Metadata and dashboards

San Jose, CA

May 13, 2026

It has been said that four out of five respondents in the latest Techsurvey own vehicles with dashboards that show artist and title information and a majority of them said that they pay attention to the dashboard display. A survey from Jacobs Media found that this is true for younger respondents and more so for women than men. Results also show that radio listeners expect more than just music to be displayed. Metadata in the dashboard means that car manufacturers like BMW are putting 8k screens with the ability to actually message on the dashboard. Messages that respondents have indicated a need to include emergency weather information, breaking news, and traffic alerts. Radios, for example have more visually focused and bring short videos as a part of this strategy.

There is a hierarchy in terms of what to put in the dashboard featuring current song title and artist.

The notion of visual radio in his presentation has been easy on the eyes stating the central question: “Would you like video with that?”

YouTube has served as the station’s video footprint implicating that 62% of a survey say that they use YouTube weekly. In fact, a majority are aware of the YouTube channel and visit the site regularly.

Techsurvey 2026 reinforced the importance of YouTube as part of a station’s video footprint. It remains a dominant platform, with 62% of respondents saying they use YouTube weekly. A majority of those surveyed are aware of their favorite station’s YouTube channel and visit it regularly.

It is important that YouTube reads its audience to understand the usage of its service. In fact, the company must gauge who the audience is in order to create content of their interest.

Short videos are an example of content that draws the attention of its audience.

Another area of focus that has been looked at is video podcasts. In a survey, 17% of respondents indicated that they regularly watch these podcasts. In fact, trends show that both men and women check out their favorite video podcasts often.

The idea of dashboards has emerged as impacting radio listening.

The relationships between driving cars with projection systems like Apple CarPlay and listening to terrestrial AM/FM radio in the car is correlated. As those who own in-car media grow, AM/FM radio usage will decrease. Although this is a threat to radio, it does give people more choices in terms of how they want to benefit from what’s on the dashboard.

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