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The final text of DAB+ guidelines on the procedures to assign rights of use for local DAB+ networks has been published by Italy's "Ministero delle Imprese de del Made in Italy'. The guidelines relate to the criteria and methods that will be adopted by the Ministry to proceed with the assignment of the rights to use the frequencies to broadcast on the DAB+ standard in Italy. Marco Rossignoli of Aeranti-Corallo said "This is a very important step for a correct development of digital radio broadcasting in Italy. It enhances the role of local radio broadcasters. With the assignment of these rights, local radio broadcasters will be able to combine DAB+ digital broadcasting with analogue FM and IP transmissions, creating a real and complete multi-platform broadcasting system".

The 80’s stations of KIIS, Mix, Gold and 96FM combined for 384,000 listeners nationally in Survey 2. 90’s radio on DAB+ also draw good numbers with the KIIS, Mix and 96FM group getting 383,000, MMM 90’s with 213,000 and OLDSKOOL HITS 90’s with 286,000. The DANCE HITS stations in Sydney, Melbourne Brisbane and Adelaide now have 223,000 listeners.

Digi B Network is delighted to announce that it has been granted an eight-year extension to its licence as Malta’s DAB operator, following a competitive process launched earlier this year by the Malta Communication Authority. This extension will allow Digi B to continue providing the people of Malta with high-quality digital broadcasting services for years to come. The company is committed to providing an even better user experience for its customers and will be enhancing its product by introducing 4k audio to the islands.

French regional broadcaster - Pyrénées FM - this week celebrated its arrival on DAB+ in the Pyrénées-Orientales at a reception organised in the Palais des Congrès in Perpignan. In his speech, the founding president Jean Clergue expressed his interest in the development of DAB radio and affirmed his desire to promote this new technology. Pyrénées FM, already on air on DAB+ in the cities of Toulouse and Perpignan, will soon launch two additional transmitters in Pau and Bayonne.

Dutch Formula One commentator Olav Mol has chosen another track to report on the 2023 Formula 1 season with "Grand Prix Radio". Media entrepreneur and station co-founder Alexander Stevens highlights listening via DAB+ is free to air for the listener saying: “This makes our accessibility even greater and that is great for the listener and for us.”

The current trial small-scale DAB licence holder in Brighton and Hove has teamed up with local radio services to apply for the full-time licence. OpenDAB Brighton & Hove CIC, created by Daniel Nathan & Rashid Mustapha, has been running since 2015, broadcasting 26 local radio services to Brighton & Hove.

Vogtland Radio can now also be heard on digital radio via DAB+. The regional programme from Plauen can be heard on the Chemnitz multiplex. The transmitters for DAB+ are located in Chemnitz, Geyer and Schöneck. For Managing Director Claus-Tilo Thoß, the DAB+ connection is the crowning achievement in the station's 25-year history: "With the now diverse transmission paths and reception options, we also want to ensure that Vogtland Radio's popular radio programme reaches listeners in the broadcast area in its entirety. And this is how we are facing the challenges of digitalisation."

“If you're in radio, you know that the number one listening location for radio has always been the car, and hopefully it will always be, but no question that in recent years, the car has changed,” said Fred Jacobs, President of Jacobs Media, who moderated a session on listening data at NAB. The way consumers listen to audio in the car has changed with the advent of streaming, podcasts, and satellite radio. "We promised that we would deliver back to the industry analytics and metrics on how people are listening to the radio. And we would do that at no cost to the industry,” Joe D'Angelo Senior VP, Broadcast Radio & Digital Audio, Xperi.

The DAB+ offer is growing continuously - especially in the north and east of Germany where several new stations became available at the start of the month. There was an expansion of DAB+ services also in Bavaria, and more new services are imminent in North Rhine-Westphalia where the State Media Authority is preparing a tender for a state-wide, regionalised DAB+ multiplex. There are now 300 DAB+ programmes that can be received in different regions across Germany, more than 100 of them exclusively via DAB+.

A new report from the North American Broadcasters Association (NABA) on hybrid radio, metadata and service providers is to be unveiled during the Broadcast Engineering and IT Conference (BEITC) session. “This document can be an excellent tool for radio broadcasters to learn more about using metadata to support hybrid radio and to provide a high-quality experience for their listeners in their automobiles,” says Julie McCambley, NABA Radio Committee chair.