Community radio applauds digital roll-out in regional Aus

The community radio sector has applauded the Turnbull Government’s move to facilitate the roll-out of digital radio in regional Australia.

Over the last week, the Broadcast Legislation Amendment (Digital Radio) Bill 2015 has passed the House of Representatives. The Senate has agreed to a third reading speech, considered a mere formality.

The Community Broadcasting Association of Australia (CBAA)’s CEO Jon Bisset commended the Minister for Communications:

“We congratulate Minister Fifield on guiding these amendments through Parliament, which will encourage a more timely extension of digital radio into regional Australia. These changes support digital radio as the future facing broadcasting platform and a vital element in Australia’s media environment.

“The Minister has taken the lead in pushing these reforms and we look forward to working with him on digitisation issues as Australia transitions to a digital future.” 

“Community radio is at the forefront of innovation, especially for the benefit of communities, and we will continue to be.” 

The Bill reforms the digital radio regulatory framework to allow it to roll-out in regional Australia. Key outcomes of the Bill include removing obstacles so that the radio industry can more effectively plan the roll-out.

It ratifies the digital radio planning committee for regional Australia. Made up of representation from community, commercial and national broadcasters and chaired by the ACMA, it will be the key instrument to move things forward and ensure best account is taken of the public interest.

The Bill also removes the digital radio moratorium period, moving authority for issuing ‘start day’ processes from the Minister to the ACMA, and removing the datacasting sub category for digital radio.

Last July, when the then-Communications Minister Malcolm Turnbull released a report on regional digital expansion, Commercial Radio Australia (CRA) also welcomed the move to set up the industry planning group. 

CRA Chief Executive Joan Warner said, “This means that regional Australians will not suffer a digital divide in relation to free to air broadcast radio but will eventually be on an equal footing with their metropolitan counterparts."

Last December, CRA joined forces with radio manufacturer Bush and retailers JB Hi-Fi and Dick Smith for a $2 million marketing campaign to promote digital radio sales in the lead up to Christmas. 

Australian radio listeners have shown strong support for DAB+ digital broadcast radio. Since its launch in metropolitan areas in late 2009, offering high sound quality and new digital-only radio stations, it has outperformed expectations. 

According to the last GfK’s DAB+ Digital Radio Report, four out of 10 Australians in the five metropolitan capital cities have access to a digital radio at home, work or in the car. Total audience listening to radio via DAB+ devices is nearly 3.2 million (24.1%). The number of DAB+ devices is is 2 million.

26 vehicle manufacturers in Australia now include DAB+ digital radio. More than 370,000 new vehicles with the technology have been sold. It brings the total number of digital radios in the market to nearly 2.4 million.

New digital-only radio stations attract 1.33 million unique listeners each week, while 2.36 million listeners tune in to DAB+ simulcasts of their favourite AM and FM stations in the five metropolitan capitals of Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth.

Late last month, CRA announced that radio broadcasters will conduct ratings surveys in at least 20 key regional centres across Australia in 2016 in a move to put regional radio in the spotlight and demonstrate radio’s power to reach audiences outside the metropolitan capitals. The NSW cities of Griffith and Dubbo will be the first regional markets to be surveyed, starting this month. Bendigo, Shepparton, Cairns, Toowoomba and Wagga Wagga will follow through the year. 33% of Australians live in regional Australia.