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Ugh, I understand the background, but please no. Functional FM radio on my phone would turn it into a radio device, forcing me to pay a radio tax (which is like $20 per month from Swiss franks).
You have to pay this tax anyway if you have an internet enabled device that lets you receive radio and or tv via the internet. ;-)
 
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Since all the headphone jack functionality is in the lightning connector, there is no reason to suspect that the antenna connection isn't automatically there.

As with anything, this is all about the money. Cell phone companies and manufacturers don't make any off of FM. Therefor they do not support free radio or TV as most media companies don't.

One thing people don't understand about Ajit Pai. He is a very strong advocate for FREE TV and radio, which has been guaranteed in the US for like 75 years now. And he's a technology guy who's smart enough to realize there's no technical reason this functionality is not being enabled.
 
I love Apple Music, and turning on FM won't make me unsubscribe from apple music. Hell, if radio were on an iPhone I wouldn't use it because I can't stand how much blabbering and ads there are on regular radio anyway! Id love to see it turned on in order to allow for safety information!
 
The pressure is because more people are streaming and less listening to radios. This is not some altruistic move by the National Association of Broadcasters. They've long wanted to have the radios enabled so the apps can be rolled out and compete against streaming services.
lol, yeah, cuz there is no way to listen to FM radio right now on your phone that isn't free...o_O
 
couldn’t emergency broadcasts be transmitted via Wi-Fi?
or no?
What range does wi-fi have? Folk can't get signal at the other side of their house never mind the other side of a state/country.

Also the folk saying "Just use a radio", that's all very well and good until you try to find it in your house that's been destroyed due to a storm or earthquake. The vast majority of people have their phone on their person at all times. Just like cameras, the best one is the one you have with you.

I have no doubt this is entirely linked to revenue from music. Apple music is relatively new, but for as long as the iPhone has been out pretty much, Apple has sold music through iTunes. Free FM Radio means reduced revenue.
 
Putting on my dev hat... am I the only one thinking of this possibility:

FM radio API
+
Song recognition API
+
Recording

=

Apple Music Competitor

If they limit recording, then it wouldn't be a threat. But opening up the API to devs and prohibiting recording wouldn't be a popular move.
These things have existed on PCs for years. Not so sure that mobility of these things really really affects piracy or competition.
 
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You have to pay this tax anyway if you have an internet enabled device that lets you receive radio and or tv via the internet. ;-)

True, but I had long argued with BAKOM util they agreed that my smartphone is a work device. I'm not sure that my arguments would fly if it had a radio.
 
Aside from the technical impossibilities of this, I pay for Apple Music because I hate FM radio.

No, Clear Channel, I do not want to hear what you think I should hear, multiple times in an hour, based on whomever paid you to spin said track, in a compressed, lifeless mix.

The fact that Clear Channel and Live Nation exist is proof that our anti-monopoly laws are a joke.

#mostlyofftopic
 
So the consensus is that among those that are familiar with fm technology that the existing tech in the iphone would be useful, and among those that know nothing and will defend apple even when it becomes nonsensical that the tech is impossible and won't ever work.

And the battery issue is that because cell phone batteries die, that it's better to not have an FM option for an hour or two that will give you helpful information. Better to have a cell function that is unworkable nearly as soon as a natural disaster strikes that knocks out cell service.

Or have everyone buy FM radios because cell phones aren't ubiquitous af. mmhmmm I don't like the FCC commissioner, but his suggestion makes sense.
 
Why would anyone argue against adding a FREE new feature, that cannot hurt, but can only help save lives?
This feature ALREADY is built into every iPhone ever made, the impact on battery life should be minimal, as there is no transmission.
No one is arguing against it. Apple could add hundreds of free features but why would they unless there was a real large number of users that could benefit and that feature could recoup the investment it takes to implement?
 
couldn’t emergency broadcasts be transmitted via Wi-Fi?
or no?
The whole point from the FCC Chairman was following a natural disaster, to allow people to listen to FM via over-the-air broadcast because of widespread power / cell tower outages. Wi-Fi has a very limited range (compared to FM radio signals) which means you would have to have a lot of Wi-Fi devices still online to provide coverage to an area of possibly hundreds or thousands of square miles that are without power and/or cellular coverage.
 
There have been a few cases in severe blizzard conditions that the cell towers were either overwhelmed with call & data volume, or maybe "blocked" by he density of snow - I'm not sure which. Having some FM news would have been nice.

Turn it on apple!
 
My understanding is that it’s always been about the function not working well. Apple set out to develop a phone, not a handheld radio. A chip they’ve chosen to help perform the phone’s functions also has some FM utility, but Apple hasn’t spent a lick of energy on engineering the antenna or software to really USE that function. I don’t believe that it’s as simple as turning it ON as the FCC chair is suggesting.

Apple should turn it on, so millions of us get static, to prove how ignorant the request is.

However, I have no idea if any of this is true and for all I know, they could turn it on tomorrow and it’d sound and work fine. Only Apple really knows that.

To this article, I was going to say how whipped you iPhone users are. You... lol you're just a delusional "you're holding it wrong (gee, maybe I am; sorry, Steve for not being as perfect as you are & the masterpiece you created; I'll take my 40 lashes now)" lost cause.

Also, the battle is eons old:
http://www.cbc.ca/news/business/fm-radio-cellphone-telecoms-1.3577447
 
Beware.

This sounds like it makes sense, but I don't trust anything Ajit Pai says not to be disguised plunder. He's a leading advocate of net partiality and an extreme ideologue who doesn't believe in protecting citizens ("If you regulate something, you get less of it" is his quote).

I hope I'm wrong, because this would seem to be a very good idea. But I've seen enough of these R-monsters to know that there's bound to be an upward transfer of wealth involved whenever they advocate something.
 
What range does wi-fi have? Folk can't get signal at the other side of their house never mind the other side of a state/country.
.
hmm. didn’t really mean they should put an Airport Express on top of the radio station and hope for the best..
oh well
 
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Seems like a reasonable goal to have mobile phones have redundant ways of receiving communications in an emergency. it doesn't have to be elegant, but if it can be made to work at little cost, why not? I doubt seriously the software required would be that complicated. These days adjusting most settings in chips is about as complicated as printing 'hello world'. As for the antenna, in an emergency there's no real need for audio quality - just enough to listen to emergency messages.

Mind you, you'd think that mobile phone infrastructure would be classified as 'critical' in terms of emergency preparedness, and mobile phone companies would be required to harden their networks against natural and man-made disasters that can be anticipated.

EDIT: Wouldn't mind access to digital FM radio in the UK...
 
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