Adoption in The United States
In 1975, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) started a series of five-year tests to determine which of the five competing standards would be selected. By the end of the testing period, the Belar system was dropped. In 1980, the FCC announced that the Magnavox system would become the standard. This announcement was met with harsh criticism and a series of lawsuits. On March 4, 1982, the FCC revoked their endorsement to the Magnavox standard and let the marketplace decide, meaning that all four standards were allowed. After the 1982 decision, many stations implemented one of the four standards. Initially, all systems remained competitive, but by the later 1980s, Motorola C-QUAM had a clear majority of stations and receivers. Around this same time, Harris Corporation dropped their system and instead endorsed C-QUAM. During this time, radio manufactures either made receivers which decoded just one system, or decoded all four. The multiple systems used greatly confused consumers and severely impacted consumer adoption. As a result of this confusion, and the continued growth of the FM band, interest in AM stereo dwindled.
In 1993, the FCC declared Motorola's C-QUAM system the standard. To ensure that all AM stereo receivers maintained the same sound quality, the National Association of Broadcasters and the Electronic Industries Association started the AMAX certification program.
Read more about this topic: AM Stereo
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