News

Le Figaro announces that three DAB+ radio services will be launched in the second half of 2022, while a TNT (DTT) channel in Ile-de-France will be created by the end of the year. Laurence de Charette, who led the editorial staff of lefigaro.fr, will now be in charge of all of the group's audiovisual activities - existing (Le Figaro Live) or in the development phase (TNT and DAB), in conjunction with SECOM, the audiovisual partner of the Figaro Group. She will be responsible for developing the editorial offer of Le Figaro on social networks as well as the offer of audiovisual programmes (podcasts and documentaries).

With Radio Goldies, another radio station can now be heard via DAB+ in northern Switzerland. The oldies station from the Swiss Mittelland was activated on the corresponding mux of the operator SwissMediaCast on channel 7A. The offer on Nordschweiz-Mux now includes a total of 18 stations. Radio 32 Goldies has been around since 2001. Musically, the station focuses on the best hits from the 50s to 80s, supplemented by hourly news. The oldies station is an offshoot of the local station Radio 32 from Solothurn and is therefore part of the radio portfolio of CH Media (Radio 24, Radio Argovia, Radio Bern1, FM1, Radio Pilatus, Flashback FM, Radio Melody, Virgin Radio Switzerland).

Digital Radio NL has launched a new campaign. A unique form of outdoor advertising that allows one-on-one communication during refuelling: digital displays from CS Digital Media at petrol stations. Smart use is made of vehicle detection during refuelling. Only cars equipped with DAB+ as standard, newer than December 2020, will be targeted. Ten different DAB+ messages from DJs/presenters from various radio stations are shown on the displays parallel to the broadcast schedule of their radio station.

Launched on 1 July 2021, the Premium Radio project is already celebrating its first anniversary. Premium Radio is a radio station broadcasting on DAB+ from Monaco throughout the Côte d'Azur which offers many sequences around business, personal development, the stock market, cryptocurrencies, health or even marketing...

Sergio Natucci (DAB Italy): "the radio sector is once again at the centre of strong turbulence. It is a very delicate phase. We are at the turning point: the turning point is really close (July 27) and I believe that no one can imagine stopping or delaying it. It is important to repeat it: the DAB Plan has priority over any other intervention and has nothing to do with the energy crisis; even less with the FM universe."

After over twenty years of waiting, radio will finally have a plan for the definitive development of DAB. The Communications Authority has prepared and submitted to the trade associations, as required by law, the first frequency allocation plan for digital radio DAB+ based on international agreements with almost all neighbouring countries and in compliance with the results of the 2006 Geneva International Conference. This finally guarantees the stability and coordination of planned resources. Approval is scheduled for July 27th. CRTV asks that this timing not be subject to postponements, as happened last year due to the lack of agreement with foreign countries on the Adriatic side.

BFMTV is now available in an enhanced radio version on BFM Radio. The channel can be listened to live in digital quality with DAB+ technology, but also on the BFMTV application and the bfmradio.com website, with the channel live and additional audio content. Viewers can find all BFMTV programmes thanks to BFM Radio, which also offers enriched content specially dedicated to audio: traffic information, weather forecasts, the stock market as well as several podcasts.

Eduardo Montefusco: "The time of waiting, of reflections is over. Radio finally deserves to fully enter digital. Obviously the terrestrial one. We had to wait for over twenty years for the VHF band to be released, used without limits by television services and in particular by Rai, in order to have the national frequency plan for the DAB service. We look forward to the Agcom resolution."

Toscana DAB and Radio Digitale Toscana, two DAB+ network providers in Italy’s north-central Tuscany region, have activated additional facilities. The two consortiums are part of the country’s local radio and TV association Aeranti-Corallo. They currently each operate seven multiplexes in Florence, Pistoia, Prato, Arezzo and Siena provinces, and both recently activated a DAB+ transmitter in the medieval hill town of San Gimignano in Siena.

Services at launch include Sunrise Radio, Sunrise Radio Gold, Sab Rang Radio, Marefa Radio, Great Yorkshire Radio, Voice of Islam, Cosoro Radio, Panjab Radio, Fever FM Leeds, and Gorgeous Radio. Commenting on the launch, Rash Mustapha of the UK Digris operation said: “We are pleased that our first synchronised two site DAB radio installation has gone so well. Eleven services are now being encoded, multiplexed and distributed across the network, 24/7 monitoring is also in place so that Bradford Digital Media will only need to work on the mux management side of things with the techie headaches being dealt with by Digris.”