Netherlands - Current situation - History

17.10.2012

NPO will extend its existing DAB-mux from 70% to 95% coverage in the coming years. In June 2012 NPO and KPN Broadcast, Dutch broadcast infrastructure operator, signed an agreement for the enhanced roll-out of a nationwide transmitter network for terrestrial digital radio.

The agreement is effective 1 December 2012 and will end 1 September 2023. A new DAB+ network will be built in three phases. The first phase will be operational as of 1 December, 2012 and entails the replacement and densification of the current main broadcasting network.

Depending on the success of T-DAB, by 1 September 2015, NPO will decide on the extension of the network with a further 14 transmitter sites. By September 2017, the network will be further extended with an additional 24 transmitter sites, enabling good indoor reception in virtually all of the Netherlands. 

15.10.2012

NPO will extend its existing DAB-mux from 70% to 95% coverage in the coming years . In June 2012 NPO and KPN Broadcast, Dutch broadcast infrastructure operator, signed an agreement for the enhanced roll-out of a nationwide transmitter network for terrestrial digital radio .

The agreement is effective 1 December 2012 and will end 1 September 2023 .A new DAB+ network will be built in three phases . The first phase will be operational as of 1 December, 2012 and entails the replacement and densification of the current main broadcasting network .

Depending on the success of T-DAB, by 1 September 2015, NPO will decide on the extension of the network with a further 14 transmitter sites . By September 2017, the network will be further extended with an additional 24 transmitter sites, enabling good indoor reception in virtually all of the Netherlands 

18.06.2012

The Netherlands is already well on its way to being a successful market, with the help of strong regulatory support and incentives for digital radio. 

National Public radio NPO will extend their existing DAB mux from 80% to 100% in the coming years. NPO are also committed to migrating to DAB+ and have formally applied for a tender for a maximum of 20 DAB+ radio stations and up to three DMB-video channels with 95% coverage by 2017.

National commercial stations have now obtained a multiplex license for a minimum of 16 DAB stations. 

Regional stations (both public and commercial) had until 10 June 2011 to inform the minister if they would use a commercial regional mux, or piggy back on an already issued mux (operated by MTVNL). 

Local radio is assigned L-band frequencies. 

Licences have also been issued in Band III to MTVNL, and in L-band to CallMax which plans testing in the Eindhoven area. TV Mobile Netherlands BV owns the license for nationwide mobile TVradio and data to broadcast. Currently, TV Mobile Netherlands BV has an extensive test network operating in the Haaglanden, Hilversum and the Eindhoven region. A full nationwide commercial launch will begin in 2011/2012.

There is no FM switch off date, but FM licences will be extended for 6 years until the end of 2017. Formal policy is that ultimately 1-2 year before the end of the FM licences, there will be a full review regarding FM switch off.