News

Anna Maria Genzano, head of corporate relations for the RTL 102.5 group, speaks to Newslinet about hot topics for the radio sector, such as: radio prominence, questionable automotive choices, the interference of over-the-top platforms on radio content, the limits of profiling that instead of favouring the user fences him off, the role of aggregators, the increased offer of DAB, the survey of digital natives' listeners, and the struggle of regulators and legislators to keep up with an increasingly dynamic market. "On compulsory DAB+ in cars, some may be violating the rule, and I won't hide the fact that over the past year and a half we have received several reports from very annoyed drivers. These complaints are a clear demonstration of how DAB+ radio (and radio in general) in cars is requested by users and is irreplaceable," she says.

TELEKO DAB has announced: "from 7 August 2024, you will tune our digital radio multiplex on the new definitive channel 10D. A powerful transmitter with a radiated power of 2 kW has been put into operation from Lysá hora in the Beskydy Mountains. This will significantly improve the signal in the northeastern Czech Republic. We ask all listeners within range of the Beskydy transmitter to retune their desktop DAB+ radio receivers via AUTOTUNE or FACTORY RESET. For most car radios the retune will occur automatically."

KISS further invests in its digital distribution with the launch of a brand-new national station, KISSTORY R&B, and is also set to boost the reach of KISS Fresh and KISS Dance in London by adding it to DAB+ in the capital. KISS brand extension, KISSTORY is one of the biggest digital stations in the UK with 2.4 million listeners every week and a number of hugely pop events from Ibiza to the UK, including last month’s sellout KISSTORY on Blackheath in London. New spin-off KISSTORY R&B will allow listeners a deeper dive into the defining R&B cuts of the Old Skool & Anthems genre playing songs from Usher, Destiny’s Child, Craig David and Mary J Blige and more. KISSTORY R&B will be available later this year nationally on DAB+, with news on the presenting line-up to follow.

On 6-7 August, Teleko digital has planned a lockout of the digital radio transmitter at Lysá hora, which will be switched from the temporary channel 7B to the final channel 10D and its power will be increased to 2 kW. After Liberec, Teleko digital from Příbram will cover the Ostrava region with its DAB+ digital radio network from the final channel. Unlike in Liberec, Teleko will launch the full power of the transmitter on Lysá hora, which will enable significantly better coverage of the Moravian-Silesian region. The company won the 10D channel in last year's Czech Telecommunications Office frequency auction for the whole of Moravia, Vysočina and Pardubice regions.

In Europe, the use of DAB+ continues to increase as many countries push ahead with the roll-out of new digital radio programmes. In regions where DAB+ is already established, the variety of programmes has increased noticeably in recent months. For listeners, this means more choice and clearer digital reception. There are currently DAB and/or DAB+ radio broadcasts in 29 European countries. DAB+ has already been tested in other countries and the start of regular operation is being planned. DAB+ programmes are organised in so-called multiplexes (mux). These programme platforms bundle up to 16 offerings on one frequency, which saves energy and resources compared to FM broadcasting.

For some years, a growing number of radio stakeholders have asked broadcasters to unite their voices as the only way to effectively deal with tech giants and car manufacturers. Over the last 12 months, the wakeup calls to shift towards an industry-like position have been increasingly heard. Messaging from the WorldDAB Automotive 2024 conference sounded more like a last call. On June 13, opening her first WorldDAB Automotive meeting as WorldDAB president, Jacqueline Bierhorst welcomed more than 300 delegates in-person and online, urging a broader and stronger collaboration to ensure broadcast radio’s prominence in cars. In her address, she described radio as “relentless.” She highlighted how, thanks to regulation initiatives, the availability of in-car digital receivers is ensured in the European Union while more and more countries feature widespread digital radio coverage and a comprehensive range of stations.

The Executive Director of the Uganda Communication Commission, George William Nyombi Thembo, is advocating for commercialisation of DAB+ digital broadcast radio in Uganda. He says it will keep pace with global technological advancements, especially in digital broadcasting. Nyombi was engaging with representatives from WorldDAB and the African broadcast sector. He says DAB+ would enhance the quality of radio broadcasts, offer more channels and improve signal reception.

Following the Luxembourg government last year publishing its "DAB+ Roadmap", it has now issued a public call for tenders for a DAB+ multiplex operator's licence. The government says: "The Minister for Radiocommunications and Radio Spectrum Management is launching a public call for applications with a view to operating and broadcasting this first national DAB+ multiplex. At the end of the selection procedure, a licence (authorisation to transmit) will be awarded to the designated candidate who will be authorised to broadcast via DAB+ and to set up and manage a multiplex." The tender states there will be a maximum of 12 services on the mux, which will use block 7D, and that the broadcast network must be completed within 18 months of the granting of the licence.

UK media regulator Ofcom has today published the applications received for the small-scale DAB multiplex licences advertised under the sixth round of the rollout. It received 33 round-six applications for the 31 small-scale DAB radio multiplex licences advertised. The applications will be assessed against the specific statutory criteria, with decisions expected in the coming months. Each multiplex licence awarded will allow a range of ultra-local stations to take to the air. This could include grass-roots community services, specialist music stations, and services aimed at minority groups and other under-served audiences.

The Czech Telecommunications Office (CTU) has started to publish in its online database the first allocations of specific slots from which operators will be able to launch commercial stations in the coming months. Companies will be able to proceed on the basis of the frequency auction announced by the CTU at the beginning of this year. This will significantly expand the availability of stations on the DAB+ platform. The key dimension for the Moravian-Silesian region (and not only this one) will be used not only by the operator Teleko digital, but also by the company RTI cz, which is the future operator of one of the two nationwide DAB+ networks, the other one being České Radiokomunikace.