DRM becoming the choice for major countries.
New analog/digital portable receivers unveiled.
In connection with the IBC Show in Amsterdam three major Asian countries - Pakistan, Indonesia and China - have made announcements indicating DRM (Digital Radio Mondiale) now is becoming the standard system for digital terrestrial broadcasting. This will probably put an end to the efforts by competing systems as DAB and HD Radio to get a major market foothold in Asia. Especially since India, world’s most populous nation, already has established nationwide DRM broadcasting. Together the population of the four countries is 3,2 billion.
The digital system DRM is used in the present frequency bands FM, medium wave and shortwave with a better geo coverage than DAB. The DAB system is not compatible with DRM.
Murtaza Solangi, Pakistan’s minister of Information and Broadcasting has confirmed the installation of a 1,000 kW DRM MW transmitter at Rawat (near Islamabad) and that work on this project will be executed soon.
Indonesia’s Ministry of Communication and Information has released a reform regulation of terrestrial radio broadcasting services that officially adopts DRM standard for broadcasting in MW, FM and VHF-III. The regulation lays out modulation parameters, frequency allocations and coverage maps for each service area, and applies to both public and commercial broadcasters, as well as to community radio stations (limited to FM band only). DRM-based digital radio services can be introduced in the medium wave (MW) and FM bands, as well as in VHF band-III, for all of Indonesia’s 18 000 islands.
According to the DRM Consortium 275 million Indonesians can soon have a new radio experience with better audio quality and more choice, Text news and, above all, an extra level of protection against disasters through DRM’s Emergency Warning Functionality (EWF).
Key Chinese authorities, the National Radio and Television Administration, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and the State Administration for Market Regulation, have issued a statement to encourage the adoption of DRM for domestic MW broadcast and provincial stations to broadcast DRM services as well. Those authorities also recommended a further strengthening of in-car audio and video digital broadcast reception, as an essential component of the country’s basic public services.
At IBC CML Microcircuits has announced the full release of their DRM1000 broadcast receiver module. CML says the DRM 1000 is the world’s lowest-cost, lowest power, and smallest sized DRM “antenna to speaker” module, containing all hardware, software, IP and patent licenses required for building a dual mode (digital and analog) DRM-capable receiver. Gospell Digital Technology, unveiled the GR-221, a portable radio with a rechargeable battery and the smaller GR-220, powered by just two AAA batteries is the world’s smallest DRM receiver. The receivers can still receive emergency alerts even when they are in sleep mode.
