Group May Quiet Loud TV Commercials

(MYFOX NATIONAL) - Advertisers are always trying new ways to get viewers to watch their commercials. One way they've tried to grab people's attention is by making commercials louder than the programs they are watching.

This technique has drawn the ire of many who have had to keep the remote control nearby so they can drown out the blaring ads.

A technical organization that sets standards for digital TV broadcasters hopes to change all that, according to LiveScience .

"It's a problem that's been around for awhile not only in analog TV but also in FM radio," said Mark Richer, president of Advanced Television Systems Committee (ATSC), the same organization that developed the standards for digital video formats now used by all broadcasters in North America.

The new audio recommendations will be able to measure the loudness of television content based on current scientific understandings of how human hearing works. Information about the loudness of shows and commercials would be tagged and audio receivers would be able to use that information to counteract the audio tricks that advertisers use to make commercials jump out at us.

"It achieves results similar to a viewer using a remote control to set a comfortable volume between disparate TV programs, commercials, and channel changing transitions," the ATSC said.

In 2007, Dolby unveiled a technology called Dolby Volume , designed to level volume across channels and programs, but it is only available in one TV and three receivers. SRS Labs is finalizing a consumer gadget that will also try to address the volume issue. The gadget would be added to consumers' A/V setup in order to level out the highs and lows.

SRS is hoping to partner with manufacturers to bundle the technology into products.