News

A COUPLE of North Wales broadcasters are celebrating today (October 3) after broadcasting regulator Ofcom awarded the operational licence for a small-scale digital radio multiplex (DAB) to their joint company. This means that Conwy County is soon to receive a selection of new radio services – from specialist music channels to community services and information-based stations. “Sound Radio”, which broadcasts to East Conwy and the coastal belt between Conwy and Denbighshire on FM and Bayside Radio, which serves communities in the Bay of Colwyn on the North West Wales DAB multiplex, are working together as “Sound Bay Community Digital CIC” (Digidol Cymunedol Sain Bae).

The Czech Telecommunications Office plans to announce a tender for the operator of commercial digital radio networks before the end of this year. It expects the auction of frequency rights to raise tens of millions of crowns. The winning company will receive frequency allocations valid until the end of 2040. The Authority made the announcement in the tender principles document. The seven-page document was posted on its website as part of a public consultation.

A tribute to the well-known radio pirate Radio Stad Den Haag: this is how the founder of Radio 972 describes the new station that will broadcast on DAB+. Radio 972 can be heard over the DAB+ digital radio network in much of South Holland from 3 October. The new commercial radio station will take over Radio NRG's DAB+ channels.

Commercial radio station Sunrise FM has further expanded its reach via DAB+. Since 1 October, the radio station can also be heard in the Delft/Vlaardingen region via DAB+. Sunrise FM is a commercial radio station aimed at the Hindustani population in the Randstad region. The radio station could already be heard via DAB+ in large parts of Zuid-Holland and Flevoland via DAB+. Since 1 October, the radio station has also been added to the local DAB+ network in the Delft / Vlaardingen / Schiedam region on channel 9B.

Ofcom has awarded five more multiplex licences in Round 3 of the small-scale DAB process. Darlington & Bishop Auckland goes to Durham Digital Limited, Leicester to Leicester Digital Partnership CIC, Llandudno & Betws-y-Coed to Sound Bay Community Digital, Middlesbrough & Redcar to Erimux Limited and Warminster, Devizes & Trowbridge to West Wiltshire Digital Radio CIC. Today’s awards mean 11 of the 20 areas in Round 3 have been awarded, with nine still to go.

Leicester Digital Partnership has been awarded the small-scale DAB multiplex in the city. By the closing-date of 25 April 2022, Ofcom received two applications for this locality from SubDigital Leicester Limited and Leicester Digital Partnership. Ofcom noted that all five participants in the Leicester Digital Partnership’s application proposed to provide community digital sound programme services in the locality. Of these, four (St Matthews Community Solution Centre Limited, Kohinoor Media Limited, 2Funky Arts Limited, and Takeover Radio Children’s Media Trust) are existing providers of analogue community radio services in Leicester.

A new radio station for Thuringia: ANTENNE THÜRINGEN expands its digital portfolio with antenne OSTALGIE. Under the motto "Weils zu uns gehört" (Because it belongs to us), antenne OSTALGIE can now be heard via DAB+ in the regions of Erfurt and Weimar. Jochen Fasco, Director of the Thuringian State Media Authority, is pleased that Thuringia's radio bouquet has been expanded by the station, making DAB+ even more attractive. "As a result, listeners in the Free State with an affinity for rock will also get their own Thuringian programme," Fasco says.

As in previous years, Talpa has already started broadcasting Christmas music via DAB+ on its Sky Christmas themed channel. Sky Christmas will take over Sky Radio Nice & Easy's broadcast slot on DAB+ channel 9C until the end of the year.

With Ulm, the regional network for DAB+ in the Allgäu and Donau-Iller regions now has a prominent new addition. The transmitter is the sixth location in channel 8B and optimises digital radio reception in the cities of Ulm and Neu-Ulm. In addition, the commissioning of the DAB transmitter in Bavaria improves DAB coverage in the districts of Neu-Ulm and Günzburg. This is also associated with better mobile DAB coverage on the A8 Stuttgart-Munich motorway on the section from Ulm to Augsburg.

The first national DAB+ multiplex with four programmes from Deutschlandradio and nine private stations has added a transmitter at Unterringingen near Nördlingen in Bavaria. The ensemble on channel 5C is broadcast with a power of 10 kW.