News

DUBLIN—Ireland’s public service broadcaster RTE will terminate the long-wave transmissions of Radio 1, heard on 252 KHz, at the end of October. The 2% of Radio 1 listeners that use the long-wave service are being encouraged to tune in to the service on DAB or FM.

From January 2015, Magic will broadcast nationally from London on the national DAB multiplex. Bauer Media is planning to triple its marketing budget for the Magic brand following the launch.

Listeners with Digital Audio Broadcasting (DAB) receivers can now pick up BBC Somerset, Heart, Capital, Smooth Radio and Triple Hits. The transmitters at Mendip, Taunton and Hutton cover 70% of the county's population and more than 360 miles (580km) of road.

Triple M is will launch of a new digital radio station called Triple M Modern Rock Digital in Adelaide and Perth this weekend. Featuring the best modern rock from the 2000s to now, the station will feature the world's new generation of rock acts. The launch of the new digital radio station signals the continued growth and diversification of the Triple M brand across Australia; strengthening its market position as the home of rock and the country's number one network for men.

Jeremy Browne, MP for Taunton Deane and Dave Durdan, Mayor of Taunton Deane officially switched on new DAB digital radio transmitters at the Somerset County Cricket Club Ground in Taunton, giving over 500,000 listeners new local stations on DAB in the Somerset area. The switch-on means listeners will be able to receive 5 local radio stations - BBC Somerset, Heart, Capital, Smooth Radio and Triple Hits for the first time on DAB digital radio.

Hong Kong’s media regulator has extended the deadline for Phoenix U Radio to launch its third DAB channel. The Communications Authority has set a new date of September 19 2015, the second time the launch has been deferred.

As you might have guessed, this is a smaller take on the iconic Roberts Revival, with the compact box offering DAB and FM reception, an LCD screen, a gold-plated stereo line in socket and battery power. Not to mention those wonderful vintage looks.

The Digital Tick is just a government marking that manufacturers can apply for before selling their radios in future. It allows people to see, at a glance, that a new radio will be future-proof. But that doesn't mean your current radio won't work after the shut-off. As long as your radio has DAB it will be able to receive digital radio channels. If your radio is FM-only though it will only be able to receive whatever is left in the FM bandwidth - which is currently thought to be local community radio.

Especially on longer trips, the car radio has always been a faithful companion. It adds variety, entertainment, and traffic updates. We wanted to know whether and how well DAB+ can replace FM radio today. For our test, we have the distance from our office in Osttirol Austria via Munich, Stuttgart, Karlsruhe, Wiesbaden to Cologne.

While nearly 20% of the population is covered by a DAB+ signal, the silence of the Conseil Supérieur de l'Audiovisuel (CSA) and the government on the matter has become deafening, according to the Syndicat National des Radios Libres (SNRL).