Dispute Over FM Chip Mandate In Mobile Phones Continues

The Consumer Electronics Association urged the National Association of Broadcasters not to pursue a Congressional mandate that would require manufacturers to install FM radio chips in all mobile phones in a letter sent to NAB Oct 7.

The "free market, not government mandates," wrote CEA President Gary Shapiro "holds the best hope for ensuring that [manufacturing and broadcasting] continue to innovate and thrive." "We will vigorously oppose any effort to force manufacturers by legislative fiat to include legacy technology in devices," Shapiro added. This is the latest salvo in an ongoing dispute between about the chip mandate which is a byproduct of negotiations between the recording industry and broadcasters over performance royalties. NAB, in exchange for their support of a bill that would require AM and FM radio stations to pay performers a fee for playing their music on air, has asked Congress for the inclusion of a chip mandate.