Digital audio radio service (

Spectrum management Spectrum management is the process of regulating the use of radio frequencies to promote efficient use and gain a net social benefit.Martin Cave, Chris Doyle, William Webb, ''Modern Spectrum Management'', Cambridge University Press, 2007 The ter ...

) refers to any type of digital radio program service. In the United States it is the official FCC term for digital radio services. The most popular type of DARS in the U.S. and Canada is SDARS: Satellite Digital Audio Radio Service, used by Sirius Satellite Radio and XM Satellite Radio. XM and Sirius both operate in the 2.3-GHz S band, from 2320 to 2345 MHz. Increasing the spectrum available for more services would be difficult, since unlike C-band and K_u band services, which allow over 200 locations for satellites, S-band satellites must be spaced far apart, with current technology. Existing vehicle antennas would not allow reception of two different stations on the same frequency, though new technology, requiring a new kind of receiver, might be possible. WorldSpace also operated a DARS network outside the United States and Canada with a footprint covering Europe, Asia, the Middle East and Africa. It used the L-band.

Spectrum Resources

In 1992, the World Administrative Radio Conference (WARC) allocated satellite radio services the 2310–2360 MHz band for ''Broadcasting Satellite Services (audio)''. In the United States, from this global allocation, satellite radio (SDARS) services are allocated a subset, the 25MHz from 2320–2345 MHz. This band is further broken down into sub-bands for space-to-ground and terrestrial broadcasts:

Digital Satellite Broadcasting Corporation

Digital Satellite Broadcasting Corporation was one of four companies bidding for Satellite Digital Audio Radio Service, or SDARS, licenses in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

. The service would have been a listener-supported

subscription The subscription business model is a business model in which a customer must pay a recurring price at regular intervals for access to a product or service. The model was pioneered by publishers of books and periodicals in the 17th century, a ...

digital audio service. 1990:

Sirius Satellite Radio Sirius Satellite Radio was a satellite radio (SDARS) and online radio service operating in North America, owned by Sirius XM Holdings. Headquartered in New York City, with smaller studios in Los Angeles and Memphis, Sirius was officially lau ...

, known then as Satellite CD Radio, Inc., proposes the concept of a satellite-delivered digital radio service to the

Federal Communications Commission The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that regulates communications by radio, television, wire, satellite, and cable across the United States. The FCC maintains jurisdicti ...

. 1995 January: The FCC sets aside 50 MHz (2310 MHz through 2360 MHz) in the

S-band The S band is a designation by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) for a part of the microwave radio band, band of the electromagnetic spectrum covering frequency, frequencies from 2 to 4 gigahertz (GHz). Thus it c ...

for Satellite Digital Audio Radio Service, also known as SDARS and now commonly known as Satellite Radio.http://dev.space.com/spacenews/archive95/sn1995.fff1476.html FCC sets aside spectrum for SDARS 1997 April: American Mobile Satellite Corporation and Satellite CD Radio, Inc. are each awarded SDARS licenses. The companies eventually become known

XM Satellite Radio XM Satellite Radio (XM) was one of the three satellite radio (SDARS) and online radio services in the United States and Canada, operated by Sirius XM, Sirius XM Holdings. It provided pay-for-service radio, analogous to subscription cable televisi ...

and

, respectively. Primosphere Limited Partnership and Digital Satellite Broadcasting Corporation are denied licenses by becoming third and fourth lowest bidders, respectively, during the auction. 2001 September 25:

officially launches. 2002 July 1:

officially launches.

References

Digital radio Satellite radio {{Radio-comm-stub

Spectrum Resources

Digital Satellite Broadcasting Corporation

See also

References