FM Radio and Smartphones Go Together in World’s Most Populous Nation

New Smartphones in India Must Include FM Radio.

FM radio is no longer found on smartphones these days. However, the Indian IT Ministry has issued an advisory that states mobile phone makers must ensure that FM radio is available on all smartphones. All smartphones that are to be sold in India should mandatorily have the FM radio enabled by default. With this move, the Indian government will make radio services accessible to people residing in rural and remote areas. 

Moreover, FM radio, being a low-cost and reliable mode of communication, can be helpful in making emergency announcements. The Ministry highlighted the significance of the vast network of FM transmitters and FM radio available in India which played a crucial role in the country’s efforts to combat the Covid-19 pandemic.

Another 5G Broadcast Test in the Czech Republic

The Czech national transmission company CRA has started the second phase of testing 5G broadcast technology undertaken from two Prague transmitters – Zizkov and Strahov. Broadcasting will be carried out within a single-frequency network, in the case of Zizkov, with the same power as currently broadcast in DVB-T2. The purpose of the test is to verify signal coverage in Prague and the possibility of mobile reception of TV broadcasts and the setting of various modulation schemes to ensure optimal broadcast parameters.

5G Half of Mobile Subscriptions Worldwide by 2027

5G mobile subscriptions stood at 1.7 billion at the end of 2022, accounting for 18 per cent of total mobile subscriptions worldwide, according to data and analytics company GlobalData. The figure is forecast to rise to 5.5 billion, occupying a share of 48 per cent of total mobile subscriptions by 2027.

DAB Transition in Norway Contributes Radio Fast Losing Listeners

Problems for public service and national commercial broadcaster after leaving FM.

The report Mediebarometer 2022 by Statistics Norway (SSB), which puts numbers on the dramatic changes in the media audience in recent years, especially regarding radio and television in Norway. Norwegians now use more than two hours per day (2:07) to listen to the radio and other audio media. Here the radio has the smaller share of 52 minutes, a decrease from 1991 by about 50% (-54 min). Only 49% of the population listens to the radio (DAB, FM and Internet). In 1991, the share for radio was 71%. The percentage of youth and young adults who listen to the radio continues to fall. Four out of ten of the population listen to DAB radio on an average day, despite DAB receivers being found in 8 out of 10 households.

A previously feared fiasco is thus confirmed. When the three national broadcasters left FM, many of its listeners chose to switch to platforms other than as planned; DAB. This means that Norwegian radio is losing listeners at a faster rate than in many other countries including its Nordic neighbours. This is contrary to the objective of replacing FM with DAB in 2017.

DAB Radio in Sweden - Previously Condemned and Dismissed, Back on the Agenda

Digital radio report commissioned by the government faces harsh criticism.

The parliamentary public service broadcasting investigation has now been appointed with Göran Hägglund (KD) as chairman. According to the government's directive, the committee must, among several other things, investigate whether Sveriges Radio (SR) can expand a national DAB network by its own budget funds. This directive is characterized by the mapping and analysis of digital radio development in Europe, which the Authority for Press, Radio and Television (MPRT) carried out on behalf of the government in 2022. In addition, the "radio industry" - i.e. Viaplay and Bauer - exert pressure on the matter.

British Radio Will Be Must-Carry Online on Smart Speakers

New media bill will dramatically tackle online challenges 

The government claims the draft Media Bill will enable public service broadcasters to unleash their potential to grow, produce more top quality British content and invest in new technologies to keep viewers tuning in amid fierce competition from subscription-based online platforms. It marks the next step in the government’s plan to modernise decades-old broadcasting legislation. New reforms have been added to protect the position of UK radio on smart speakers as listeners increasingly move away from AM and FM stations in favour of internet-based services.

Smart speaker platforms – such as Google and Amazon – will be required by law to ensure access to all licenced UK radio stations, from major national stations to the smallest community stations. Platforms will be banned from charging stations for being hosted on their services or overlaying their own adverts over the top of those stations’ programmes.

Austria Opens UHF-Band For 5G Broadcasting

A step forward for radio and TV broadcasting on mobile networks 

The Finance Ministry has issued the revision of Austria’s Radio Frequency Regulation which will allow for 5G Broadcast transmissions in the lower UHF Band (470-694 MHz). This band will now be shared by both DVB-T2 and 5G Broadcast.   

The Austrian broadcast network provider ORS is significantly involved in the enhancement of the new 5G Broadcast transmission standard which enables linear broadcast content to be distributed directly to mobile devices such as smartphones or tablets – without Wi-Fi or internet. The ORS is driving research and development forward in Austria to ensure that 5G Broadcast transmission behaves in a similarly efficient manner to DVB-T2. 

FM Radio Still Going Strong in the Netherlands

FM Retained in the Netherlands - Until at Least 2035 

The Dutch will stick to the broadcasts of national commercial radio stations via FM until at least 2035. This is evident from the announcement of the auction procedure of national commercial FM and DAB frequencies by Minister Micky Adriaansens (VVD) of Economic Affairs and Climate.

According to the minister, the transition from FM to digital infrastructures, including DAB+, is progressing too slowly, which means that switching off FM is not realistic before 2035. Research by Dialogic also shows that there is no other valuable use for the FM frequencies and there is no global visibility. for any use other than broadcast radio.

Spain again testing 5G Broadcast

Pilot project for radio and tv on mobile without consuming data

Cellnex Telecom has launched, together with Rohde Schwarz, Ateme and Qualcomm Technologies, a pilot to test 5G Broadcast emissions. 5G Broadcast will allow viewers to receive linear TV and radio content on their mobile phones with low battery consumption, without the need to consume data and with quality coverage.The contents of the test broadcasts that can be accessed via mobile include Canal 24h, La1 and Radio5 of the public service broadcaster RTVE.

The tests, which began in mid-January, have been carried out during the ISE international audiovisual fair and will end after the MWC Barcelona 2023 that will take place at Fira Gran Via de l'Hospitalet from February 27 to March 2. In this way, throughout seven weeks, users can access the content through their mobile devices compatible with the 5G Broadcast signal.

FM Network in Germany Deploys SmartFM AI

New AI technology for transmitter power and carbon savings 

This rollout, representing 800 FM transmitters by the end of 2022, is a major step towards the decarbonization of FM broadcast in Germany,  says the French company WorldCast Systems.

SmartFM design enables broadcasters that use its transmitters to reduce energy consumption by up to 40%. There are approximately 2,000 Ecreso FM transmitters in the country, nearly half operated by Uplink.

FM RADIO SECURED FOR ANOTHER DECADE IN NORWAY

Parliament settlement opens for local radio survival opportunities. Another setback for DAB stakeholders.

The government coalition Labour and Center Party together with Socialist Venstre have secured a political majority for local and community radio stations do not need to apply for a new license to broadcast on FM but that these are extended directly without a new application process in 2025. This is good news for those who today broadcast and listen to local radio whose survival depends on not being dependent on a costly transition to the DAB system. This applies to both commercial and non-profit local radio.

In connection with the proposal for the state budget, it was proposed that there would be a new round of applications for community radio in the period 2027 to 2031. From 2017, local radio has had its permits directly extended twice, most recently for the period 2022 to 2026, and local radio has been heard on their argument that a renewed search process would be labor-intensive and provide little predictability. The concessions, valid until 2032, will now be distributed directly to the local radio stations that wish to continue broadcasting on FM.

DRM+ Digital Radio on FM Band Now Launched in Copenhagen.

A multinational project might challenge DAB and put new life into terrestrial

broadcasting.

The licence for the test broadcasts runs until August 2022, which can be extended to August 2023. The frequency allocated is 86.5 MHz and with a bandwidth of 200 kHz, which makes room for two DRM signal. Each DRM signal has a capacity of 186.4 kbps and accommodates three audio channels and multimedia services, so for the 200 kHz a total of six digital radio stations can thus be broadcast.