CBS RADIO Joins Aha’s Connected Car Platform

Published on Tuesday, 10 January 2012 09:31 Written by TradersHuddle Staff

LAS VEGAS-( Business Wire )-

Aha^TM by HARMAN and CBS RADIO, one of the largest major-market radio operators in the United States, today announced a partnership that will bring CBS RADIO stations to drivers and other users of the Aha platform. Audio streams from CBS RADIO’s 129 stations will be distributed via mobile devices and directly into cars, including Subaru, which today announced integrations with Aha from the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.

Aha is powering the Web-connected “fourth band” of radio, alongside AM, FM and satellite radio and is currently working with five automotive manufacturers to implement consumer services based on its cloud-based platform bringing a broad spectrum of rich internet content safely into vehicles. Beginning in Q1 2012, Aha users will have instant access to thousands of free stations of Web-based content including local CBS RADIO stations, on-demand, music, live news, podcasts, audio books, personalized traffic reports, Facebook and Twitter newsfeeds, personalized restaurant recommendations from Yelp! and much more.

With CBS RADIO available on Aha, users will be able to tune into their favorite AM or FM stations featuring news, sports, talk, and music programming on the growing number of Aha-enabled devices, including:

• Subaru automobiles (select models)
• Pioneer’s AVIC AVIC-Z130BT and AVIC-X930BT head units

“Thanks to the growing number of auto manufacturers who are integrating their vehicles with the Aha platform, consumers will be able to tune to their favorite CBS RADIO stations from across the country just as easily as their local ones,” said Robert Acker, HARMAN VP and General Manager of Aha. “Aha is making it easy for companies like CBS RADIO to deliver their content to drivers. We’ve created one cloud-based platform that lets car manufacturers future-proof their connected infotainment systems and safely deliver web content to drivers.”

“CBS RADIO content is among the most sought-after music and information programming out there for listeners of all ages,” said Ezra Kucharz, President, CBS Local Digital Media. ”Drivers are accustomed to having a variety of local stations available to them while listening in the car, and when Aha launches its service in vehicles this year, they will be able to easily and safely interact with more than 100 additional stations from across the country. This is revolutionary for the radio industry, and we’re proud to be working with Aha which is pioneering the emerging fourth band of the radio – the only band that is web-connected.”

Aha is a part of HARMAN International (NYSE: HAR) the premium global audio and infotainment group.

About Aha by HARMAN

Aha, a unit of HARMAN International Industries, is the first interactive platform that makes web content safe for drivers. Aha organizes content from the Web into personalized, live and on-demand radio stations that consumers can listen to from anywhere – at home, on the go, or safely from the driver’s seat. Aha is currently working with five automotive manufacturers who will be launching model 2013 vehicles with consumer services based on Aha’s cloud-based platform. The Aha Platform and Service was started in 2008 by a group of web and multimedia veterans with a shared passion for delivering an “always-on” audio experience to connect drivers to the content they really want. HARMAN, the company that designs, manufactures and markets a wide range of audio and infotainment solutions for the automotive, consumer and professional markets, acquired Aha in September 2010. For more information, visit www.aharadio.com.

Aha RadioHillary Murphy, 415-309-5061press@aharadio.comorCBS RADIOKaren L. Mateo, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.