/FM and radio gets hit hard IMO.
Bob, not sure an app on Android or the iOS platform can achieve that. Streaming is a way of life, whether it’s as economically attractive as radio operators would hope. This is a matter of radio adjusting to consumer habits and desires, and ensuring it is in all the places where they are. Thanks for the comment. It’s a tricky one for radio in a changing landscape.
I meant to reply here earlier. Actually, yes they can. My son has an aftermarket carplay unit which does that. i also rented an Infiniti that could also. It was their own system, but I could switch from FM or Sirius to Pandora from their touchscreen.
FWIW, if streaming is the only easy option in a car I think the impact on radio will be devastating. From a revenue standpoint – no one makes money doing it while conversely, radio still churns out very impressive cash flow from broadcasting. Forcing people onto a stream with separate icons and multiple platforms will decrease use and revenue. Hopefully that’s now how things end up.
It’s an OEM to OEM deal. Some of the interfaces are better than others for radio. But I believe the bottom line is that broadcast radio needs to be wherever consumers are. Some of those platforms will be very profitable (terrestrial), while other may be a push or a struggle. But given the many outlets, platforms, and ways that people enjoy audio, radio must have presence. Thanks, Bob.
These two platforms are for real, will likely overtake the automakers’ own systems once the car guys see the level of adoption and realize how much R&D money they can save by just plugging in Apple and Google interfaces. That drops broadcast radio to the same or a lower level than streaming services, personal music libraries, podcasts, and ALL the alternatives to AM/FM that are out there. And NO, people won’t rush to hear their favorite stations via streaming. For one good reason.
Here’s the BIG problem many broadcasters haven’t yet chosen to believe. Whether they’re sending a stream through their website or one of the very well made apps out there, their content sucks. Not their programming (some of that sucks but some is great) but the content they feed to the Interwebz when commercials are paying on their stations. Bad cutaways and rejoins, the same spots over and over and over, outdated spots and promos, the list goes on and on and on. It’s been an issue ever since stations were forced or chose to cover up local breaks on their streams. First, it was because the technology couldn’t quite handle what it needed to do to make insertion work correctly. That’s no longer an excuse. Human error is largely responsible for the horrible sounding breaks. From putting the tones in the wrong place on a song to not actually listening to the stream to hear how painful it can be, the bulk of the problems can be fixed by siply paying attention, something too few broadcasters do these days.
So what happens? the pureplay streamers (FD, I work for one of them) have an equal or better footing in the Apple and Google worlds and people will seek out the best content in a parity situation. And in many cases, once they realize they can hear well produced streams without commercials for the price of a couple of lattes a month or hear their favorite podcasts whenever they want, they will be gone from radio faster than Christmas bonuses.
If you’re a broadcaster, you should read the above blog post again. The future is here, and you are no longer playing the game with an advantage, and there’s very little you can do about it now.
Welcome to the real world.
Mark, every automaker we spoke with at CES told us the same thing – they’re working on their UX – user experience – trying to make using their systems as easy and seamless as possible. Radio has historically had that going for it in that nothing is as easy to use a basic radio – your one button solution. But the experience a consumer has when they access a station’s stream is make/break. Over time, users have come to expect a quality, simple experience that looks and sounds good.
At jacapps, we may be successful in helping radio stations get their apps presence on Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. But the experience consumers have when they make that choice has to be a wonderful one. There’s work to do.
Thanks for the comment and for reading our blog.
Now is the time for local broadcast stations to unite in defense of AM-FM in-car listening. A single “YourTownHere Radio” app that opens to reveal all of a city’s stations will go a long way toward blunting the impact of being multiple clicks away from local stations in the CarPlay environment.
Of course, most local stations will reject the idea of working together with broadcast competitors, preferring to try to get just their app mounted, a probable exercise in futility. Thus, the next–and possibly last–opportunity to play in the new world of streaming mobile audio will be squandered.
Jon, your idea is reminiscent of the Radioplayer model in the UK where everyone has come together to play nice in the digital space. It works for everyone, from the BBC to commercial radio. But as you suggest, it’s a major leap that requires an entirely new line of thinking. Sadly in the next generation of cars, AM/FM radio will not enjoy the monopoly is did when grew up in the radio business. Thanks for the comment.
This will be yet another excuse for radio execs to “cut the fat” ie: rely even more on voicetracking. I dream of the day that talent matters to those in high places again. Radio is cyclical, so we shall see..
As always, Jacobs media cuts the clutter and gets to the point. Thanks Fred, Paul and everyone. We greatly appreciate the intel you share with us.
Much appreciated. This issue is very near and dear to us, as you know. Thanks for the reading the blog.