Another DAB setback. Forced shutdowns are seen as endangering private broadcasters.
The National Council - the upper house of parliament - has adopted a proposal for new FM licenses from 2027. This is intended to prevent the planned shutdown of analogue radio. The council adopted a proposal from the transport committee by 124 votes to 62, with 8 abstentions. The proposal called on the Federal Council (government) to refrain from shutting down FM broadcasts on December 31, 2026. Instead, the current FM radio licenses should be extended or new licenses should be put out to tender from January 1, 2027, if necessary through an auction.
The transport committee argued that the forced shutdown endangers private radio stations and would lead to a shift of listeners to foreign stations. The SRG (the public broadcaster) had already lost 25 percent of its listeners after the FM shutdown at the end of 2024 – such a decline would be “devastating” for advertising-funded private radio stations. (Read more below)