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Electric windows, a radio and alloy wheels are not included on the Access model, although stepping up to Ambience or Laureate trim brings more creature comforts. The former is available for an £800 premium over the standard car, bringing DAB radio, Bluetooth connectivity, manual air-conditioning and front electric windows.

The digital radio standard DAB + has been in regular operation since Wednesday, according to the association Digitalradio Österreich. Still pending is the award of the second tendered, nationwide license.

Regional public broadcaster Radio Wrocław has teamed up with Wrocław University of Science and Technology and Poland’s National Institute of Telecommunications (ITL) to establish a single frequency DAB+ network for small and local broadcasters in the city of Wrocław and vicinity.

The Avalon N5 breaks with the design of other Pure products, and is wrapped in a woven wool housing a custom-designed, dual-voice, 2-way loudspeaker, supported by two passive radiators, equipped with an amplifier delivering 20 Watts RMS. The unit also includes a 3.5mm jack headphone output and an auxiliary input for connecting a wired source. One of its great strengths is its portability, via an optional ChargePAK.

A new DAB+ operation begun in Vienna on Tuesday, located at the DC-Tower from Vienna's Donau City, with a second location to complement the network at a date to be confirmed. Additional spare capacity has already been allocated to programs which are expected to expand the ensemble in May 2018 following a successful approval process.

The programme of work, delivered by communications infrastructure company Arqiva,has doubled the local DAB network, with new transmitters or modifications to 221 local DAB sites, boosting local DAB coverage from 72% to more than 90% of UK households. An additional 10 million listeners have been brought into DAB coverage for the first time, and over 4,000 miles of roads are now also covered.

The Avalon N5 radio integrates a solution DAB+ and FM while integrating Bluetooth.

German station Absolutely HOT will expand its coverage throughout the Hesse region between April and July, to be heard throughout the state and in parts of Rhineland-Palatinate and Baden-Württemberg.

The leap forward for 2018 is the rise of the Connected Car. The good news for broadcasters is that, on the whole, the options for reaching listeners in cars are now wider than ever. Models with only FM/AM connectivity are in the minority, and DAB/DAB+ features as line-fitted or as an accessory across the majority of brands.

"Our goal is to provide all listeners in Austria with more radio offerings via DAB+," said Wolfang Struber, Digitalradio Österreich chairman. "We are currently waiting for the approval letter for the operation of the so-called multiplex platform for the nationwide operation of DAB +, which is expected in the second quarter of 2018."