News

In view of the recent blackouts in Spain and Portugal, the Arbeitsgemeinschaft Privater Rundfunk (APR) points out the immense importance of broadcasting as a critical infrastructure and emphasises terrestrial broadcasting (FM and DAB) as a central element of disaster protection. In the event of power failures, as happened this week in Spain and parts of Portugal, the population can only be kept informed via these broadcasting channels. In this respect, the APR expressly welcomes the intention of the designated federal government in the coalition agreement to continue to protect and support terrestrial broadcasting as a critical infrastructure. There is no way around radio!

Britons are buying radios because they are afraid that Alexa is spying on them, the boss of Roberts Radio has claimed. Owen Watters, the chief executive of the Surrey-headquartered company, said Roberts had seen a recent increase in sales that he put down to concerns about smart speakers listening to private conversations. He said: “There is an increased scepticism or a nervousness about devices now. Are they always listening in? “People have a conversation over dinner and, all of a sudden, their phone starts prompting them with adverts for exactly what they were just speaking about. Amazon, which manufacturers the devices, has always denied claims that the devices secretly listen in on people without their consent, as have other smart speaker and phone manufacturers.

WorldDAB's President Jacqueline Bierhorst featured in a panel session: “Radio Re-imagined: Thriving in the Digital Age” exploring the benefits of digital radio, in Mumbai, India on 2 May. The discussion formed part of WAVES 2025 — the World Audio Visual & Entertainment Summit — a global summit for the media and entertainment industry, organised by India's Ministry of Information and Broadcasting. The discussion focused on the urgent need for radio to digitise its distribution in order to reach broader audiences and offer enriched content experiences. Bierhorst emphasised the importance of a comprehensive digital distribution strategy — combining both digital terrestrial broadcasting and IP streaming — to ensure radio’s continued relevance and growth.

A panel discussion on the subject ‘Radio Reimagined: Thriving in the Digital Age’ brought together global experts to engage in an insightful discourse at WAVES 2025 on 2 May. The esteemed panellists included WorldDAB President and pioneer of commercial radio Jacqueline Bierhorst; Nisha Narayanan, Director & COO of Red FM moderated the conversations. Bierhorst feels that digital radio is likely to be the primary format in the future, as it offers advantages like better sound quality, more reliable transmission, and the ability to integrate multimedia elements. “While analog radio remains relevant in some contexts, the shift to digital broadcasting is ongoing and expected to continue”, she opined. Cost saving happens by switching from analog to digital, they informed.

Mario Frühauf, Managing Director of kronehit and Chairman of the Private Broadcasters Association (VÖP), takes a positive view of the situation at Austria's largest private radio station kronehit. He also believes that the newly launched DAB+ stations are on the right track. "With the DAB+ stations, we have succeeded in switching from a single-brand to a multi-brand strategy. This was very important in order to put our company on a broader footing and to have the opportunity to address new target groups," Frühauf said. "All radios in new cars must also be able to receive DAB+, so every new car sold is also a new DAB+ device on the market and increases broadcasting opportunities."

This year SBS has pulled out all the stops with a DAB, web and FAST channel service to kick-start Australia’s Eurovision Party. SBS EuroPop will playing Eurovision hits non stop. All the past winners, all the previous Australian entrants and all of this year’s contenders. SBS EuroPop, the fully Eurovision version, airs Monday 5 May until Saturday 31 May on DAB+ radio, SBS Audio, and SBS On Demand.

A significant milestone in the Belgian media landscape has been reached as the new 10D DAB+ radio network officially went on air on May 1st. This cutting-edge platform, now fully operational, was launched with impressive speed and precision, following the unexpected surrender of the licenses of the previous networks. Thanks to close internal coordination and a hands-on mindset, the final phase of the rollout was completed on schedule. With the addition of 28 extra transmitters, the company moves closer to an important milestone: managing 1,000 active transmitters across the Netherlands and Flanders by 2025. A cornerstone of this success has been the close collaboration with DPG and Mediahuis.

From 1 May, the stations Radio 10 Non-Stop and Sky Radio 00's & 10's can also be heard via DAB+. Radio 10 Non-Stop brings the greatest hits of all time 24 hours a day, Sky Radio 00's & 10's plays non-stop the most popular pop music from the 2000s and 2010s. With this, Talpa Network further expands the digital radio landscape and responds to the growing demand for non-stop music channels via DAB+. Both channels have long been available online, where they are among their brands' best-listening theme channels. With the move to DAB+, they now become easily accessible to an even larger group of listeners over the airwaves as well.

The news that Thy, CADA‘s mornings announcer, was an AI voice clone, broke after the GfK Radio 360 Survey 2 measurement period had concluded. None the less I was particularly interested when the survey results came out this morning to see how the station was faring. It was the second best result the station has ever seen in Sydney, with 14,000 additional listeners tuning in largely aged 18-24, exactly who ARN and CADA are targeting. In Melbourne, alongside Gold 104.3 being one of the few top Melbourne stations to attract listeners this survey, ARN’s associated DAB+ station Gold 80s had the largest listenership in the city with SCA‘s DANCE HITS, Coles Radio and smooth relax also seeing gains.

NOVA Entertainment’s streaming station Nova Fresh Country is now being made available on DAB+ digital radio in Brisbane. Nova says that since making its streaming debut on the Nova Player in June 2024, Nova Fresh Country has experienced remarkable growth. Scott Baker-Smith, Head of Music at Nova Network, said: “The response to Nova Fresh Country since its launch has been amazing. Country music has blended into the Nova playlists for some time now, with artists pushing the boundaries and redefining what both pop and country sound like today." It’s the latest in a line of Nova streaming and DAB+ stations including Nova Nation, Nova Throwbacks and Nova 90s.”