News

OFCOM has announced today (Tuesday, October 18) that ToneFM’s parent organisation, The Tone Community Media Group CIC (TCMG CIC), has been awarded the Small Scale DAB Multiplex Licence for Taunton Deane. It will enable TCMG CIC to bring a brand new digital radio service to the area. OFCOM invited applications in March for organisations to bid to take control of the new service in Taunton Deane. These new Digital Radio (DAB) will offer listeners a wider choice of content within a localised area, while being managed and led predominately by community radio providers.

Radio exists in a varied ecosystem, which is evident when you see the many different ways automotive manufacturers can implement radio functionality while still following the same technical standards. The joint WorldDAB / RadioDNS Automotive Workshops work out how to make the current functionality work better. The attendees suggest topics for discussion, based on their own experiences. The next workshop will take place on Thursday 10 November 2022.

A new DAB+ transmitter of the Czech Radio multiplex will be launched for a wide area around Mikulov. From Friday, 14 October, it will ensure the reception of the CRo DAB+ network for the inhabitants of South Moravia. The transmitter will be launched on channel 12 D with an ERP of 5 kilowatts. "The launch of this transmitter will significantly contribute to better coverage of a large part of Moravia south of Brno and also the D2 motorway from Brno to Bratislava," said Karel Zýka, Director of Technology and Administration at Czech Radio.

For the development of DAB+ digital radio broadcasting in the Czech Republic, it is essential that private radio stations also join in. Karel Zýka, director of the Czech Radio's Administration and Technology Department, said this at the Radiokomunikace 2022 conference on Tuesday 18 October. "DAB+ can only develop if commercial stations are also there," Zýka said. Czech Radio plans to launch a more powerful digital transmitter in Hodonín and seven more relay stations later this year.

Nostalgie+ is the little sister of Nostalgie, the most listened to radio station in French-speaking Belgium. Distributed only on digital and DAB+, Nostalgie+ has achieved a historic audience according to the latest quarterly report just published, becoming the leading radio station in terms of listening time.

Leading cross-auditory audio marketer RMS presents its new offer for customers and agencies in Germany's 2023 advertising market. The flagship for high-coverage national radio campaigns, the RMS SUPER KOMBI, is growing by 13 new stations. The largest offer is the DAB+ Deutschlandkombi, which goes into RMS marketing in a new composition with nine stations. Olaf Hopp, CEO NRJ GERMANY: "We are very pleased that we have been there from the start with our program NOSTALGIE, which is distributed nationwide via DAB+. DAB+ has established itself as a complementary radio transmission standard and DAB+ advertising combinations are only the logical consequence. The increasing relevance of DAB+ for both listeners and broadcasters is now logically expressed in the founding of this combination.”

The UK regulator Ofcom has granted "small-scale" licences to four more areas that were advertised in Round Three. These were given out in Oxford, Taunton, West Hull and York. Two transmitters in Oxford will cover 98% of the population, and coverage in York will reach 70% of the population.

Kink has put another theme channel on DAB+. From now on, Kink Distortion can also be heard on digital airwaves. The station replaces Kink Classics on MTVNL's network on channel 7D, ending the double coverage. Kink Distortion features the best metal, hard rock and metalcore 24 hours a day. The station honours icons like Slayer and Metallica, but is also full of the now with a focus on acts like Parkway Drive, Beartooth and Bring Me The Horizon.

37 years after the launch of Germany's first private radio station, Munich's most listened to radio station Gong 96.3 will soon be launching a second service. From 1 December, the station "089Kult" will be at the top of the station list on DAB+. With the new station, the Bavarian capital is getting a new service which, in addition to "cult hits" and current information and topics from Munich, will be devoted especially to culture.

Live radio is still dominant according to RAJAR’s MIDAS report, with live radio making up 71% share of adult listening. DAB digital radio made up 46% of radio listening, followed by AM/FM Radio (26%), and voice activated speakers or other devices (11% each). The highest share of live radio listening was done in the home (62%), with car/van/lorry, work or place of study and public transport, walking or elsewhere netting 22%, 14% and 2% shares respectively.