iBiquity Acquires Exclusive License to Command Audio's On-Demand Interactive Audio Technology for Digital Radio
Advanced Digital Radio Application will Enable Listeners to Receive Exciting New Services from Broadcasters and Advertisers
Columbia, MD and Redwood City, CA - August 6, 2002 - iBiquity Digital Corporation, the sole developer of digital AM and FM broadcast technology in the United States and Command Audio Corporation, the pioneer of broadcast on-demand interactive media technology, announced today that iBiquity has acquired an exclusive worldwide license to Command Audio's intellectual property and technology in the field of digital radio and Command Audio's other digital radio-related assets. The acquisition has set the stage for radio broadcasters to provide consumers content on-demand-from program selection via electronic guide to scanning content to pausing or saving for later listening. Advertisers will be able to develop new messages which appeal to and connect with consumers, and content providers will have new tools with which to design innovative programming. iBiquity has established a Redwood City, California office and has hired the former software engineering employees of Command Audio. Both companies are privately held and terms of the agreement were not disclosed.
According to Robert Struble, President and CEO of iBiquity, "iBiquity plans to integrate the Command Audio technology with our digital AM and FM system to allow broadcasters and consumers to fully leverage the revolutionary capabilities of digital radio. The ability for broadcasters to manage the delivery of additional advertising-supported content like news, weather and traffic information along with their current audio is a major benefit of the technology. Radio manufacturers will be positioned to fully utilize the additional storage and multimedia capabilities in their products to differentiate the digital radio experience from today's analog."
"This transaction is very positive for both organizations and for consumers, broadcasters and advertisers who will benefit from services based on Command Audio's underlying intellectual property," said Don Bogue, Command Audio Chairman and CEO. "Our license agreement with iBiquity represents another major validation of our leadership position in on-demand media technology and intellectual property. iBiquity, as the leader in AM and FM digital radio technology development, can effectively commercialize the on-demand media capabilities developed by Command Audio for radio products, while we continue our licensing initiatives in the large and dynamic television arena."
In acquiring the digital radio assets of Command Audio, iBiquity Digital has secured exclusive licensing rights to all Command Audio intellectual property for all radio systems and products including digital AM and FM radio, satellite digital radio and other digital radio systems worldwide. Command Audio's business now is focused entirely on licensing its on-demand media intellectual property in non-radio fields, such as the fast-growing market for personal video recorders in terrestrial and satellite television applications.
About Command Audio
Command Audio owns and licenses a portfolio of intellectual property critical to the transmission, navigation and presentation of stored media. Founded in 1995, Command Audio pioneered the development of on-demand interactive audio. Command Audio's intellectual property broadly covers the audio aspects of consumer devices and services that store broadcast media for playback at the consumer's convenience. Command Audio is a privately held company backed by strategic investors Macrovision, Motorola and Texas Instruments and leading financial investors, including Canaan Partners, Franklin Resources, Granite Ventures, J.P. Morgan Capital Partners, St. Paul Venture Capital and Paul Allen's Vulcan Ventures. For more information, please visit Command Audio's web site at www.commandaudio.com.
About iBiquity Digital Corporation
iBiquity Digital is the sole developer and licenser of digital AM and FM broadcast technology in the U.S., which will transform today's analog radio to digital, enabling radically upgraded sound and new wireless data services. The company's investors include 15 of the nation's top radio broadcasters, including ABC, Clear Channel and Viacom; leading financial institutions, such as J.P. Morgan Partners, Pequot Capital and J&W Seligman; and strategic partners Ford Motor Company, Harris, Lucent, Texas Instruments and Visteon. iBiquity Digital is a privately held company with operations in Columbia, MD, Detroit, MI, Warren, NJ, and Redwood City, CA. For further information please see our website at www.ibiquity.com.
CONTACT:
iBiquity Digital:
Scott Frank, Alexander Ogilvy
Tel: 202-557-0836
scott.frank@ogilvypr.com
Laura Taylor
Tel:410-872-1555
taylor@ibiquity.com
Command Audio:
Anna Moore
Tel:650-631-6462
amoore@commandaudio.com
