News

maRadio.be, the cooperative in charge of the digital transition of Belgian French-speaking radio stations, recently presented the results of its fifth annual IPSOS study on the consumption of digital radio in the Wallonia-Brussels Federation. Faced with an ultra-competitive audiovisual offering, radio consumption remains very positive. Nevertheless, it is necessary to qualify this: the 'traditional' consumption of the medium via FM is gradually diminishing, to the benefit of the digital technologies that have been developing in recent years. DAB+ and streaming have the wind in their sails and continue to progress in the French-speaking Belgian landscape.

The private music station ZUN has added the RadioDNS service to its signal on the DAB+ digital radio network. Players that support the technology can switch from DAB+ to an internet stream if required. The RadioDNS hybrid radio technology enriches the player with web links, traffic information, camera footage or even sports scores. Information about programmes, station names, logos and format descriptions are also displayed. Additional data is transmitted via LTE or 5G mobile network. In Audi, Volkswagen, Porsche or BMW cars, the car radio switches to the internet stream as soon as the car leaves the DAB+ coverage area.

Wendelstein is to enable reception of the second nationwide DAB+ multiplex in large parts of Upper and Lower Bavaria for the first time this year. According to a list from the Federal Network Agency, the site is to receive more power for this purpose. Previously planned with a power of only 2 kW, as with Bundesmux 1, an increase to 5 kW is now being coordinated.

Austria is to have a second national DAB+ digital radio multiplex. The media authority KommAustria is working on a tender before the end of this year, as Roman Gerner, new chairman of the Digital Radio Austria Association and managing director of radio klassik Stephansdom, announced in an interview in "magazin KLASSIK". "An expansion of the digital transmitter network in both the private and the public radio sector corresponds to the signs of the times," says Gerner. "You can also see that when you look across the borders, where DAB+ is already THE transmission path for all radio programmes in almost all European countries. That is the way of the future. Anything else would be anachronistic".

The popular radio station for senior citizens, with a studio on Linkeroever, could be heard on 98 FM and via streaming on their website. From Saturday, DAB+ (Digital Audio Broadcasting, a digital alternative to analogue radio signals) will be added. After all, why did Radio Minerva invest - it had to buy a lot of new equipment - in DAB+? "We really had no other choice. The FM band is out of date and will eventually disappear. No, together with streaming, DAB+ is the future of radio."

The Bayerische Rundfunk now also broadcasts its radio stations in DAB+ from the Hersbruck/Pommelsbrunn site. The new DAB+ transmitter will provide the town of Hersbruck in Central Franconia and the surrounding area with the BR's digital service. In addition to better sound quality, DAB+ offers a significantly greater variety of stations than FM. Among other things, the folk and brass music wave BR Heimat is available via DAB+ in excellent audio quality. The other digital radio stations such as BR Schlager or PULS, BR's young programme, the event channel BR24live, BR Verkehr and the well-known radio waves Bayern 1, Bayern 2, Bayern 3, BR-Klassik, BR24 as well as many regional stations can also be received in excellent digital quality via DAB+.

The Norwegian Media Authority allocates NOK 8.2 million in operating support for digitisation of local radio this year, almost doubling the support from 2022. The Norwegian Media Authority is keen to support the transition to DAB in local radio stations. The finances of local radio stations are vulnerable, and we believe it is necessary and right to increase operating support for digitalisation this year, both for each individual radio station and for the companies that operate DAB systems," says Hanne Nistad Sekkelsten, Director of the Legal and Regulatory Department at the Norwegian Media Authority.

WorldDAB – the global industry forum for DAB digital radio – is bringing together experts from around the world for a workshop at the Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union’s Digital Broadcasting Symposium (ABU DBS) in Malaysia. WorldDAB is exhibiting throughout the event on stands 17 and 18, with members GatesAir and Paneda joining the pavilion.

From Thursday 23 February, Radio Orient programmes are now available in Nîmes and also in Perpignan on DAB+. These new launches bring the number of areas operated by Radio Orient to 39 on DAB+ and 11 on FM. This makes Radio Orient one of the largest networks currently broadcasting via digital radio. Other important new sectors will be launched during 2023.

Radio FG has started broadcasting its programme on DAB+ in Montpellier, Nîmes, Perpignan, Narbonne and Béziers, and will cover a large part of Languedoc-Roussillon. Maison FG publishes a radio bouquet of four stations on DAB+: FG DJ Radio, already present in 41 cities, FG CHIC, haute couture music in Paris and Monaco, Maxximum, the Paris Electronic Radio in Paris and DanceOne for a young audience with EDM programming in Paris, Marseille and Nice.