This week saw the publication of the Global radio Update published by Radio World. The questions that the editor in chief of the US publication, Paul McLane, wanted answered were to do with the likelihood of migration from FM, the new technologies to be watched and the future of broadcasting in general. Representatives of the major digital broadcasting standards, other digital radio experts have tried to give their own opinions.
Ruxandra Obreja, the DRM Consortium chairman, in her article “DRM makes big strides” gave an overview of the latest developments as successfully presented at the recent DRM General Assembly in Indonesia concluding that:
As demonstrated in Jakarta, DRM is making big strides geographically and technologically. While the qualities and features of the DRM standard remain unchanged, there are always new developments; see Version 6 of the DRM Handbook, available as a free PDF download at handbook.drm.org.DRM members are pioneers of digital radio innovation. DRM is harnessing AI for education, reaching people where no data plan can be accessed or electricity switched on, saving lives when mobile towers are down. Streaming, Direct to Mobile (D2M) and AI are out there. But DRM has the reach and the ability to use and maximize them all. The only big challenges remain time and the speed of governmental decisions. The DRM Consortium and the industry are ready.
In his interview, entitled “DRM can be embedded in earbuds and other products” Matthew Phillips, product director at CML Micro in the UK and DRM Consortium vice-chairman concludes that:
We should not be blindsided into believing that radio is a declining technology. Digital radio broadcasting based on DRM can bridge the digital divide for millions of citizens worldwide.Trusted information that is well-produced, thoughtfully created and efficiently delivered by radio has an expanding and exciting future. We should embrace that future.
The complete Global Radio Update e-book, including both DRM-related articles (starting on page 28), is available on the Radio World website.
For additional background, DRM readers can access the DRM Consortium article by Ruxandra Obreja here: Digital Radio Mondiale DRM Consortium General Assembly – Most Complete DRM Developments Showroom.
