FEBRUARY 2007 • ISSUE 2 REACHING OUT TO THE WO R LD D M B C O mm UNITY 2007... The Year Ahead I would like to take this opportunity tors are currently finalising and deliver their content. DAB and to wish you all a very Happy New introducing digital radio standards. DMB are well placed to provide Year. 2006 proved to be a very the right solutions for all business important year for DAB technology Looking forward to the year ahead models, whether free to air or and for the Forum itself. Not only I anticipate that the DAB family for subscription services. With new have we changed our trading name of standards will continue to European frequency plans taking to the WorldDMB Forum but we expand across the globe. As effect, rollout of DAB and mobile TV also saw DAB technology emerge more countries adopt the addi- services in China and the continued into the world of Multimedia tional audio codec, and with well success of DMB in Korea, the following the launch of the world’s established Mobile TV and new Project Office, the Steering Board first commercial DMB mobile TV multimedia applications available and our Committees are sure to service. To add to this march of via DAB technology, we expect the be kept busy. The world of digital progress the Forum announced number of receivers available to broadcasting will continue to in November 2006 the adoption increase even more than its current develop and WorldDMB aims to of an additional audio codec, number, which is already in excess remain at the forefront of these adding to the DAB family of of 400. changes. standards and designed specific- ally for highly efficient digital radio 2007 promises to be a challenging Quentin Howard broadcasting. This has been year with radio and TV broad- President of the WorldDMB Forum meet with a huge interest from casters continually looking at new Europe and Asia where regula- platforms and efficient ways to Korea Plans for Country Wide DMB Services The Korean Ministry of Informa- services will be offered in major TV services, which they did via DMB tion and Communication (MIC) cities across the country beginning technology. Since its deployment in have recently announced their in March. Until now, DMB services December 2005 over 3 million DMB future plans for the roll out of DMB have only been available in the devices have been sold, making across Korea starting in the first half Seoul Metropolitan area. it the most successful Mobile TV of 2007. In February, the MIC will rollout in the world thus far. select regional broadcasters to offer Korea was the first country in the DMB services. These additional world to launch commercial mobile Kelly Griffiths WorldDMB Beijing Market DAB leads radio Developments. Latest in the in the UK. Read Read about it receiver market. about it on p. 3. on p. 6. On p. 9 -10. 2 Advertising on DLS Text Commercial Broadcasters in the UK publication of a Radio Advertising standard” for sales that will further have taken their first commercial Bureau (www.rab.co.uk) report “Multi establish confidence with advertisers bookings for text information (DLS) Platform Radio” which showed that in text information. to run alongside traditional audio 69% of DAB Digital Radio listeners advertising. Capital FM London, used the text display on the radio Trials continue with other forms of Choice FM London, Planet Rock, to get extra information, and 42% had visualisation of radio, including various Classic fm and Virgin Radio have acted upon that information. Slideshow trials and collaborations run campaigns for clients including with receiver manufacturers to bring Lloyds Bank (banking), Orange The UK commercial radio industry receivers to market with improved (mobile telecoms), IAMS (pet foods), is now collaborating to create an display capabilities, both for Text and thelondonpaper and The Times industry wide rate-card structure Slideshows. (newspapers). The campaigns have for pricing text information, based used text either in rotation with other on the rising penetration levels of Nick Piggott programming messages, synchro- DAB Digital Radio, and the propor- Gcap Media nised to the audio adverts, or a tion of DAB receivers that have large, combination of both. Interest in text clearly readable text displays. Once advertising has risen following the established, this will create a “gold Digital Radio A Danish Fairy Tale deadlock of the chicken and egg, Our response to the listeners’ demand and we started asking ourselves what for choice of time and content was the would ever make the listeners switch launch of a broad range of specific to digital. services, exclusively designed for DAB. The content was cut and pasted from First we asked the engineers. Their our FM serviced. Packed in targeted answer was “enhanced sound quality”. and formatted digital “packages”, And we started simulcasting our it represented a “radio browsing FM channels on 256 kilobytes per service”, the listeners never had second, and launched it as CD or before: The latest news bulletin all the near-CD quality. But it didn’t sell. Then time, classical music all day long. Arts, The story of digital radio, and in we asked the creative programme culture and literature radio around the particular DAB, in Denmark is like makers what would sell. “New original clock. Children’s programmes when a well-known Danish Fairy Tale indeed. programming”, they suggested. But the kids demand it, etc. It’s all always Born in an analogue nest, grown we didn’t have the money. there. We pack it, you pick it! up as an ugly duckling between trusted and well-known FM-waves, Eventually we asked the listeners Having the content ready, our efforts DAB has now, supported by effective what they liked and disliked about focused on marketing. We launched marketing, unfolded as a graceful our programmes. We learned that the a joint marketing campaign with and beautiful swan. audience was actually very pleased the manufacturers and the retailers. with both the content and the sound ”Your personal radio - where YOU In the beginning, the broadcasters quality of our programmes. But it decide WHEN to hear WHAT”, was and the manufacturers accused each appeared that they wanted us to the slogan. Sales have doubled year other of delaying the development broadcast their favourite programmes by year, and by the end of 2006, more of digital radio. Broadcasters would at other times than we actually did. than 14% of the Danes had access not start broadcasting until cheap The listeners did not ask for more to a DAB receiver in their household, receiver equipment was available. And, channels. They just wanted their bringing Denmark to the DAB winners’ understandably, the manufacturers channel to play what they wanted, podium with more than 15 percent would not produce and market new when they wanted it! We learned that household penetration. radio sets until there was something in CHOICE and TIME were the keys to them. Consequently, the retailers had the listeners’ ears and hearts. And This is the fairy tale of DAB in Denmark. no receivers on sale, nor were there that setting the programmes, and thus any customers demanding digital the listeners, free of time was the killer Leif Lonsmann radio. We were caught in the classic application of digital radio. Danish Broadcasting Corporation 3 Digital audio broadcasting to continue in Sweden Digital audio broadcasting, DAB, broadcasting license is valid until quality, multi-channel sound and is set to continue in 2007. This has year-end 2006. Last week, the much more that clearly proves that been confirmed following agreement government announced that Swedish there is an exciting future for radio between Swedish Radio and Teracom Radio would be granted an exten- in all its forms,” says Teracom’s with regard to the conditions for the sion of the license to send digital President Bengt Broman. continuation of broadcasting in the radio (DAB) for an additional three forthcoming period. years. Following the announcement, At present, digital audio broadcasting Swedish Radio (SR) has agreed the (DAB) is transmitted on a nationwide “We believe that it is positive that terms and conditions for continued frequency in Stockholm, Gothenburg, digital audio broadcasting can continue broadcasting with Teracom. The Malmö and Älvsbyn, and potentially pending a future long-term solution agreement also provides both reaches approximately 35 percent for digital broadcasting,” says Swedish parties with a good opportunity to of the Swedish population. The new Radio’s President Peter Örn. “At further develop digital audio broad- broadcasting license offers the the same time, we will use next casting in cooperation. possibility of regional broadcasts and year to test and participate in the a trial operation for digital radio. In development of digital distribution “We are intensively monitoring conformity with the license for FM, the techniques for radio broadcasting developments within digital radio license for digital audio broadcasting together with Teracom and other technology and we have already seen will extend until December 31, 2009. players in the market.” that the standard has developed with a new, more efficient audio SVERIGES RADIO AB Digital audio broadcasting (DAB) coding called AACplus. This facili- TERACOM AB commenced in 1995 and the current tates more channels, high sound DAB leads radio in the UK A number of UK retailers are taking which particularly caught the public’s note of the decline in analogue sales imagination, including PURE’s Marshall and are cutting the products from their Edition EVOKE-1XT. New features lines completely giving DAB another such as EPG (electronic programming well deserved boost. There are now guide), Intellitext, MP3 functionality more than 300 DAB products on the and rechargeable battery packs are market with something to suit every giving the consumer more and more lifestyle from boomboxes to in-car reasons to opt for DAB over analogue and handhelds to micro systems.