GENEVA — Radio remains the bedrock of in-vehicle entertainment and information, woven into daily driving habits. Despite increasing competition from a range of new dashboard applications, radio remains the most popular audio platform and an essential part of the driving experience, according to Edison Research’s “Dashboard Dialogue” study.
However, this preferred position should not be taken for granted. Big tech platforms are eyeing the dashboard as a natural space for expansion, particularly given the prospect of widespread autonomous cars. This includes not only Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, but also Spotify, YouTube, TikTok and similar platforms.
Broadcasters’ lines of defense are based on three layers: first, maintaining their top-of-mind position among drivers and passengers for audio; second, ensuring that broadcast radio is available in all vehicles; and third, fighting for a prominent position in the increasingly competitive dashboard space.
Decades of muscle memory make radio the default in-car choice. Edison Research’s Q3 2025 “Share of Ear” study reveals that broadcast radio captures 57% of all in-car listening time in the United States — 74% of adults tune in weekly while driving.
Europe mirrors this radio dominance, with vehicles accounting for around a quarter of total listening time across the continent, including over 40% in countries with the highest usage. The “Dashboard Dialogue” study, conducted among 2,400 recent and prospective car buyers in France, Germany and the United Kingdom, confirms radio as the most-listened-to in-car platform. Drivers view it as an integral part of the car experience, with 90% expecting built-in tuners as standard. Crucially, qualitative interviews reveal a link between audio satisfaction and overall car ratings: poor radio access negatively impacts vehicle scores, demonstrating that seamless tuning enhances buyer appeal.
Regulatory mandates
Despite consumers expecting broadcast radio in the car, Tesla’s entry-level Model 3 and Model Y now come without an FM receiver, having dropped AM in 2020. Other car manufacturers may follow suit, eroding radio’s “default” position.
This was an unthinkable scenario in 2018 when the European Electronic Communications Code was approved, mandating digital terrestrial radio in all passenger cars equipped with a radio. Between 2021 and 2025, this legislation, which applies to all European Union countries and spills over into the remaining European countries, has resulted in more than 30 million cars being fitted with a digital radio tuner that they may not have had without this regulatory intervention. The recently proposed Digital Networks Act maintains this mandate but does not address cars without radios or extend its scope to commercial vehicles. This mandate inspired a similar one by the Gulf Cooperation Council in the Middle East.
Finland went further in 2020 by legally requiring FM reception to safeguard domestic stations. In the U.S., the Senate will vote on the AM Radio for Every Vehicle Act, which would make AM radio reception mandatory at no extra cost for every vehicle sold in the country.
These mandates override decisions by Big Tech and OEMs, treating radio as essential public infrastructure.
Prominence: One-tap access or bust
Presence without prominence is pointless. CarPlay and Android Auto bury radio among app icons and menus. Drivers demand a visible radio button for frictionless tuning. Voice and touch errors frustrate users, whereas cozy interfaces with logos, “now playing” information and music artwork delight them.
The U.K.’s Media Act 2024 sets the gold standard for prominence, requiring U.K.-licensed radio on connected platforms to be free to access, discoverable and unhindered by overlays. In Australia, the trade body Commercial Radio & Audio is pushing for similar regulations, following a Senate committee’s recommendation to prioritize the implementation of radio prominence on devices such as smart speakers.
Broadcasters are also exploring commercial strategies to maintain their prominence, notably through Xperi’s DTS AutoStage and Radioplayer. Both have agreements with car manufacturers to ensure broadcast radio is centrally positioned in vehicles.
Time to act
The dashboard is contested turf, and broadcasters must treat it as such before they lose their dominant position. While proactivity will not secure radio’s throne, passivity will cede control to tech giants. And the experience with them already illustrates what this would mean for broadcasters.
This proactivity can take different forms but assumes that radio will continue to deliver attractive and meaningful content to listeners. Firstly, lobby for regulatory frameworks that guarantee the availability and prominence of broadcast radio. Secondly, invest in user-centric design and metadata to make DAB/FM/IP hybrid services feel as seamless, rich and one-tap as any streaming app. Thirdly, deepen direct partnerships with car manufacturers and tier one suppliers.
Broadcasters that treat the dashboard as a strategic platform, rather than just another entry point, will ensure that radio remains the most trusted, most used and easiest-to-reach medium on the road.
The author is co-founder and research director at South 180.
This story originally appeared in the March/April 2026 edition of RedTech Magazine. You can read or download it for free here.
You can access all past RedTech publications, for free, here.
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