News

ARN’s KIIS and GOLD networks are going fully national in 2026, in a move which brings Kyle & Jackie O to a new audience in Perth, via a new KIIS DAB+ station. Confirming the rollout at ARN’s Upfront event in Sydney, Chief Content and Audience Officer Lauren Joyce, said “In 2026, ARN will deliver true national scale across two of the most recognisable media brands in the country.” Adelaide’s Cruise1323 evolves into GOLD1323, with refreshed programming designed to attract a younger audience, and new GOLD DAB+ stations will launch in Brisbane and Adelaide. Every market will continue to feature local news, sport, traffic and weather.

DAB+ digital radio, which has officially launched in Estonia, has already changed radio listening habits, according to a recent audio consumption survey by research company Kantar Emor. The launch of digital radio brought more than ten smaller radio stations to the Estonian market, which do not broadcast on FM frequencies, but on the new DAB+ network and the Internet. According to the survey, 26,000 people listened to such stations between April and September. According to Priit Vare, head of Duo Media Network's radio division, the launch of the digital network has been a success. "I am very pleased that listeners found these small stations right away," he said. "If we add the larger channels that also joined the DAB+ network, it is clear that consumers are interested in trying out the new technical solution."

On 29 October 2025, at 10am, the DAB+ radio landscape in North Rhine-Westphalia will welcome a new station: Radio Mixtape – the soundtrack of your life will begin broadcasting on this day. Radio Mixtape is a joint project of RADIO NRW and the local radio stations in North Rhine-Westphalia. Radio Mixtape will be available from 29 October 2025 on channel 9D in the North Rhine-Westphalia multiplex. With Radio Mixtape, NRW-Lokalfunk is creating an additional programme offering for the "Best Ager" target group. The new programme is the answer to the needs of an active, fun-loving, self-determined and affluent target group that is looking for music and stories from their own world – modern, honest and true to life.

SCA today unveiled the Heart Network, a new national music brand launching on DAB+ and LiSTNR. Debuting with two stations, Heart and Heart Hits, and backed by a clear roadmap for further expansion across genres and formats, SCA reinforces its leadership in digital audio and cements its position as the Number 1 Network for DAB+. Heart represents a significant opportunity to engage new and diverse audiences through a digital-first music experience. Matthew O’Reilly, SCA Head of Broadcast Content said: “Heart is built for listeners seeking a more personal and mood-based experience, while expanding our reach as the Number 1 network on DAB+. With Heart, SCA continues to lead the evolution of digital audio in Australia.”

The South Tyrol Broadcasting Corporation recently published a call for expressions of interest in broadcasting private radio programmes from abroad via the RAS DAB+ transmitter network. The application deadline expired on 24 October. The documents available on the RAS website indicate that the transmission capacity is 54 CU (72 kBit/s). It is also stated that this programme is to be broadcast via the RAS transmitter network with 59 locations. The 59 locations, which reach 99 per cent of the population of South Tyrol indoors, indicate that this is one of the two RAS multiplexes on channel 10B or 10D.

On 24 October 2025, AKOS published a new public tender for 16 rights to broadcast radio programs using digital broadcasting technology throughout the Republic of Slovenia and 10 rights to broadcast radio programs in the Ljubljana area. The national part of the public tender is divided into two groups. The first group contains five rights intended for programs that are broadcast on FM and are not yet available on DAB, as well as programs that are already broadcast on DAB+ in a smaller area but would like to expand their coverage area. The second section contains 11 rights for new radio programs that are not yet broadcast. The second part of the tender for the Ljubljana area is entirely dedicated to new radio programs. The deadline for submitting bids is 12 December 2025.

The Agency for Communication Networks and Services of the Republic of Slovenia (AKOS) has published in the Official Gazette of the Republic of Slovenia of 24 October 2025 a decision on the launch of a public tender for the award of 16 rights for the broadcasting of radio programs using digital broadcasting technology throughout the territory of the Republic of Slovenia and 10 rights for the broadcasting of radio programs using digital broadcasting technology in the Ljubljana area. Interested bidders are invited to submit their bids by 12:00 on 12 December 2025.

Alerting the public to situations that pose a threat to health and safety is a duty and a long-standing part of broadcasting – the reach and immediacy of the media, especially radio, which people listen to at home, at work, and on the road, combined with a generally high level of trust and very high reliability, make radio an excellent platform for warning the population in crisis situations. For the first time in the Czech Republic at the Media and Technology conference in Průhonice, the ASA (Automatic Safety Alert) warning system was presented. This system is broadcast on DAB+ digital radio networks and targeted at only three areas covering a total of just 1 km2, including the conference venue itself.

Radio Proglas presented the current status and plans for the digitisation of broadcasting, which is in full swing this fall. The goal is to take full advantage of modern DAB+ technology, which offers a number of benefits and is gradually replacing the aging FM system. Listeners are kept informed about changes and the availability of the new signal. Proglas emphasises the environmental and economic benefits of DAB+ broadcasting, including lower power consumption and higher sound quality. The transition to this technology is considered a logical step that will ensure wider signal coverage throughout the Czech Republic. Current DAB+ signal coverage reaches 76% of the territory, which represents an increase of 16% compared to previous analogue FM broadcasting.

The Mecklenburg-Vorpommern Media Authority (MMV) has been working for some time to expand the state's digital radio landscape. Now a decisive step is imminent: a state-wide, regionalised DAB+ coverage is to be put out to tender before the end of this year. This would close a significant gap for Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, which, together with Rhineland-Palatinate, has been one of the last federal states without state-wide commercial multiplex coverage. The planned network is to be divided into four regional coverage areas. The first region to be covered will be Rostock, the only major city in the state and also the economic centre of the region. Other regions will follow gradually.