Pondering the End of Analog Radio in Britain

It should be sometime between 2015 and 2020, says the Digital Radio Working Group, in its interim report. The Guardian reports that, by then, all the national, regional and major local stations (BBC Local Radio and others) would have migrated to DAB.

But this wouldn’t necessarily be the end of analog FM – the interim report says the legacy band would still be home to small local or community radio broadcasters.

The unresolved issues will sound familiar: automobile manufacturers aren’t including digital radios standard in all new cars; DAB service doesn’t reach the entire country (although it’s now at 90% penetration and will reach 93% by the end of 2008); whether the government might help those who can’t afford a new radio.

Digital radio has a higher penetration in Britain than in the US. The latest research shows 22% of individuals in England own a digital radio (lower in Scotland and Wales), and 34% have listened to digital radio on their televisions (Freeview and Sky). These higher numbers when compared with the US result from a number of factors – including, most likely, more effective marketing, as well as the considerable investment the BBC and other broadcasters have made in developing new content for DAB.