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For decades, FM was the radio standard par excellence, but now digital DAB+ is in the starting blocks: Luxembourg has launched the ‘Appel public’ for its first national multiplex. Unlike in the past, the country is not a pioneer, but a latecomer. While our Belgian and German neighbours have long been setting up new digital radio networks in parallel with the tried-and-tested FM operation, DAB radio silence has prevailed in the Grand Duchy. DAB stands for Digital Audio Broadcasting and, according to the EU, the DAB+ version will one day completely replace FM. The ‘Service des médias, de la connectivité et de la politique numérique’ (SMC) has now launched the official tender for the national DAB+ multiplex on channel 7D.

4EVER49 Radio can now be received better via DAB+ in the provinces of Gelderland and Utrecht. The radio station has rented additional capacity for this purpose. 4EVER49 RADIO already broadcasts nationwide on DAB+ via MTVNL's network in the Netherlands on channel 7D. Since this network cannot be received well in all parts of the Netherlands, the radio station has decided to rent extra capacity from regional lots. This had already happened in the provinces of North Brabant/Limburg (channel 7C), North Holland/Flevoland (channel 8B) and Friesland (channel 5A). Recently, the radio station has also been improved in the provinces of Utrecht and Gelderland via channel 12B.

On 1 September, Radio Sunnmøre launches its own DAB channel 24 hours a day. Next year, in 2025, Radio Sunnmøre will celebrate 40 years on the air. In the beginning, it was a small local radio station that broadcast a few hours in Ålesund, but in recent years Radio Sunnmøre has broadcast 73 hours a week on FM and DAB throughout Sunnmøre. However, the local radio station has shared frequencies with two other radio stations, Radio Newlife and Ptro (formerly Radio Nordvest). Following requests from listeners, Radio Sunnmøre is now expanding its broadcasting area. ‘We have received so much feedback from our listeners in recent years that we should have our own channel. So we are now investing in this and have prepared a new broadcasting schedule to fill all the hours,’ says General Manager Ragnhild Kristine Vartdal Espelund.

The West Bohemian company RTI cz plans to significantly improve the coverage of its programme offer in the capital and its surroundings. The operator has said that it would like to broadcast from the former Spartakiada stadium with a power of up to 10 kW. The transmitter will be part of its nationwide network. "We have built a brand new professional 14 m high truss mast at the new site of Strahov stadium, which replaced the one located at the Evžen Rošický stadium. This is an important mast for our company and we are counting on it to cover part of the territory of the capital with FM and DAB signal. The station is equipped with Kathrein antennas and Rohde & Schwarz FM and DAB transmitters," said Andrea Jančová, RTI cz's communications manager.

Public local broadcasters have held their broadcasting licences for several months. Commercial broadcasters could apply for the broadcasting licence later. Regulator National Digital Infrastructure Inspectorate (RDI) recently started issuing broadcasting licences to commercial parties. Some of the requested licences were rejected, while others were under further investigation before a final verdict was given by the regulator. All licences issued have a term of six years and are valid until mid-2030. The overview of issued licences by allotment posted by RDI on its website shows that several commercial parties have received new broadcasting licences for local DAB+ in the past week.

From next year, new DAB+ receivers will have better audio and text alerts in crisis situations. The current standard for alerts is called AAS (Alarm Annoucement Switching) and was introduced in 2020. In a crisis situation, receivers will switch to the station responsible for crisis information and the screen will also provide short text information. DAB+ also allows for the creation of temporary radio channels in crisis situations, which was used during the Brisbane floods in 2011. Over the past two years, the new Automatic Safety Alert (ASA) standard has been developed by WorldDAB and Digitalradio Deutschland in co-operation with chip manufacturer Frontier Smart Technologies and electronics manufacturers such as Technisat and JVC Kenwood. Among other things, receivers with ASA can be switched on automatically in emergency situations.

WorldDAB and Digitalradio Deutschland e.V. are proud to announce the launch of the DAB+ Automatic Safety Alert (ASA) System after two years of intensive cooperation. This groundbreaking innovation in DAB+ Digital Radio technology aims to protect the public in emergency situations by providing reliable safety alerts WITHOUT requiring an Internet connection. Listeners will benefit from a system that alerts them even if their mobile phone or Internet connection goes down. The ASA works automatically in the background, can be locally adjusted according to each location and is highly resilient thanks to the robust DAB+ radio broadcast network. Worldwide publication of the new standard will take place shortly, with initial trials scheduled for the IFA in Berlin and at the nationwide Warntag in Germany in September. By the first half of 2025, new generations of DAB+ radios will support the ASA standard.

Ofcom, the radio industry regulator, has announced they are awarding a DAB multiplex licence for the Ashford area to Ashford DAB - the joint venture between Radio Ashford - Ashford's not-for-profit community radio station, Nation Broadcasting and Kent Capacity Company. The DAB service will give Ashford its own DAB service for the first time and enable Radio Ashford to be heard on DAB in addition to FM and online. Gregory Watson, Director of Kent Capacity Co, said: “We are excited to be working with Radio Ashford and Nation Broadcasting to bring small scale DAB to Ashford & Dungeness. Our experience through MuxCo and MuxNet of building and operating countywide and also small-scale multiplexes, as well as working with local partners, has been unique in the UK - helping small operators to become part of the DAB family and enabling many small radio stations to broadcast for the first time."

Founded in 2012 and based in Lorient, Jaime Radio is a relative newcomer to the Category B radio landscape. With a single FM frequency, it has opted for hyperlocal coverage. It is now the No. 1 radio station between Quimperlé and Vannes and from Pontivy to Lorient on France’s northwest coast. The station’s future lies in its proximity. “We’ve turned our weakness into a strength,” explains Jean-Philippe Olivieri, president of Jaime Radio. The challenge for Olivieri: How can the station expand beyond its home territory? Like many others, Jaime Radio is banking on DAB+ and has obtained six broadcasting authorizations for several towns in Brittany. But there’s no question of Jaime Radio seeking frequencies in other regions, as it wants to retain its local radio station identity. And to develop the audience, it believes the recipe will be simple: Be at the service of listeners and advertisers.

The North Rhine-Westphalia State Media Act stipulates that the Ministerpräsident allocates transmission capacities for broadcasting. By administrative act dated 28 June 2024, Westdeutscher Rundfunk Köln (WDR) was allocated the transmission capacity for a digital multiplex in the DAB+ standard (channel 9A) for programme use for state-wide radio broadcasting. This has only now been made public. As reported, WDR plans to broadcast the regional versions of WDR4 and selected WDR2 programmes via this second multiplex, which will ultimately be state-wide. Freed-up capacity in the first mux (channel 11D) will allow bit rates to be increased there. The start of transmission of the second coverage is - as of now - planned for the turn of the year 2024/25. Test transmissions on channel 9A have already been observed.