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DAB switchover in doubt

Planned switchover from analogue to digital radio won't happen until 2017, according to new figures

DAB

By Jon Morgan

19th October 2011

The planned switchover from analogue to digital radio will not take place without support from the public, leading industry figures have said. And if growth in DAB radio listening continues at its current rate, a switchover won’t be able to happen until 2017 at the earliest.

The revelation came during a conference at which the BBC confirmed it would extend its DAB coverage to 97 per cent of the population, with full coverage for the entire motorway network and FM-matching coverage on the primary road network. 

Tim Davie, Director of Audio and Music at the BBC, said, “We’ve now reached a tipping point where coverage is no longer going to be an issue. We can now begin to move to inevitability.”

But, when asked if that meant a switchover wasn’t yet inevitable, he said, “I think the direction is clear, but if we’re going to get public support for a switchover, more work needs to be done.”

The Government has set three targets that must be hit before a switchover can take place:
  • Half of all radio listening must be on digital platforms
  • National digital radio must match FM coverage, currently 98 per cent of the population
  • Local digital radio must reach 90 per cent of the population
And while coverage won’t be an issue soon, the number of listeners tuning in via DAB is. For example, 20 per cent of all radio listening takes place in cars, but only two per cent of cars on the road have DAB radios. 

And while the number of digital radio listeners is growing, it’s not growing fast enough according to Digital Radio UK, which represents the interests of the digital radio industry. And the UK is not on track for the planned 2015 switchover.

Ford Ennals, Chief Executive of Digital Radio UK, said, “If we carry on at the existing rate of growth it will be 2017.” 

What do you think? Are you in favour of a switchover to digital or would you prefer the UK to stick with its analogue radio service? Tell us your thoughts below…

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16 Comments

Digital radio is not the problem

The principle of digital radio is fine, its implementation in the UK is the problem. DAB is old, discredited technology so global manufacturers are reluctant to invest in its bulk production, especially for cars.

I hope that the growing network of DAB transmittors in the UK can handle DAB+ because that is the future. Mindless bureaucracy is keeping us slogging down the wrong path.

By Dickybow on 19 October, 2011, 2:37pm

2% in 2011 - 50% by 2017 - no chance

DAB broadcasts started in 1995 and 16 years later there are 2% of cars with suitable radios. Do the math.

By cfhughes on 19 October, 2011, 2:46pm

make it standard

My latest car had DAB as a no cost option, I got it specifically for BBC radio 6. That is worth it alone in my eyes. it ought to be standard now, just as Sirius in the USA is becoming. Sometimes people need a push to adopt new technologies, otherwise we'd all be riding faster horses as Henry Ford suggested we might!

By bibbyg on 19 October, 2011, 10:20pm

no chance dab switch over

unless cars get standerd dab radeoes at no extra cost it will never switch over as most new cars bought today still hav the old style radio so it b closer to 2030 before dab is king.

By jono1982 on 20 October, 2011, 12:22am

ianonny

I have a digital radio in my new car and get all sorts of stations I never knew existed. I couldn't get them on my old FM radio so surely that's a good thing?

By Ricky_Ivan on 20 October, 2011, 9:04am

DAB+

DAB+ yes please but normal DAB is inferior with it's low bitrates (Quantity over Quality) to a better sounding FM radio,just bought a new car with FM/AM and very pleased with it.

By armac31 on 20 October, 2011, 9:32am

Big yes !

Had DAB in my car for three years and, even though live in rural North Yorkshire, get really good reception.Great to listen to Five Live and all other DAB stations with no hiss .New car comes next March and I have ordered DAB radio again .Would not be without it.

By robtt on 20 October, 2011, 10:12am

DAB its happening

Please no more "doubting " headlines.
All new cars will have DAB as standard by 2013.
The train has left the station, get on board

By jennder on 20 October, 2011, 11:50am

taxi6767

i for one will just stick with FM thanks don`t use my radio much apart from playing my own choice of music on CD`if they switch FM off then i will just not listen to my radio,i do not like to be pushed into things,we were pushed into digital tv. & i now get picture breakup which i never had with anolog tv to my mind these changes are just there for the sake of the makers of radios etc.to keep there sales going.

By taxicass on 20 October, 2011, 2:50pm

Let's just embrace DAB.

I, for one, will welcome the chance to get a DAB radio as standard in my car. All the radios in the house are DAB and give excellent reception, which I miss in the car. I have Freesat, which gives excellent digital tv, because the analogue signal was switched off in my area in April. It's a bit like any changes, you get the "I'll ignore it and it'll go away" brigade. It still amuses me that 40 years ago the change to decimalisation happened so smoothly. Nowadays, you'd get the usual complaints and stalling which would mean it would take for ever. Set a date, stick to it and tell people that's when it'll happen. The sooner the better!

By n50pap on 21 October, 2011, 1:17pm

Let's be lemmings

Yes, let's just go for it!

What's to lose, apart from... er sound quality, and the chance to lobby for a digital radio system that delivers!

By MIKELLOYD3 on 21 October, 2011, 7:08pm

Can't ignore it

I was actually one of the Channel Five retuners, and you have no idea the number of ostrich mentalities I met. Me: "may I come in to retune your TV for Channel 5?"
Joe Public : "No, don't want it"
Me: "No you don't understand it will start broadcasting and you may be unable to watch your video recorder as it uses the same channel"
Joe Public: "Don't care, don't want it"
Me: "OK sir, please sign my form saying I offered to retune and you said no"
JP: "No, don't want channel 5!"

By Shadgrind on 22 October, 2011, 9:01am

DAB is Great!

If you can get it, I personally own 5 DAB radios, including one in the car. It is annoying though driving down our high street, Hungerford as we lose reception down most of it. However on most journeys that is the only time it breaks up till we come back home. And it only really. Breaks up on the Digital One multiplex BBC is fine.

By Shadgrind on 22 October, 2011, 9:08am

runcolad

DAB quality is very poor. Rolling it out nationwide will be a disaster as it will hit everybody in the pocket and still be poor quality.
It cannot compete with FM either in quality or accessability.
It is yet another way for those involved in the industries responsible to screw the motorist yet again.
Don't let us be turkeys voting for Christmas.

By runcolad on 26 October, 2011, 5:45pm

Dab , A white elephant .

Dab has many disadvantages , High power consumption , poor sound quality , cheap and nasty decoder circuitry that goes wrong , However , if we must have it , I see no reason to stop analogue radio . I don't want it and neither does the public , it is being forced on us for reasons that are not in the public interest . Runclad summed it up in his excellent post , " Don't let us be Turkeys voting for Christmas " !!!

By Flamank on 10 November, 2011, 10:08am

Why I'm Peed off about being forced to have DAB radio

As a person who can't bear to be in room without music, I have a radio in each room of my house, including the bathroom. Being as the few radio stations that provide the music I enjoy are only trasmitted on dab, I am left with no choice but to have dab radios. This truly galls me. I am forever having to charge batteries, an extra cost, as I had to purchase several rechargeable batteries and the chargers. The radios were obviously another expense. If I could say I find listening to dab radio a more pleasing experience, I might admit that all of this was worth it, but, quite honestly I can't say my listening experience is any more enhanced. Quite the opposite as I have the aggravation of always being on edge that the batteries will run out at a crucial point (which they often times do!!!). Then there's my car. I have an AM/FM radio. Once again, more expense if I want to change it for a dab, which I would rather not. I read a newspaper article which more or less summed up my feelings about all this, and the solution they came up with is that we should, if we are unhappy with the whole dab/AM?FM issue, boycott the dab radio and at the very least, delay the changeover. As I said in my heading, I am very, very peed off about being shoved into doing something I feel is unnecessary and, at the risk of repeating myself, expensive!!

By lilylibra on 13 December, 2011, 10:23pm

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