WorldDMB à Belfast - Inciter et persuader l'Union Européenne via l'UER

European Broadcasting Union backs digital radio switch over across Europe

London, November 10, 2010

At the EBU’s Digital Radio Conference last week in Belfast, more than 150 delegates from 60 organisations overwhelmingly endorsed an EBU New Radio Group (NRG) plan of action designed to accelerate moves towards a secure digital future for radio.

Mr Jørn Jensen, President of WorldDMB however called for the EBU to lead the European move to make radio digital, saying: “It’s time to stop talking about less mature standards, EBU needs to promote the Eureka 147 family of standards as the only option for the future of digital terrestrial broadcasting. If digital radio is to succeed, then the EBU must show their support for the DAB family, the only technology platform chosen by Germany, UK, France, Italy, Spain and the Nordic countries  as the future of digital radio. We have seen here today that internet radio is an integral part of radio’s future however it cannot offer the mass market, free-to-air benefits which DAB, DAB+ and DMB can offer. The launch of the DRM platform also depends on the success of DAB roll out in Europe”. 

The EBU’s New Radio Group’s strategic objectives over the next 12 months are designed to push the digitalisation of radio in Europe. The objectives which were set out at the conference are:

• To persuade the European Union to champion switch-over policies at European level and to ensure that sufficient spectrum is allocated to safeguard radio’s future

• To advance partnerships between public and private broadcasters to develop original digital content and support public campaigns to make the case for digital radio

• To foster effective partnerships between broadcasters and the automotive sector

The plan, which includes marketing and lobbying efforts aimed at European Union regulators and car manufacturers, will for the first time, involve bodies representing the three major digital radio standards in Europe.  At the conference, WorldDMB, the DRM Consortium and the Internet Media Device Alliance (IMDA) threw their combined weight behind the EBU NRG.  The move was described as “like a shot of adrenaline for digital radio.”

This was the second conference in as many days (following the WorldDMB General Assembly) at which the international digital radio community came together with energy and passion not seen in many years.  It heralds a renewed commitment to digital radio in Europe and reflects a new “can do” attitude from broadcasters.

ENDS

November 10, 2010

For more information contact Caroline Brindle, WorldDMB Project Office on 020 3206 7848 or caroline.brindle@worlddab.org

About WorldDMB

WorldDMB is an international, non-governmental organisation with a mandate to promote the awareness, adoption and implementation of Eureka 147 based technologies worldwide.  Its members include public and commercial broadcasters, receiver manufacturers and other companies and bodies committed to the promotion of services and equipment based on the Eureka 147 family of standards.

Notes to Editors: The DAB family is the most successful set of digital radio standards in the world.  Created for mobile and portable reception of audio. multimedia and video services. the family includes the compatible standards DAB, DAB+ and DMB digital radio and DMB mobile TV. Collectively these are the Eureka 147 Family of Standards, having originated as an EU funded Eureka project. The system is on-air in nearly 40 countries across Europe, Australia and the Far East.  More than 500 million people are within range of DAB, DAB+ or DMB services, with over 1,000 services on-air.  The world’s first DMB mobile TV services launched in South Korea in 2005 and is now one of the most successful markets in the world.  In 2008 the industry body responsible for the Eureka 147 family of standards, the WorldDMB Forum, created the ‘Digital Radio Receiver Profiles’ which specify a set of minimum requirements and features for different types of consumer digital radio receivers. The Receiver Profiles ensure interoperability of new receivers and services between countries whose broadcasters may be using different combinations of DAB, DAB+ or DMB and creates a harmonised digital radio and multimedia market across the world.