More hearing aid choices for direct venue audio
Bluetooth SIG said today that all five major hearing aid manufacturers now sell hearing aids supporting Auracast™ broadcast audio, giving users compatible options for receiving audio directly at equipped public venues (opens in a new tab). The manufacturers collectively represent approximately 90 percent of the worldwide hearing aid market, according to Bluetooth SIG.
- Works with
- Compatible hearing aids, headphones, earbuds and assistive listening receivers
- Wireless
- Auracast™ broadcast audio
- Available
- Supporting hearing aids offered by Starkey, Sonova, WS Audiology, Demant and GN
The five manufacturers are Starkey, Sonova, WS Audiology, Demant and GN. Auracast™ broadcast audio allows compatible hearing aids to receive assistive audio without borrowing a receiver or other equipment from the venue. Compatible headphones, assistive listening receivers and earbuds can also receive these broadcasts.
Bluetooth SIG describes the technology as a way around the compatibility problems associated with older assistive listening systems, where a venue's equipment and a visitor's hearing device could support different systems. Its standards-based approach allows a hearing aid made by one company to connect to Auracast™ infrastructure supplied by another.
Listening access also depends on the venue
Venue installations are the other requirement for bringing these broadcasts to public listening spaces, and Bluetooth SIG reports deployments in universities, clinics, theatres, stadiums and places of worship. In New Zealand, the outdoor Stadium Taranaki has installed an Auracast™ solution and accommodates 21,000 spectators. The Isaac Theatre Royal in Christchurch is also bringing the technology to a setting used for dance, comedy, concerts and theatre.
Other deployments include Resonate Health in New Zealand and SONEO Hörgeräte in Saarland, Germany, extending the technology into hearing healthcare settings. Beyond hearing aids, Bluetooth SIG identifies compatible smartphones, TVs and speakers among the consumer devices through which Auracast™ broadcasts can be accessed.