Australian Broadcasting Corporation submission to The Australian Government Technologies for digital radio services in regional Australia Discussion paper December 2010 ABC submission on digital radio technologies for regional Australia Executive Summary The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is committed to digital radio in Australia. Digital radio provides listeners better sound, clearer reception, easier tuning, the ability to pause and rewind live radio, information in text and pictures, an electronic program guide and more radio stations to choose from. The Corporation is committed to its services, including digital radio services, being available to all Australians, who own and pay for those services, regardless of where they live. The notion of equitable access is enshrined in the ABC’s Act and Charter and is the basis on which it creates content across its many platforms. Accordingly, the Corporation believes that digital radio should be rolled out to regional areas as soon as possible to ensure equity of services and to provide the public, broadcasters, retailers and the automotive industry certainty to invest in the platform. The ABC considers that DAB+ in VHF Band III should be the primary platform for digital radio throughout Australia. DAB/DAB+ is the only proven digital radio technology with widespread international support for which receivers are readily and widely available. It presents the most viable technology for coverage of all metropolitan areas, regional centres and towns in Australia in the short-to-medium term. 14MHz in VHF Band III is inadequate for DAB+ local services in Sydney and adjacent markets (Wollongong, Central Coast and Newcastle), Melbourne and adjacent markets (Geelong, Bendigo and Ballarat) and Brisbane and adjacent markets (Gold Coast, Sunshine Coast and Ipswich). Additional VHF Band III spectrum needs to be reserved for digital radio. Suggestions of commercial and national broadcasters sharing a single digital radio ensemble in some markets using only 14MHz is unacceptable to the ABC as it would reduce either the quality or number of ABC services provided within that ensemble. The ABC would support further investigation of DRM30 and DRM+ to provide infill services/ wide area coverage to areas that will not be economically reached by DAB+; VHF Band I spectrum should be reserved for the possible future use of DRM+ for digital radio The Corporation does not believe that the various other technologies listed in the discussion paper (L-Band DAB/DAB+, satellite radio, IBOC) are viable as a primary platform for digital radio in Australia. The ABC believes that the current legislative definition of enhancements to digital radio programs to text and still images should be extended to include animation and video clips of a short 1 duration, for example animated weather maps. For emergency broadcasting, these ‘enhancements’ could prove crucial in informing ABC audiences. Introduction The ABC welcomes the opportunity to respond to the Australian Government’s discussion paper on technologies for digital radio services in regional Australia and to contribute to the formulation of policy on the future of digital radio in Australia. The Corporation commenced the broadcast of digital radio in the five mainland capital cities (Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth) in July, 2009. These digital radio broadcasts use the Digital Audio Broadcasting technology, DAB+ in VHF Band III (Channel 9A). In each capital city, the ABC shares a single DAB+ ensemble with the Special Broadcasting Service (SBS). Discussion ABC support for digital radio The ABC considers digital radio to be more than just the next generation of radio; it is an integral part of the emerging digital media landscape. Analog media is coming under increasing pressure from new technologies and platforms. Multi-channel digital broadcasting, internet streaming, peer-to-peer file sharing, media-on-demand, podcasting and an increasing range of mobile devices are breaking down the traditional limitations of conventional radio and television, providing more convenient access and specialised content to increasingly fragmented and interactive audiences. Digital radio is far better placed to meet increased audience expectations and offer much more than the relatively passive listening experience of traditional analog radio. The ABC has maintained a long-standing commitment to digital radio and has played a pivotal role in its development and introduction in Australia. Following a successful implementation of digital radio in the five mainland capital cities in 2009, the Corporation is well-placed to be an integral part of a successful roll-out to regional Australia, offering audiences the enhanced features and increased programming choices that digital radio can provide. Digital radio’s benefits and content proposition Digital radio gives listeners better sound, clearer reception, easier tuning (by station name), the ability to pause and rewind live radio, program-related and other information in text and pictures, and an electronic program guide which lets listeners search for and record programs much like digital television. However, one of the main attractions of digital radio for audiences is access to new, different and compelling content and it is the opportunity to provide this type of content that underpins the ABC’s commitment to the platform. Along with the digital simulcasts of its five analog radio services – ABC Local Radio, ABC Radio National, ABC Classic FM, ABC NewsRadio and triple j – the ABC also currently provides five digital- 2 only radio services ABC Dig Music, ABC Jazz, ABC Country, ABC Grandstand Digital and ABC Extra. The ABC will launch a sixth digital only radio service in 2011; triple j Unearthed. ABC Dig Music provides alternative, strongly Australian, diverse music – rock, pop, soul, folk, etc – for 30-45 year olds, an audience demographic which currently does not listen to ABC Radio as much as some others. Many of them were triple j listeners but have out-grown that station’s music; they are also not interested in classical music and are not drawn to ABC talk stations in significant numbers (particularly at the younger end of the demographic) and so have nowhere else to go. An alternative music service of this sort is also not provided by commercial or community radio in any consistent way. ABC Jazz and ABC Country are also distinctive and strongly Australian services, responding to two major niche audiences currently under-served by radio generally. They build upon the ABC’s long- standing reputation and expertise in the area, in both radio programming and commercial CD/DVD production. ABC Grandstand Digital capitalises on one of ABC Radio’s greatest strengths; it is the primary digital destination for radio sport, broadcasting all major ABC sports coverage as well as additional sport not found on ABC Local Radio, such as uninterrupted international cricket, A League soccer, continuous coverage of the Australian Tennis Open and alternative football codes. Currently a part-time service, the ABC aims to develop this service with more coverage as well as sports current affairs and analysis, as resources become available. Given the popularity of sport on ABC Local Radio, ABC Grandstand Digital considers it to be a positive driver for digital radio uptake. ABC Extra is an occasional service (“pop-up station”) used for special event broadcasts; these range from a single day through to several weeks and have included such things as the 40th anniversaries of the 1969 moon landing and the Woodstock music festival, the 10th anniversary of East Timor’s independence referendum, coverage of the Melbourne International Arts Festival and the Sydney Writers’ Festival, and triple j Unearthed during Australian Music Month. It is a highly flexible and innovative way of providing listeners with new and different content which may not sit easily on other ABC services. These new digital services have also enabled the ABC to better meet the needs of its existing audiences. For example, the digital version of ABC Classic FM provides more classical music instead of jazz programs which are on ABC Jazz. Similarly, the digital broadcast of ABC Local Radio provides general programming rather than cricket coverage, which is broadcast on ABC Grandstand Digital. In 2011, ABC Radio will also launch triple j Unearthed as a full-time digital radio station devoted to new music from the triplejunearthed.com website. The station will be the only 100% Australian radio offering in the country, playing music solely from unsigned and undiscovered artists from metropolitan and regional areas around Australia. It will reflect Australia’s vibrant and thriving music scene and offer airplay to many artists that have never been exposed on the airwaves. The triplejunearthed.com website currently hosts around 60,000 tracks from 27, 000 separate artists. Artists that have previously risen to national prominence from triple j Unearthed include Missy Higgins, Grinspoon, Washington and Art vs Science. 3 Commercial radio in Australia has also enthusiastically embraced new, digital only radio content with a range of content offerings; most metropolitan stations now provide digital multi-channels. There are now, for example, more than 40 digital radio stations available in Sydney and Melbourne. There will be more once the community stations begin digital broadcasting. The future of radio is digital Digital radio has been enthusiastically adopted by capital-city audiences. It has far exceeded initial industry expectations, with nearly 200,000 receivers sold and well over 500,000 listeners in the first year. Better sound and reception, enhanced features and new stations have all been key drivers of this take-up. The ABC believes that the long-term future of radio is digital. In a converged environment where all media is digital, it would be short-sighted to leave radio trapped in an analog environment and costly to leave it straddling both spectrums. Moreover, the digital experience has made audiences more demanding - radio will fall short of listeners’ expectations if it cannot offer the easy access to specialised content of other digital media.