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Vaizey says radio stations won’t be forced to go digital
By Chris Cooke | Published on Friday 29 November 2013
Although the government isn’t due to reveal its current thinking of a timetable for making the DAB network, rather than the FM network, the primary home of British radio, the minister responsible for the matter, Ed Vaizey, passed comment on the topic in parliament yesterday.
Responding to Buckinghamshire MP Cheryl Gillan, who expressed concern that a FM-to-DAB switchover was going to be forced on the radio industry, despite opposition from many smaller radio firms, and concerns about the reach of the DAB network, Vaizey said he was aware of the issues and wouldn’t be prematurely forcing a digital switchover in radio”.
Said Vaizey: “We have never said we will require small stations to go digital, and FM can work in tandem with DAB. Let me make it clear, I am a fan of digital radio and I think digital radio is the future, but my criteria has always been about coverage. I want it to be the same as FM, and we will not be pushed into a switchover date”.
Of course that statement doesn’t really reveal anything new about government thinking, given that, unlike with TV, it’s never been the plan to switch off the analogue radio networks as soon as key stations have made the shift to digital (indeed there are proposals to make more of the FM network available to community stations and such like after switchover).
Though some smaller radio groups are still against the analogue-to-digital switch, arguing that once the BBC and big commercial stations become DAB only, FM will become an after-thought, putting those stations forced to stay on the analogue network (for budgetary or licensing reasons, or because DAB doesn’t reach their area) at a disadvantage.
Which means that Vaizey’s announcements on 16 Dec should still be interesting to read, despite yesterday’s remarks.
