News

A new joint venture between Radio Ashford, Nation Broadcasting and Kent Capacity Co Ltd will be applying for the small-scale DAB licence covering the Ashford & Dungeness area of Kent. The new company is Ashford DAB Limited and will be submitting an application to Ofcom before the closing date of the current round which is June 30th 2023. Richard Collins, Director of Radio Ashford, said: “Bringing small-scale DAB to the Ashford area is an exciting opportunity that will allow us to further develop our service and, working with our partners, enhance the choice of radio services available in the area. Radio has been an important part of local life for many years, and our bid will help ensure that radio remains a strong local friend for many years to come.”

Broadcasting across the UK from its headquarters at a smart business estate in Vauxhall, south London, Fix Radio is one of the new breed of independent specialist radio stations busily reinvigorating a medium that recently turned 100. The shows recorded here, and transmitted on DAB, reach 392,000 UK tradespeople each month, three-quarters of the industry’s total workforce – it’s the fastest growing broadcaster, with a 250 per cent rise in listeners. This cornucopia of specialist radio is the legacy of Britain’s love affair with Digital Audio Broadcasting. DAB was launched here in 1993, and has gone on to rule our airwaves. London now boasts over 100 DAB broadcasters, giving it more radio stations than any other city on earth.

The BBC has begun an information campaign to help transition listeners of Radio 4 Long Wave (LW) to alternative BBC platforms. This follows the announcement in May 2022 that the BBC is to stop scheduling separate content for Radio 4 LW in anticipation of the closure of the LW platform, owned and operated by a third party, which is coming to the end of its life as a technology. Radio 4 LW is starting to run targeted on air trails from today, giving listeners plenty of advance notice of the coming changes. Digital listening has grown significantly over the past decade as the range of alternatives has become easier to switch to, and listeners are increasingly accessing content elsewhere on the BBC. The audiences for Radio 4 LW are small, but we know there are some who still tune in on LW for their favourite programmes.

Southdown Radio is a new DAB+ digital station for Brighton and Hove with the local community at the forefront of its output. Broadcasting local news and information plus an unbeatable choice of songs throughout the day – from the rock and roll giants to today’s biggest hits – the station is fast becoming a must listen for the whole city. The station was born out of lockdown by radio programmer and presenter Mark Walker and broadcasters Sean Bolger and Peter Quinn. The trio saw an opportunity to offer the city a sophisticated, community-focused station with a unique variety of music – a combination which isn’t available anywhere else on the dial.

Once again this year, Roparunradio will be on air to report on the Roparun. Until Whit Monday (29 May) 8pm, the station can again be received on various local FM frequencies, as well as on MTVNL's DAB+ network (7D). It is the 32nd time that the Roparun is being organised. Thousands of people take part in the non-stop relay race, from Twente to Rotterdam, to raise money. With this money, the Roparun Foundation tries to make the lives of people with cancer more bearable wherever possible.

The new DAB+ brand design introduced in 2017, including logo and claim, has strongly established itself in the German and wider European market in recent years. The DAB+ logo and branding kit are available free to use for industry stakeholders on the WorldDAB website. The kit has now been updated with brand new DAB+ design documents which aim to create a closer connection between stations and the digital radio standard. The graphic elements create the prerequisites for linking the station brands more closely with DAB+. The latest development is based on the current corporate design of DAB+.

Macclesfield and East Cheshire’s Silk Radio is marking its 25th anniversary with an expansion of its coverage broadcasting on DAB. The station, which launched on 25 May 1998, is now available on DAB digital on the South Cheshire and Moorlands multiplexes. Silk Radio’s CEO Chris Hurst said: “We are thrilled to be celebrating our 25th birthday with such a significant milestone for the station. DAB digital radio will allow us to reach more listeners than ever before and offer them a better sound quality and more choice.”

Eugenio La Teana (Radioplayer): "In my opinion the way is quite clear. In the sense that radio stations..the biggest groups worldwide, I am talking about names like the BBC, have realised that building verticals with their own content is important: also to do advertising enrichment and collect user data. But that still this is not enough to compete in the global entertainment market. You need a weight of content and a lobbying possibility that only a large alliance can provide. I could sum it up like this: union is strength, but an international union, not a national one."

At a time when auto manufacturers are looking to change long-established norms for in-dash audio, the WorldDAB Automotive 2023 conference is adopted “keeping radio prominent” as its theme. The event brings together broadcast and automotive sector experts to discuss the opportunities and challenges presented by connected cars and the role of DAB+ in radio’s in-dash future. WorldDAB Automotive 2023 takes place in Paris at Maison de la Radio et de la Musique, the home of Radio France, on June 15. The one-day conference is free to attend in-person or online, and is organized by WorldDAB.

AllgäuHIT, the popular regional radio station, will be able to broadcast its programming via DAB+ until at least 2033. With this welcome news, the Media Council of the Bavarian Regulatory Authority for Commercial Broadcasting (BLM) has extended the capacity allocation for the station. AllgäuHIT is known for its varied music selection, the latest news and exciting regional information. By remaining on DAB+, listeners will continue to have unrestricted access to this popular station in the years to come.