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France has launched two new national multiplexes that will broadcast 25 DAB+ stations, including national services from Radio France and leading private broadcasters. Patrick Hannon, WorldDAB president, said ‘The launch of two national multiplexes in France is a critical milestone in the development of DAB – not only for France but for the whole of Europe. This launch, coupled with the recently introduced French radio receiver law, creates an unprecedented opportunity for growth in the DAB+ receiver market in France. As the market leader in DAB receivers, Frontier is supporting DAB growth in Europe with their Siena and Kino DAB+ receiver solutions.’

Some of the broadcast industry’s top specialists will be keynote speakers at this year’s WorldDAB Summit on Nov. 9. Sibyle Veil, CEO of Radio France, and Hervé Godechot, Board Member of the CSA, will discuss why France’s public and private radio broadcasters are embracing DAB+ digital radio as a core pillar of their distribution strategy. From the United Kingdom, Ian O’Neill, from the Department for Culture, Media and Sport and the BBC’s Lindsey Mack will talk about the UK’s Digital Radio and Audio Review, now nearing completion.

Xperi's Joe D'Angelo warned the top three global companies fighting aggressively to get into the dashboard with their audio services are Apple Music, Google and Amazon Music, with combined users of over 2 billion. “They are doing well in the car because they have strong value propositions. Once a car manufacturer puts in one of these services they know they don’t have to worry about the technology because the developers will service and upgrade them continually, and they will always work,” said D’Angelo. He outlined what Xperi are doing to get radio back into a prominent position in the digital dashboard, working with car companies to ensure that radio is integrated into the dashboard with Android and Google systems, with the intent of giving radio a level playing field with the other services that are moving into the dash.

France's Group 1981 continues to grow its audience on DAB+ with the launch of Latina on national DAB+ on 12 October. To celebrate the launch, Latina will dedicate a special day to DAB+ on 12 October to introduce listeners to this new broadcast mode. For Jean-Éric Valli, President of the 1981 Group: "I am happy to see Latina become a national radio station. DAB+ is an essential project for radio that we have firmly supported since 2008. More efficient for listeners, this mode of broadcasting guarantees publishers control over their broadcasting.

ARD, Deutschlandradio, private broadcasters and other members of the Digitalradio Deutschland association are together promoting DAB+ together with a nationwide campaign. From November 22nd to December 5th, the various measures on TV and radio as well as in print and online are under the motto: “Hear what you want, but hear it right. With the new generation of radio." The cross-media campaign elements used include TV spots, nationwide radio spots and program trailers on public and private radio, as well as image motifs for use in print and online marketing, and on social media platforms. The multichannel communication will include training courses for employees in over 2,200 retail stores.

A recent study carried out by BPR group has found that while radio use moves from traditional AM and FM broadcast to new distribution choices including on-line and DAB+, radio continues to be the preferred source of audio in most of the countries surveyed. A common theme that emerges is that strong and traditional relationships between listeners and radio services provides a clear advantage and USP for radio. Music streaming continues to grow, although increased music streaming is not directly impacting use of radio.

DTS, a global leader in next-generation audio, imaging and sensing technology, and a wholly owned subsidiary of Xperi Holding Corporation, has announced that Radio Maria’s worldwide network of radio stations has been integrated into DTS AutoStage. DTS AutoStage, built on the largest database of broadcast metadata, combines over-the-air radio with IP delivered content. The DTS AutoStage platform is open and available to all broadcasters at no cost

The 80’s Gold stations of WSFM, Gold104.3, 97.3, Mix and 96FM now have 323,000 DAB+ listeners Australia wide. Coles Radio, despite an improvement in numbers, is now in second spot with 298,000, while the 90’s (KIIS, 97.3, Mix, 96FM) also added to their audience size for 257,000. Double J’s numbers remain almost unchanged with a slight drop to 234,000.

The EBU has come together with the European Digital Radio Alliance (EDRA) and the Association of European Radios (AER) to ask policymakers to urgently intervene to prevent anti-competitive activities by digital voice assistant platforms that hold a gatekeeper position on the market. A letter co-signed by the leadership of the three organizations says that policymakers should ensure that the proposed Digital Markets Act (DMA) regulation also applies to voice assistants by including a clear reference to these services in the text. Read the full joint statement here.

The start of national DAB+ covering the Paris-Lyon-Marseille axis and its 2,000 km of road and motorway network is a significant step in the deployment of digital radio and represents a major advance in the modernisation of radio. By 2022, 50% of the French population will be covered by DAB+. Thanks to DAB+ radio is looking firmly to the future as it celebrates its 100th year.