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Fun Coast Digital Director Alistair Clarke MBE takes a look at small-scale DAB can work well for a community. "Fun Coast Digital CIC successfully bid to Ofcom to run the digital radio transmitter in Blackpool, was awarded the licence in May 2022 and three months later on September 1st we put the first few stations live on air. One year on, in-car entertainment screens in Blackpool are bursting with 11 locally-broadcast digital radio stations providing an eclectic mix of chat and music."

The radio landscape in North Rhine-Westphalia could soon become a good deal bigger. In addition to the state-wide DAB+ distribution of currently 16 private radio stations, there will also be regional distribution of a further 16 programmes in the future. The capacities for the four regions: Cologne/Bonn/Aachen, South Westphalia/Dortmund, East Westphalia/Lippe and Wuppertal/Düsseldorf/Mönchengladbach are expected to be put out to tender in January 2024. A possible three-year grant for the programme organisers will also be published with the call for proposals. Funding will primarily be provided for regional/local content in the programmes.

Media DAB is a consortium of Italian local radio stations, more than 100 in number, that is present in eight of the 20 Italian regions. These regions will soon be joined by Veneto and Sicily - including the cities of Palermo and Catania.

Ángel García Castillejo, Director of Audiovisual Policies, Public Service and International of the Spanish Radio and Television Corporation (CRTVE), announced on 30 November, during a conference on DTT organised by FENITEL, that they will begin broadcasting DAB+, "now regularly", in 2024, the year in which radio in Spain celebrates its first hundred years of regular broadcasting. "We estimate that by the spring of next year, there will be three million DAB+ receivers on wheels in our country," he added. Therefore, for the head of audiovisual policy at the public corporation, there are three million reasons to support this strategic move, which comes more than two decades late.

Ministers have come under mounting pressure to protect traditional TV and radio of tens of millions of people in the UK. TV and radio transmitted through an aerial is only guaranteed until the mid-2030s under current plans by the Government. But Broadcast 2040+, a coalition of campaigners, will use the data to press for terrestrial services and Freeview to be protected for at least another 17 years. The document, seen by the Daily Express, argues: “Millions of people access TV and radio content through broadcast services. Ofcom’s Media Nations 2023 report stated that broadcast TV has a strong weekly reach of 79% and the use of DAB radio services is rising with 88% of adults listening in for an average of 20 hours each week, the majority choosing terrestrial radio.”

Local public broadcasters in the Netherlands can apply for a licence for local digital radio (DAB+) from 12 December 2023 to 6 February 2024, the National Digital Infrastructure Inspectorate has announced. It says: "The Netherlands is divided into 57 geographical areas to which frequency space is linked. We call these allotments. For each allotment, 18 licences are available. You can use the frequency space from 1 September 2024. A licence is valid until 31 August 2030. After 6 February 2024, the ministry will determine how many permits are still available. After that, the application and allocation procedure for commercial broadcasters will start."

Norddeutscher Rundfunk (NDR) announced its further expansion plans for DAB+ digital radio today, 6 December. In the coming year 2024, a total of ten additional transmitters for digital radio are to go into operation. These are primarily intended to close smaller gaps and improve indoor reception regionally. Hessischer Rundfunk (hr) is planning a total of eight additional locations for its DAB+ expansion. This is based on data from the Federal Network Agency.

Digital terrestrial radio, or DAB+, has been rolled out in France since 2014. Two metropolitan multiplexes, M1 and M2, broadcast radio stations from the main private and public service groups, as well as new stations available only on DAB+. These two multiplexes went live in October 2021, completing the first phase of national rollout. Between July and October 2023, the Authority approved 297 sites for deployment between October 2023 and March 2024. In total, the second phase of deployment will involve the commissioning of 299 transmitters.

The SUN Junior youth radio station (developed by the SUN team) will be broadcasting on DAB+ in the Nantes area until 2 January. This medium, created for and by young people, is temporarily taking advantage of the festive season to bring together 5-11 year olds and their families to listen to festive programming directly from their radios. For the fourth year running, SUN Junior can also be heard on DAB+ in Nantes and the surrounding area from 1 December to 2 January, giving as many people as possible access to youth radio directly from their own radios.

Polskie Radio is expanding the coverage of its DAB+ multiplex. The process will be completed by 1 October 2024. Monika Kuś, spokeswoman for the public broadcaster, tells Wirtualnemedia.pl that ultimately up to 93 per cent of the Polish population will be able to receive additional radio stations. The process of extending the coverage of the Polish Radio's DAB+ multiplex began at the beginning of October. It includes: Jedynka, Dwójka, Trójka, Czwórka, Polskie Radio 24, Polskie Radio Chopin, Polskie Radio Dzieciom, Polskie Radio Kierowców, Polskie Radio dla Ukrainy, Radio Poland, regional radio stations and, in some locations, also their specialist channels.