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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 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.

Listeners across the UK from Warrington to Wrexham will soon be able to tune into a wider choice of ultra-local digital radio stations, with Ofcom awarding 17 small-scale DAB radio multiplex licences in north-west England and north-east Wales. Ofcom's roll-out of small-scale DAB will enable the launch of around 200 multiplexes, covering all four UK nations. Today’s awards bring the total number of multiplex licences awarded to 42. Ofcom has also published the 32 applications it has received for the third round of licence advertisements, covering a further 20 areas across England, Northern Ireland, Wales and Scotland.

Groups from across the UK are submitting applications for the third round of small-scale DAB licensing. Small-scale DAB is an innovative technology which provides a low-cost way for local commercial, community and specialist music services to take to the digital airwaves.

Small-scale DAB has arrived in Salisbury with the switch-on of the city’s new DAB+ multiplex by Muxcast Salisbury. In a joint venture between Nation Broadcasting and BFBS, 18 services are now available in the area including locally owned and operated Salisbury Radio which officially launches at 5pm today (Monday). Two transmitters are powering the service, which is the second permanent small-scale DAB multiplex to launch in the UK following Tynemouth and South Shields in December 2021.

The small-scale DAB multiplex for Derry/Londonderry will be launching soon and the operator is looking for more stations to join. Foyle DAB Ltd has been working behind the scenes and plans to have the multiplex up and running by the summer. Foyle DAB’s Manager, Richard Moore said: “We are getting very excited at this stage. it will be the first small-scale DAB service to be launched in Northern Ireland and we are delighted it is in the North West.

The first permanent small-scale DAB network has launched today, marking a milestone in the UK’s radio landscape and the start of a small-scale revolution for local radio which is set to bring a huge expansion of local radio listening choice to listeners across the nation. The new network brings fourteen additional local commercial, community and specialist music radio services to listeners.

Since February, Ofcom has planned the airwaves and awarded small-scale DAB licences in 25 areas across the UK. With the first round of awards now complete, these licences have the potential to allow the launch of over 500 new local radio stations. Some of the hundreds of new stations set to launch on small-scale DAB are existing analogue community and small commercial radio services. Many others will be completely new – ranging from grass-roots community services to boutique specialist music stations, and services aimed at minority groups and other under-served audiences.

Ofcom has awarded the final batch of licences in round one of the small-scale DAB licensing process completing an almost five-month process to announce the winners. Kevin Bakhurst, Ofcom’s Group Director, Broadcasting and Online Content said: “The rollout of this innovative technology will give listeners across the UK an unprecedented choice of locally produced content – serving communities and audiences across the country in a way never seen before. The UK’s commercial and community radio industry continues to go from strength.”

The UK's Community Media Association is calling on the Treasury to increase funding as the sector is set to expand substantially with the introduction of small-scale DAB. The request includes the establishment of an equipment fund to subsidise the set-up of small-scale digital radio multiplexes. Small scale DAB will play a pivotal role in the next few years in reinvigorating local economies.