Radio streams from Cumulus Media, Beasley Media Group, Hubbard Radio, iHeartMedia and Audacy stations are now a tap away in a handful of Ford and Lincoln vehicles. Stingray, the Canadian radio station owner that recently bought the TuneIn streaming app, has signed a factory-installed (OEM) deal with Ford Motor Co.
The app is going into 2025 and newer Ford Explorer and Ford Expedition vehicles and the Lincoln Aviator and Lincoln Navigator, along with 2024 and newer Lincoln Nautilus models. The deal covers vehicles sold in the U.S. and Canada.
Not every big group is in the lineup. Townsquare Media stations are notably absent from TuneIn. Beyond live AM/FM streams from around the world, the app offers more than 100 ad-free curated music channels refreshed weekly, more than 100,000 local and international radio stations and 4 million podcasts.
"We worked hand in hand with the Ford team over many months to create a tailor-made in-dash audio experience powered by Stingray," said Jim Riley, president of Stingray Music USA.
The deal arrives while the House-passed AM Radio for Every Vehicle Act still awaits action in the Senate. For broadcasters, an OEM app means a station's stream can sit in the dashboard next to over-the-air radio. Before relying on it, though, a station needs its stream listed in that app's directory, and the listing needs to work.
Stations that want to be found through TuneIn in these vehicles can check that their stream is listed, playing correctly and showing current station information.