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Italy notifies Brussels of the amendment to the Electronic Communications Code to extend the obligation to equip connected vehicles with FM/DAB+ radio. IP reception via Bluetooth will no longer be sufficient: all new models must also allow analogue and digital broadcast listening. This measure aims to close loopholes in the automotive sector and ensure universal access to terrestrial radio. With notification no. 2025/0550/IT sent to the European Commission on 1 October, the Ministry of Enterprise and Made in Italy (MIMIT) lays the foundations for the amendment of Article 98 of the Electronic Communications Code, proposing the obligation to equip all new vehicles — even those equipped only with connected infotainment systems — with receivers capable of tuning into analogue (FM) and digital terrestrial radio broadcast services (DAB+).

DAB+ listening in GfK Radio 360 Survey 6 showed that ARN stations are well listened to in Sydney and Melbourne while some of Nova’s new offerings are still finding their feet. Nova’s smooth stations in Adelaide, Brisbane and Perth are still the favourites in those cities. In Sydney, CADA is still No 1 with other ARN stations KIIS Australia and KIIS 90s also with more than 100K cume audience.

On 9 October, Dutch Guild organised a meeting at the media center of regional broadcaster NH Media in Hilversum, the Netherlands. Dutch Guild brings together multimedia professionals and organizes networking events several times a year, each focusing on a current technical topic. The aim is to exchange knowledge and experience by inviting guests who can tell a compelling story. This time, the focus was “Open-Source Broadcast.” Among the speakers was Yoran Kipping from Red Bee Media in Hilversum, who has also been closely involved with the local broadcaster ZFM in Zoetermeer for many years. He spoke about open-source broadcast in the field of DAB+ and reflected on developments from 2010 to the present, particularly in the Netherlands. The hall was filled with around 120 interested guests.

NOVA Entertainment has the launched a new DAB+ station called Nova All Stars dedicated to celebrating the world’s biggest names in music. It debuts in Adelaide with a residency from Taylor Swift. From October 13, listeners can enjoy wall-to-wall Taylor: her greatest hits, fan favourites, and a spotlight on her brand-new album, The Life of a Showgirl and the chance to win a copy of the album too. NOVA Entertainment’s Head of Music – Nova Network, Scott Baker-Smith, said: “We’ve always wanted a station that isn’t just pop-up radio, but dedicated to the artists who shape not just the music we hear on Nova, but our lives. Launching Nova All Stars on DAB+ and streaming – and doing it with the world’s biggest star following the launch of her new album – couldn’t be more fitting.”

Following the conclusion of the tender process for regional DAB+ transmission capacity in the Münsterland region (channel 10D, 864 CU), the State Media Authority of North Rhine-Westphalia recently announced the applicants. The six local radio broadcasting associations from the region are applying for digital distribution. Applications have also been received from: Radio 21 GmbH & Co. KG (‘The Wolf’); Metropol FM GmbH (‘Metropol FM’); Antenne Niedersachsen GmbH & Co. KG (‘Antenne Schlager’); Two platform providers also want to use the capacity: Media Broadcast GmbH; and Uplink Network GmbH. This concludes the regional tender process as part of the state-wide DAB+ expansion concept in North Rhine-Westphalia.

Digital audio continues to grow: according to the latest findings of the new Audio Trends survey published on 9 October by the media authorities, the digitisation rate now stands at 78 per cent. A total of 51 million people use digital radio programmes – that is more than three quarters of all radio listeners. This represents a further increase on the previous year (2024: 75 per cent). More than 23 million people use DAB+ within four weeks, with a daily audience of around 13 million listeners (up 4 percentage points). The average listening time here is 156 minutes per day. Currently, 40 per cent of households have at least one DAB+ device. The prevalence of DAB+ car radios is also increasing, now reaching around a quarter of the population aged 14 and above.

The Corsican Federation of Community Radio Stations brought its member stations together in Cervioni to discuss an issue that is raising questions among community radio stations: the transition to DAB+. ARCOM (the French Regulatory Authority for Audiovisual and Digital Communication) launched a consultation and a call for contributions, which the Federation's partner radio stations followed via videoconference before meeting in Cervioni to discuss this fundamental change, which is scheduled to officially begin in January 2028. During this meeting in Cervioni, the FCRA radio stations jointly assessed how to approach the technical and financial aspects of the DAB+ rollout in Corsica.

Several months ago, Deutschlandradio announced plans to expand its first national DAB+ network with 12 transmission sites by 2025. In recent weeks, three additional transmission sites have indeed gone online. The Haardtkopf transmitter in Hunsrück, for example, was relaunched at the beginning of October. The second new transmission site in Eberswalde in Brandenburg acts as a ‘booster’. The first national multiplex was already receivable here from Berlin, but indoor reception was rather poor. With a transmission power of 5 kW, reception is now perfect indoors as well. The third new location has been online since the beginning of September. This is the Neustrelitz transmitter in the south of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, which also improves indoor reception or makes it possible for the first time.

Weekly audio listening in the United Kingdom remains strong, albeit varied between age and gender. That’s the key takeaway from RAJAR’s Summer 2025 audio survey, known across Britain as “MIDAS.” The Summer 2025 wave of MIDAS finds that the weekly reach for audio consumption that is solely listened to and not viewed remains “very high” with 55 million adults — or 96% of the UK population (adults 15+) doing so in a week. Listeners spend on average 28.9 hours a week engaging in their favorite audio type. The total number of weekly hours listened to audio is around 1.6 billion; this has increased by 7% since MIDAS Spring 2023. Audio listening is defined as on-demand music, podcasts, owned music, audiobooks and live radio. And, live radio dominates.

Graham Dixon writes: In this column, I have not written much about DAB+, but it’s worth highlighting its continuing expansion across Europe and beyond. Looking around Europe, the situation continues to be quite encouraging. Things are finally moving forward in Ireland and Portugal, with trials underway. Austria has massively increased the number of stations on DAB+, while Switzerland stopped FM broadcasting at the end of last year. Meanwhile, regarding functionality, the Germans have introduced an Automatic Safety Alert system, which can deliver warnings without needing online connectivity. It all sounds really positive! So, I was pleased to speak to Jacqueline Bierhorst, president of WorldDAB...