News

The Conseil supérieur de l'audiovisuel has decided to award the C11 DAB+ community network covering the whole of the Wallonia-Brussels Federation. This is the last network that was not allocated in the 2019 global frequency plan. It was put out to tender again on 20 December 2023. During the procedure, five applications were submitted to the CSA, but only the applications from RTL Belgium SA for the "Radio Contact Max" project and Radio Maria Wallonie SPRL for the "Radio Maria" project were deemed compliant. After a period of in-depth examination of the two applications, the CSA College chose the Radio Contact Max project and awarded it the C11 Network.

Radio broadcasters are eagerly awaiting the announcement of the list of applicants for regionalised DAB+ multiplexes in North Rhine-Westphalia. Up to 16 million inhabitants could be reached after network expansion. On 2 July, Medienanstalt NRW announced that 53 applications had been received from radio broadcasters and four platform providers had applied. Audio Media Service (AMS) from Bielefeld, Media Broadcast from Cologne and UPLINK Network from Düsseldorf have confirmed their participation in the tender. Media Broadcast and UPLINK applied as platform operators for five regional networks, AMS for Ostwestfalen-Lippe.

Belgium's French-language radio landscape is about to welcome a new voice with the imminent launch of Radio Contact Max, an innovative station dedicated specifically to adult listeners aged 35 and over. The Conseil supérieur de l'audiovisuel (CSA) recently awarded RTL Belgium the C11 DAB+ Network, covering the whole of the Wallonia-Brussels Federation, to establish Radio Contact Max. The station will stand out for its music programming specially designed for adults aged 35 and over, with new programmes and new personalities. RTL Belgium is thus consolidating its presence in the Belgian French-language radio landscape by extending the Radio Contact experience to DAB+.

Star FM Maximum Rock - Germany's successful rock radio network is continuing its expansion course and can now be received via DAB+ in four additional federal states. Star FM Maximum Rock is taking over the previous Femotion Radio programme slots in Lower Saxony, Bremen, Hamburg and Schleswig-Holstein. Star FM Maximum Rock, which had previously been successful in Berlin, Brandenburg, Franconia and Saxony, had already expanded its technical reach by 18 million people in April with the launch via DAB+ in North Rhine-Westphalia. Star FM Maximum Rock is operated by Rockworld Digital GmbH, a joint venture between Star FM GmbH & Co. KG and Femotion GmbH, a subsidiary of Teutocast GmbH.

The Bavarian digital radio project ART (Announcement Radio Toolbox) has concluded its test broadcasts. Over the past 14 months, under the leadership of Bayerische Medien Technik (bmt) and together with the Bavarian Regulatory Authority for New Media (BLM), Mediaschool Bayern, Bayerische Lokal-Radioprogramme (BLR) and Bayern Digital Radio (BDR), the linking of different DAB radio programmes using DAB announcements has been tested. The project was funded by the Bavarian State Chancellery. The project says: "We would like to thank all listeners for their dedicated participation in the project evaluation and for all the great feedback on the programmes with their different musical colours, which were previously rarely represented on the radio."

Australian radio has grown its audience to 81% of the population and is the number one choice for in-car listening, according to Infinite Dial 2024 Australia released today by Commercial Radio & Audio (CRA) and Edison Research. The 8th annual report was presented at a webinar by Edison Research president Larry Rosin and CRA chief commercial officer Jo Dick. Mr Rosin said: “The Infinite Dial 2024 Australia study demonstrates the strong global position of the Australian audio industry, with robust engagement across different platforms, including traditional AM/FM/DAB+ radio, online radio, and podcasts. These findings underscore the industry's ability to adapt and innovate, providing diverse and compelling audio content for listeners.”

The Czech Telecommunications Office's (ČTÚ) rejection of the allocation of additional frequencies for terrestrial digital radio broadcasting DAB+ beyond the recent auction will not be so clear. The authority admits that additional local and community transmitters could be created in the future. "The Authority expects the construction and development of the national and regional broadcast networks in line with the development criteria set out in the allocations and a consequent increase in the number of DAB+ receivers among listeners. In the future, following an assessment of development, the Authority will look at the possibility of local and community transmitters as suggested in the public consultation," the CTU said in its May monitoring report.

The management of the ANTENNE BAYERN GROUP, one of the leading radio and audio companies in Germany, was expanded today. Guy Fränkel, already a successful Managing Director of ROCK ANTENNE, will join Felix Kovac as an additional Managing Director with responsibility for the strategic direction and further development of the station group. Michael Tenbusch, Chairman of the Shareholders' Meeting, emphasises the strategic importance of this personnel decision: "In Guy Fränkel, we are gaining a leader who not only knows the radio landscape inside out, but is also actively shaping the digital transformation of our industry. His appointment is a clear signal that the ANTENNE BAYERN GROUP wants to actively develop the radio and audio world in Bavaria and Germany."

This technical workshop will provide broadcasters and other media professionals with an update on the latest DAB+ developments. The Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union (ABU), the Arab States Broadcasting Union (ASBU) and WorldDAB will be organising and hosting a series of online workshops titled “DAB+ Digital Radio – Technical Workshop: New Developments in DAB+ Systems.” The workshops will run from Tuesday, July 23, to Thursday, July 25, with daily sessions from 09:00-10:30 BST / 08:00-09:30 UTC / 16:00-17:30 MYT. This technical workshop aims to provide broadcasters and media professionals with updates on the latest developments in DAB+ systems. The workshop will be divided into three parts: The Business Case, Getting Started and Building Out the Networks – International Updates.

Private and public broadcasters in the northern German state of Schleswig-Holstein outlined a plan to migrate fully from the FM band. Under the plan, by mid-2031, broadcasters will end their analog FM broadcasts in favor of digital broadcasting via DAB+ and internet streaming. State Minister for Digitization and Media Policy Dirk Schrödter announced the agreement at the “DAB+ im Dialog” event in Berlin at the end of June 2024. “… Radio must face the digital future,” he said. “In Schleswig-Holstein, it is our aim as a pioneering region to shape the path to the digital future, including the migration from FM to DAB+ together with all the players in the state —public and private, large and small broadcasters.”