Major Participants Drop Out of Vienna DAB+ Test
The planned DAB+ test for Vienna and environs, originally scheduled for the middle of April, has now been pushed back to the end of May. Two important participants, public broadcaster ORF, and the national commercial broadcaster Kronehit, have dropped out of the test, according to radio.nl. ORF had plans to test a youth channel FM21 / Ö3Plus.
The remaining participants in the test are rumored to include Radio Maria, ERF Lounge FM, Radio Arabelle, and the German station Absolute Hot. The management of Kronehit made a sudden ‘180 degree’ turn; DAB+ is a full, frontal attack on FM. It would only be good for the wallet of the electronics industry, as listeners will have to buy a new radio to receive DAB+. Kronehit is the only national commercial station in Austria, now seeing a profit after 10 years of operation. A nationwide DAB+ network will give them 15 new competitors.
