Pioneer To Bring Pandora To Your Car In March

Look for it to get easier to listen to internet radio in your car as PANDORA has entered into a deal with electronics maker PIONEER CORP. that promises to get a built-in spot on dashboards for the new technology. "The development represents a direct challenge to broadcasters of satellite and traditional radio, who have long dreaded the arrival of Internet radio in cars," writes THE WALL STREET JOURNAL.

PIONEER is set to sell a navigation and entertainment device begining in MARCH that will allow PANDORA users who currently stream the service on their iPHONES to easily access PANDORA in their cars. "The $1,200 navigation system, announced at the CONSUMER ELECTRONICS SHOW in LAS VEGAS, will detect iPHONES and iPOD TOUCHES that have PANDORA installed, and put the consumer's Pandora settings on the navigation screen. That will allow drivers to hear their favorite PANDORA radio channels."

"Maybe a year ago people would have said PANDORA is a computer thing," said co-founder TIM WESTERGREN. Now, "they're beginning to realize that Internet radio is an anytime, anywhere thing."

So how serious a threat is this to terrestrial broadcasters? Many in the business have long felt in-car Internet services as the real threat to AM and FM radio, because they will allow drivers access to an unlimited number of streamed radio stations. PANDORA's deal with PIONEER is the beginning of that future.