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Broadcasting (Radio Multiplex Services) Act 2017

Contents

Policy background

  1. Currently, around 200 smaller commercial radio stations and 244 community radio stations transmitting on (mainly) FM and MW analogue frequencies do not have the opportunity to broadcast on digital radio (also known by the technical standard used - DAB/DAB+), this is due to a combination of factors.
    • insufficient capacity available on some local DAB multiplexes (55 county sized digital radio networks across the UK) especially those serving urban areas;
    • the costs of carriage on these networks can often be too high for many small local stations and the multiplex coverage area provided by county level local DAB multiplexes may be too large compared to their own ‘core’ FM transmission areas.
  2. Many of these smaller commercial and community radio stations have indicated that they would like the option to broadcast on a terrestrial DAB platform to the areas they currently serve if a practical solution was available and if it could be done in a cost effective way.
  3. In order to deal with this situation DCMS provided funding for a two year (2014-16) programme of work by Ofcom, building on previous technical development testing, to examine the potential of a new software-based approach to enable small scale broadcasting on the DAB platform. This has included 10 technical field trials of small scale DAB multiplexes in towns and cities across the country which have seen more than 100 small radio stations broadcasting on terrestrial DAB for the first time, including some new services.
  4. These technical trials have been successful and Ofcom’s work has demonstrated the viability of using a low cost software-based approach to broadcasting on DAB at a small scale. As a result, there is a need for these trial services to be put on a proper basis and for small scale radio multiple services to be rolled out more widely.
  5. The Act provides a power to create a new, lighter touch regulatory framework appropriate for the licensing of small scale (DAB) radio multiplexes. The overall impact on small commercial and community radio stations will be deregulatory. The detailed terms of the new regulatory framework would be subject to a consultation with industry.

Background on digital radio

  1. The principle of digital radio is that the audio signal is converted to a digital format and compressed at the point of broadcasting into a single radio frequency and then decoded by the (listener’s) digital radio set receiver. The main benefit of digital radio is the more efficient use of radio spectrum compared to analogue allowing for more radio services to be delivered to listeners, as well as the delivery of text and visual information.
  2. In the UK DAB is transmitted via 3 national multiplexes and 55 local (mainly county sized) multiplexes. A radio multiplex consists of a number of DAB radio stations bundled together to be transmitted digitally on a single frequency in a given geographic area.
  3. The Office of Communications, "Ofcom", is responsible for the regulation and licensing of radio multiplex services (national and local).

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