FM Radio and RBDS-Based Emergency Alerting - Volume 2018, 02 – February 2018

U.S. Federal agencies are responsible for governing emergency communications systems capable of effectively and expeditiously notifying the public. There are several approaches to communicate with the public, but they are limited to cellular networks and cable systems. These limitations are susceptible to damaged cell towers and power outages which can leave people without a means of attaining information in the wake of and during a disaster event. Opening other channels of communication, which can withstand natural disasters, is a solution. Activation of FM chips and Radio Broadcast Data System(RBDS) based systems would allow communication through FM Radio with the use of existing radio stations. A first step to bringing about this solution would be for mobile device manufacturers to activate the FM chips in mobile phones. Demonstrating that FM chip activation can increase revenue by allowing them to have a differential advantage, may convince industry leaders to adopt this technology. Competitive advantage, coupled with the public safety/social good incentive, could enable market forces, as opposed to regulatory powers, to bring FM Radio chip activation and RBDS-Based Emergency Alerting to fruition.