30 July, London/Washington: The National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) has officially joined Radio Ready, the global coalition dedicated to safeguarding radio’s prominence in the connected car dashboard.
NAB’s addition significantly strengthens Radio Ready’s presence across the United States, bringing the leading advocate for America’s broadcast industry into the growing international coalition working to keep radio front and centre for drivers.
While radio remains the top choice for in-car audio, the modern dashboard is changing fast. New technology in vehicles has made finding free, local radio harder than ever. The core challenge isn’t audience demand - it’s discoverability.
Radio Ready was launched as a unified global response to this shift. The initiative brings broadcasters together to ensure AM/FM and digital radio remain prominent, accessible, and easy to use in connected vehicles, while giving the industry a powerful, collective voice when engaging with automakers, tech platforms, and policymakers.
A Milestone for North American Broadcasting
NAB’s entry marks the first time a U.S.-based industry organisation has joined the campaign, signalling American leadership in a global conversation that already includes major broadcasters across Europe, Africa, and Australia.
“Radio has long been an essential part of the driving experience, delivering trusted local news, lifesaving emergency information and the entertainment Americans rely on every day,” said NAB President and CEO Curtis LeGeyt. “As dashboards evolve, ensuring broadcast radio remains accessible is more important than ever. By joining Radio Ready, NAB looks forward to partnering with broadcasters from across the world to ensure that free, trusted radio remains easy for drivers to find and use in the vehicles of today and tomorrow.”
Tobias Nielsen, SVP Digital at Bauer Media Audio, commented: "Radio Ready is our industry's unified response to a defining shift in how audiences access audio. As connected cars become more complex, the challenge is keeping radio visible and discoverable. Welcoming NAB brings the voice of the U.S. broadcast industry into the coalition and significantly strengthens our momentum across the United States. Together, we are reinforcing the global collaboration needed to keep radio front and centre in the car.”
Wouter Quartier, Head of Radio, EBU, added: "Radio Ready is about bringing the industry together around a simple and practical goal: radio should remain easy to find and easy to use in the car. To achieve this, we need a strong, clear and common voice that can be used in the dialogue with car manufacturers, platforms and policymakers. NAB joining the initiative is an important step in strengthening that voice globally."
