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A campaign that aims to put pressure on the UK government to protect “traditional” television and radio in the country has gained a number of new members. The Broadcast 2040+ campaign is urging the government to guarantee access to Freeview and radio services beyond 2040. Under the government’s current policy, these services are only guaranteed until the early 2030s. The coalition believes that a lack of certainty about the long-term future of broadcast services is likely to have a detrimental impact on the millions of people who rely heavily on them. It now has over 30 members, including Arqiva, The Voice of the Listener and Viewer (VLV), WorldDAB, the Local TV Network, and Boom Radio.

A coalition of groups demanding vital services are protected has grown significantly. The Broadcast 2040+ campaign, which wants the Government to guarantee access to Freeview and radio beyond the year 2040, now has 30 members. Under current plans aerial services are guaranteed only to the mid-2030s. Broadcast groups which have joined include Local TV Network which represents 34 services, World DAB – the global industry forum for digital radio – and community-focused free-to-air channel Together TV. Broadcast 2040+ says Freeview TV and broadcast radio are universal and do not need high-speed broadband nor a subscription – making them good for low-income homes, senior citizens and rural dwellers.

The ORF must save money, the government demands in return for the introduction of the saving budget levy. But have all savings potentials been used? No, as a data journalistic calculation by the "Wiener Zeitung" shows. Because a very obvious savings potential is often overlooked: The old, analogue FM radio stations, which "burn up" electricity to a considerable extent in 24-hour operation all over Austria. And this despite the fact that the new, digital DAB stations, which are only about one tenth as power-intensive, are already running in parallel in full operation. Thus, two networks are being maintained instead of slowly shutting down and dismantling FM broadcasting.

Norway was the first country in the world to discontinue national FM radio broadcasting at the end of 2017. Studies on media use and especially radio consumption paint a very positive picture of the digital transformation: 72 percent of Norwegian households have at least one DAB+ radio; 99 percent of Norwegians have access to digital radio (DAB+ and IP). National radio is 97 per cent listened to digitally. The remaining three per cent is accounted for by small local radio stations, which continue to be available in analogue, according to the Nielsen PPM Report 2022 with KANTAR figures from the Norwegian Media Authority. DAB+ coverage in Norway is up to 99 per cent. The number of national radio services has increased from five (analogue) to 33 (DAB+) since 2017. The total distribution costs of these 33 digital channels are roughly equivalent to the expenses for the former five FM offerings.

Pressure is mounting on the UK Government to safeguard digital terrestrial TV and radio services until at least 2040. A coalition of groups calling for these vital services to be protected has expanded significantly in recent weeks, with a number of UK organisations representing a variety of different groups joining the crusade. The Broadcast 2040+ campaign, which urges the Government to guarantee access to Freeview and radio services beyond 2040, now has 30 members. Organisations from across the broadcast sector have signed up, including the Local TV Network (LTVN) which represents 34 local TV services, WorldDAB, the global industry forum for digital radio, and Together TV - the community-focused free-to-air channel.

Lausitzwelle was switched on the DAB+ multiplex for the Dresden region (channel 7A) at the end of last week. The regional network for Dresden and eastern Saxony is broadcast via sites in Dresden-Wachwitz and Löbau. Radio PSR (Dresden region), Hitradio RTL Sachsen (Dresden and Lausitz regions), R.SA (Dresden region), Energy Sachsen Dresden, Antenne Sachsen (Dresden and Lausitz regions), 90s90s Dance Radio, Radio Dresden, Radio Lausitz, Radio WSW and Lausitzwelle are now broadcasting on the mux.

The CRo DAB+ multiplex acts as a de facto showcase for digital radio, presenting its advantages. In an interview on the 60th anniversary of Czech Radio Communications, Marcel Procházka, Director of Legal and Regulatory Affairs, discusses this on their YouTube channel. "The current FM broadcasting is the last analogue platform, everything is digital - the internet, TV broadcasting and radio broadcasting have been somewhat neglected, but now the situation is changing. Czech Radio still broadcasts three or four stations in the FM band. There is no room for more stations, there are no frequencies. For physical reasons, we cannot expand this broadcasting. Czech Radio's DAB+ network contains seventeen radio stations. We can compare it, four versus seventeen," Procházka said.

DAB+ developments in Germany are running apace. Broadcaster Lausitzwelle, which broadcasts in Germany’s southwest state of Saxony, has switched on the DAB+ multiplex for the Dresden region (channel 7A). In Berlin, open channel ALEX Berlin is to receive DAB+ capacity on Berlin channel 7D. Two non-commercial stations, Freie Radios Berlin Brandenburg e.V. and Radio Netzwerk Berlin e.V. will share another capacity on channel 7D — the former between 06:00 on Mondays and 06:00 on Fridays and the latter from Fridays at 06:00 to Mondays at 06:00 Freie BürgerRadio Slubfurt e.V. will receive capacity on Berlin-Brandenburg channel 12D for its non-commercial radio program Radio Slubfurt. In the meantime, ten broadcasters have applied for DAB+ capacity on channel 12D, which Berlin’s media authority Medienanstalt Berlin-Brandenburg has put out to tender.

Licences for small-scale DAB multiplexes have been awarded in Banbury & Bicester, North Buckinghamshire, North Pembrokeshire and South Pembrokeshire. The awards this week take the total awards in Round Four to 19, with five more to go in this round – Bath, Berwickshire, Boston, Derby and East Fife.

Marco Rossignoli and Luigi Bardelli in the new TeleRadioMagazine talk about DAB+ digital radio, the transition to DVB-T2/HEVC, prominence in TV and radio reception devices, and much more. Marco Rossignoli: "The very recent guidelines on the procedures for assigning rights of use for local DAB+ networks represent a very important step for an orderly development of digital radio broadcasting, which enhances the role of local radio publishers. With the assignment of these rights of use, local radio broadcasters will be able to place DAB+ digital transmissions alongside analogue FM transmissions and IP transmissions in a multi-platform broadcasting logic."