News

At the beginning of July, broadcaster TDF commissioned sixteen new transmitters in Nouvelle-Aquitaine, Occitanie, Sud-Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, Grand-Est and Bretagne to broadcast digital radio. These new deployments often require impressive lifting equipment, such as heli-lifts and cranes. They bear witness to the know-how and technical expertise of TDF's structural experts and the commitment of its operational teams. TDF's technical experts are also closely involved in the rollouts. They have developed a new type of mixed antenna that combines FM and DAB+ technologies on the same equipment. A second antenna using this technology is being deployed in Castres.

The United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction has highlighted the role of RNE during the blackout last April and has shared a video produced by RTVE on the coverage of the public broadcaster on its LinkedIn, Facebook and X profiles. 28 April 2025 will remain engraved in the collective memory of those who lived through the blackout on the Iberian Peninsula. In the midst of uncertainty, radio once again proved its value as an essential medium. While communications were down, information was scarce and rumours multiplied, radio became the most reliable and accessible source of information, thanks to vehicle-mounted receivers and portable battery-powered receivers. In fact, portable receivers were soon out of stock in many shops.

Mediapulse AG has published consolidated radio usage figures for the first time since SRG ceased FM broadcasting at the end of 2024. Compared to the same period a year ago, the SRG station group's market share fell by 6 percentage points nationwide - in line with expectations. This result is in line with the exceptionally high quarterly figures published by SRG in April. With a market share of 53%, SRG remains the clear market leader. This is an important indicator, as it shows how much SRG radio is used in Switzerland as a proportion of total usage. Radio penetration is declining overall, as usage patterns have been changing for some time.

The invitation to tender for DAB+ transmission capacity for the Münsterland region begins on 9 July. This will enable the broadcasting of a total of 16 radio programmes in the remaining, sixth DAB+ region in North Rhine-Westphalia. The DAB+ transmission capacities for the remaining five broadcasting areas have already been put out to tender and awarded by the NRW Media Authority following a mutual agreement procedure. With the ‘DAB+Regio Funding Programme’, the NRW Media Authority will contribute up to €3.4 million over a period of three years towards the broadcasting costs incurred by the broadcasters. Applications for both the DAB+Regio transmission capacities and for funding can be submitted until 17 September 2025.

The regional DAB+ ensemble for the Leipzig region (channel 10A) can now also be heard via a second transmitter site. In addition to the Leipzig-Messegrund site (with 10 kW), the Oschatz/Collmberg transmitter (with 9.3 kW) is now also broadcasting. The transmitter was switched on in mid-June. Eleven private radio stations and one non-commercial station (Radio Blau) can be heard in the ensemble.

Minister of Transport and Infrastructure Abdulkadir Uraloğlu said he will implement new tower projects that will strengthen the broadcasting infrastructure in 30 metropolitan cities within the scope of the studies initiated to expand the Çamlıca and Çanakkale towers model throughout Turkey. Abdulkadir Uraloğlu, Minister of Transport and Infrastructure, said: "Within the scope of the 30 Provinces Common Tower Infrastructure Project, we continue to work on the establishment of high capacity transmitter towers suitable for FM, DAB+ and DVB-T2 broadcasting technologies in our provinces. These towers will be equipped with new broadcasting infrastructures, energy efficiency will be increased more than 10 times, and more environmentally friendly and low carbon emission broadcasting services will be provided."

Don’t count broadcast radio out yet. When it comes to in-car entertainment, radio’s live and local nature means that it’s still “made for the drive.” This good news was delivered by Frank Nowack of Ford Motor Company at WorldDAB Automotive 2025. WorldDAB, the international association promoting the DAB/DAB+ digital radio transmission standard globally, held the event on June 19 at the Palacio Neptuno hotel in Madrid, Spain. Nowack is Ford’s function owner of broadcast radio. Speaking during the session, “Broadcast radio: live, local and made for the drive,” he reinforced the idea that radio’s linear, local and live strengths power compelling drive time content that is tailor-made for today’s in-car listeners.

The Media Bohemia radio group plans to launch three more music stations this summer - the dance music-focused Radio Helax, Rock Radio Stage, which will focus on the rock festival scene, and Oldies Radio, which will offer a selection of classic hits from past decades. The station will appear in the full coverage DAB+ multiplex C of RTI CZ. The regional Hitradio stations will also get their own DAB+ version from September and will be gradually connected to the digital multiplexes. "Entering DAB+ digital broadcasting is a strategic step for us, which will allow us to reach new listeners and offer them quality content in a modern format. We are ready to invest in technology and programme innovation to strengthen our position in the market," announced Media Bohemia owner Daniel Sedláček.

Mario Frühauf, Managing Director of kronehit and Chairman of the Private Broadcasters Association (VÖP): "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. The stations are positioned in such a way that they a) do not cannibalise our main channel kronehit and b) represent music clusters that are in high demand on the listener market. We did a lot of research beforehand and are more than satisfied with the launch. With Radio Rot-Weiss-Rot and Super 80s, we have already caught up with the reach of the established DAB+ stations within six months - a huge success."

Gorka Zumeta writes: "if radio has a future, it is in DAB+, whether Spanish private broadcasters like it or not. In fact, public and private, in the eyes of the administration, are condemned to understand each other. And the best thing is for them to start as soon as possible, and not wait for the European Union, under pressure from Belgians and Germans, to decide to publish a Directive obliging all member states to establish DAB+ by, say, 2035, the year in which FM would also be switched off. Before then, inevitably, there would be a switch-off of AM, which no longer makes sense in a network hyper-diversified in channels (AM, FM, DAB, DAB+, DTT, App, Webs). The most important reason for this decision would focus on the energy aspect and on the high level of pollution caused by AM and FM.