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The ongoing development of small-scale DAB in the United Kingdom continues apace with the first new multiplexes now operational. Others are nearing launch, and the broadcast regulator, Ofcom, is offering additional licenses through a third round of licensing that opened on Jan. 25.

In North Friesland, the national DAB+ stations which are broadcast nationwide via channel 5C, are now offering better reception. The network operator Media Broadcast has put the transmitter in Süderlügum (Schleswig-Holstein) into operation, which Deutschlandradio announced in March 2022 (INFOSAT reported). In addition to the public Deutschlandradio stations Deutschlandfunk, Deutschlandfunk Kultur, Deutschlandfunk Nova and the digital channel "Deutschlandfunk Documents and Debates", numerous private radio stations are broadcast via the first national DAB+ platform, the "1. DAB+ Bundesmux", will benefit from improved reception. These include the private stations Absolut Relax, Energy, ERF Plus, Klassik Radio, Radio Bob!, Radio Hoereb, Schlagerparadies, Schwarzwaldradio and Sunshine Live.

While Electric Vehicles (EVs) can serve as a tool to help curb our fossil fuel dependency, they also pose a surprisingly large threat to the radio industry — more specifically AM radio. Some EV automakers are dropping AM altogether due to audio quality concerns, but that’s just one piece of the puzzle as radio continues to fight for space on the dash. “As carmakers increase electric vehicle offerings throughout their lineups, the availability of AM radio to consumers is declining,” said Pooja Nair, communications systems engineer with Xperi Corp., in a Radio World guest commentary. In 2015, Radio Info reported that AM stations were shutting down en masse from France to the Netherlands and Russia. The frequency has largely been superseded by the DAB format. According to recent figures released by WorldDAB, 95% of new cars sold in key European markets were equipped with DAB+ receivers as standard in 2021.

Gong 96.3 will soon be available with a second service in Munich and the region. The new radio station follows an innovative concept and is intended to make a special contribution to diversity. In its meeting on Wednesday, July 14, 2022, the Media Council of the Bavarian State Centre for New Media awarded Radio Gong the contract for a new radio service. Several stations had applied for the free DAB+ slot on channel 11C Munich. The station can reach 2.69 million people in the Munich metropolitan region.

London and the South East of England will constitute the fifth round of small-scale radio multiplex licensing. Round five will see 32 licences offered, which Ofcom plans to advertise in 2023. Applications are also now open for Round four, covering areas from East Fife in Scotland to the Ards Peninsula in Northern Ireland, and from Anglesey in Wales to Wolverhampton in England. Ofcom’s rollout of small-scale DAB will enable the launch of around 200 multiplexes, covering all four UK nations.

Radio use in Germany remains at a high level overall. When measuring the distribution channels, DAB+ is again one of the winners of the current study. In the widest group of listeners, DAB+ now has a share of 27.0 percent (listeners aged 14 and over, ma 2022 Audio I: 24.5 percent). In the previous year, the proportion was just over 20 percent. Deutschlandradio Director Stefan Raue: "The renewed significant growth in the use of DAB+ once again reflects the success of the network expansion. Digital radio is now the driving force in the audio market.”

On July 4th, television will celebrate 10 years since the shutdown of analogue broadcasts and the definitive transition to digital terrestrial. "Now radio operators and dads like me are happy because the time has come to leave something neat for our children," says Eduardo Montefusco, founder of RDS (5 million average daily listeners), president of the DAB Italia consortium and Cavaliere del Lavoro. "DAB is an ongoing plan and the sector, after years of fragmentation, is starting to be more structured."

Panjab Radio has confirmed that it has launched across Newcastle Upon Tyne and Gateshead area in north-east England on DAB. The station will simulcast its London output with a mixture of music, news and speech programming mainly in Panjabi and English. Richard Finch from the Newcastle/Gateshead multiplex operators Tyneside Community Digital said, “It’s great to have Panjab Radio on our mux. Week by week we are adding to the number of stations available on Tyneside. Extending the choice and diversity of what’s currently available on DAB is an important part of our role.”

The first radio station of the Ukrainian Broadcasting Corporation, Ukrajinske Radio-1, has recently been broadcast via DAB+ in Bad Kreuznach in Rhineland-Palatinate. “Due to the war, the broadcaster's web streams often fail or are heavily overloaded. In order to enable Ukrainians and those interested in the country low-threshold access to the station, we are converting the satellite feed on Astra 4.9°E from Kyiv to digital radio,” explains Milling Broadcast, the platform operator of the Bad Kreuznacher multiplex on its Facebook page.

The latest small-scale DAB multiplex has launched with 20 radio stations signed up to broadcast via DAB+ in Edinburgh. The stations are Edge Radio, 45 Radio, Abacus Radio, Awaz FM, Celtic Music Radio, Chief Radio, ehfm, Gorgeous Radio, Heartsong Live, Like One, London One Radio, Mix 1 Radio, Nation 70s, Nation 80s, Nation 90s, Radio Sangam, Sunoh, TD1 Radio, Timeless Radio and Voice of Islam Radio. Edinburgh is the sixth permanent small-scale DAB service to launch, following Cambridge, Birmingham North, Newcastle & Gateshead, Tynemouth and Salisbury.