Radiodays Europe 2025: meet WorldDAB in Athens

03.03.2025 by Will Jackson

WorldDAB is joining around 1,500 radio professionals in Athens for Radiodays Europe 2025. The event runs from Sunday to Tuesday, 9 to 11 March in the Megaron Athens International Conference Centre.

Radiodays describes itself as “the event in the Radio, Podcast and Audio World bringing together over 1,500 visitors from 65 countries over 3 days.” It’s always one of the highlights of the industry year, with a great buzz in the conference hall and a genuine passion for radio and audio reflected throughout the sessions and networking events.

WorldDAB President, Jacqueline Bierhorst features in a session on Tuesday at 13:45 (CET), entitled “Save our Airwaves - DAB+ outlook and experiences.” Jacky will be joined by Nicola Bomio, Head of Radio at CH Media and President of the Association of Swiss Commercial Radio Stations, to explore “the idea that in order to stay independent, proper broadcasting needs to go digital, and that DAB+ is the future.”

Join the session for an overview of where DAB+ stands, what it has to offer, why stations should consider it, and to hear experiences from Switzerland, where public broadcaster SRG SSR switched off FM broadcasts at the end of last year.

Members of the WorldDAB Project Office will also be at Radiodays Europe: Bernie O’Neill, Project Director, and Will Jackson, Communications Manager, will be in Athens alongside Jacky for the three-day event. To book a meeting with any of the members of the team, contact the Project Office.

Joe D'Angelo (left), Jacqueline Bierhorst and Laurence Harrison at Radiodays Europe 2024 

Monday ones to watch

As always, the opening session on Monday morning features senior industry figures from across Europe, including Cilla Benkö, CEO and Director General Swedish Radio, and Vice-President, European Broadcasting Union (EBU); Edita Kudlacova, Head of Radio, EBU; Stefan Möller, President, Association Of European Radios; and Konstantinos Fotopoulos, CEO of Audiomax Inv SA, and President of Directors of the Association of Private Radio Stations Owners of Attica.

Other notable first day sessions include “In car audio and connected dashboard: the next frontier”, at 11:25. This features Luc Julia, Scientific Director, Renault Group; Tomas Granryd, Head of digital partnerships, SR; Jade-Sophia Valtat, Product Manager, Strategic Partnerships & Distribution, Radio France; Gwendolin Niehues, Project Manager Automotive, ARD; and Matthieu Beauval, Head of Innovation, Radio France.

Then get into the festive spirit in (hopefully warm and sunny!) March at 12:20, with the session “All I want for Christmas is..... high ratings!”, about winning with the Christmas format - including launching a brand extension station on DAB.

WorldDAB Steering Board member Charles-Emmanuel Bon, Secretary General of Radio France, features in a session at 14:55 exploring “What keeps CEOs up at night?”, talking to leading industry journalist Steve Ahern of Radioinfo/AMT.

Or see WorldDAB members NRK in Norway, who feature in “The Great Radio Shift: Moving Audiences to Digital Platforms” also on Monday at 14:55 with speakers: Cathinka Rondan, Head of Audio, NRK; Ole-Birger Neergård, UX Designer, NRK Radio and Tobias Nielsen, Senior Vice President Digital, Bauer Media Audio.

Following that at 16:05, learn about “The Power of Passionate Niches”, with Gary Stein, Director of Audio, Bauer Media UK and Gill Hind, Chief Operating Officer, Enders Analysis speaking to Bounce’s Nik Goodman on how in a world of endless listening choices, niche music stations – such as those on DAB+ - are hitting all the right notes. This session dives into why hyper-focused, passion-driven formats are resonating with audiences and how broadcasters can leverage them to expand their brand footprint.

Sadly, “the world’s only radio futurologist”, James Cridland, is now unable to attend as planned because of Tropical Cyclone Alfred hitting the Australian Gold Coast.

Sketching Radiodays 2024 speakers

Tuesday top picks

On Tuesday, start with “Audio for kids: how to create great content for the little ones”, including Aleksandra Milinkovic Dadic Programme Director, bravo KIDS!, a DAB+ station in Croatia, and one of the star speakers at our WorldDAB Summit in Zagreb last year.

From 11:10, Radioplayer explores “Reclaiming the Dashboard – Putting Radio Back in Control” with Radioplayer CEO Yann Legarson, Asha Knight from the BBC, Stefan Möller from AER, Laurence Harrison, and other European broadcasters, as they reflect on what's been built, what been learned, and what comes next. They say to expect "an open, unfiltered discussion on radio’s fight for dashboard prominence, the risks of losing control, and how broadcasters can take charge of their future in the connected car."

At 12:05, Xperi present “Behind the Microphone: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow”. The past 25 years in broadcasting have been driven by tectonic shifts in technology, content distribution and user behaviours. Join for an in-depth look into how some of the most innovative broadcasters have navigated the last 2½ decades for a discussion of what worked, what didn’t, what’s driving innovation now and what the future holds. Speakers include Tobias Nielsen, Senior Vice President Digital, Bauer Media Audio; Christian Schalt, Chief Digital Officer, RTL Radio Deutschland GmbH; Jason Bryant, Founder, Nation Broadcasting; and Joe D'Angelo, Senior Vice President of Broadcast Radio and Digital Audio, Xperi.

And make sure you stay to the end for the action-packed “30 ideas in 45 minutes” session with Nik Goodman, and of course to find out which country will be hosting next year’s event!

Other WorldDAB members are strongly represented across the event, such as the BBC in the United Kingdom, with Head of BBC Radio 1 Aled Haydn-Jones and Head of BBC Radio 2 Helen Thomas speaking, as well as Radio 2’s new Breakfast Show host, Scott Mills. And WorldDAB member RadioDNS will also be exhibiting at the event.

The WorldDAB team are also looking forward to joining the XPLR: MEDIA in Bavaria reception on Sunday evening. XPLR: MEDIA in Bavaria is an initiative for the Bavarian media industry, with a mission to shine a spotlight on people who are shaping the media world of tomorrow, inform about important trends and developments in the industry, and discover the latest Bavarian media events. The organisation is supported by WorldDAB member Bayerische Landeszentrale für neue Medien (BLM).

Also if you’re new to Radiodays, or looking to meet other audio professionals and make some lasting connections, then head along to an informal get together over breakfast on Monday to kick off Athens 2025. It’s free to attend and you’ll meet other delegates including Radio Academy members and WorldDAB.

There’s still time to register for Radiodays Europe. We'll see you there!

Read about last year's Radiodays Europe in Munich.