In Switzerland, the future of FM radio after 2026 is politically secured. In December 2025, the parliament decided to continue to allow analogue broadcasting. Now, the media authority OFCOM, on behalf of the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Transport, Energy and Communications, has presented the specific framework for the allocation of FM frequencies from 2027. The step back to FM represents a major setback for the lobby that wanted, as in Norway, to completely replace FM with DAB+.
After several years of political controversy, Switzerland has decided to cancel the planned closure of FM radio. Large parts of the commercial radio industry - especially local radio stations - judged DAB+ to be an insufficient alternative to reach audiences and thus profitability. - ”For economic reasons," broadcasting company SwissMediaCast (SMC) has now returned its DAB+ license in Ticino. The provider applied for the Ticino DAB+ license in 2020 at the request of radio companies in German-speaking Switzerland. They were guaranteed continuous coverage from Basel to Chiasso. The first six of a total of eight transmitters went into operation in 2020. "The Ticino mux was initially able to fill 15 of the 18 available slots," the company said.