Month: November 2021

As part of the Remote Contribution theme of UNESCO’s ongoing Remote Radio Week, today there was a discussion on how to manage audio contributions from home.The session was moderated by Lawrie Hallett of Red Tech and featured Bala Murali Subramaney, Chief Technology Officer, Astro Radio, Malaysia, Gary Kline, Founder, Kline Consulting and Radioinfo Asia’s Steve Ahern, who is also the Head of ABU Media Academy.Speaking about his experience in remote broadcasting, Subramany said during the last 12 months most of their announcers worked from home and they only had one engineer per shift at the control centre.

It was challenging as not all announcers had computers or a broadband connectivity at home, so they would record their audio on their phone and transfer the file to someone who had a computer. They also tried to virtualize the automation system and console.Steve said it was a mixed experience over the last 18 months, and agreed with Bala’s comments about poor internet. When the pandemic struck, he researched extensively about remote radio and learnt that as soon as you move from an acoustic studio to a home studio, there are lot of issues like more echo and background noise. It’s good to choose a small room, use the corner of the room to reduce echo and dampen the sound from the walls with foam or curtains. Even though one may be using the same mics that they usually do, they are not in the studio environment, so use a much closer mic technique and use a headset mic, so if you move around then the mic is in the same position. The playout software has many different configurations, so you can do virtual voice tracking back to the studio, so you only need a microphone and a computer, or you might use the software in your computer to trigger the playout so you’re in control of the whole system remotely, or you can have the audio files and the playout interface on your computer, and at home you out your computer and microphone through a mixer and send the whole program back to the studio or the transmitter.Gary, a consultant, spoke about how when the pandemic struck, almost overnight, most of the staff of radio stations were ordered to stay at home. Many stations were not equipped to broadcast from home, so they made a scramble to get the equipment which put a load on the manufacturers. The rush to get jocks on air meant often there was a sacrifice in terms of audio quality and there was also the issue of internet connectivity. There was a need to assess how to be prepared for any such eventuality in the future.Answering a viewer’s questions about managing broadcasting from home, Steve said one of the problems of handling live was the inadequacy of internet services. If radio broadcasters are thinking ahead, they should be installing direct broadcast lines, IP lines and buying dedicated space in hubs and direct feeds, so they have control rather than internet or mobile services. One should also have multiple backup connections. […]

Global DAB receiver sales have broken through the key 100 million milestone this year – reaching a cumulative figure of 110 million units, including both consumer and automotive receivers.The latest infographic released by industry body WorldDAB shows that despite the impact of the pandemic, sales continue to power ahead. In the last 12 months, automotive DAB receivers exceeded 10 million units for the first time, and consumer receiver sales registered over five million units.The automotive DAB+ market has been transformed over the last two years – with DAB+ now a standard feature in over 89% of new cars in all key European markets. This growth reflects the impact of the European Electronic Communications Code (EECC) introduced in December 2020, requiring all new car radios in the EU to be capable of receiving digital terrestrial radio.

In the consumer receiver market, the proportion of devices featuring DAB / DAB+ has also seen a sharp increase – from 28% two years ago to 42% in the second quarter of 2021. DAB sales are benefiting from strong marketing in Germany and the Netherlands, receiver regulation in Germany, France and Italy – and the emergence of new DAB markets including Belgium, Austria and the Czech Republic.Patrick Hannon, President of WorldDAB, said: “The data in our new infographic clearly demonstrate that even in the most challenging of times, DAB+ continues to grow as the core future platform for radio in Europe. We’re delighted to see big increases in consumer units and in particular the automotive sector. The implementation of the EECC last year, driving growth in the in-car market, highlights the power of regulation to bring significant benefits not only for listeners across Europe, but also for the environment at this crucial time.”Highlights of the report
Digital radio reach has achieved record levels in several markets, including the UK, Denmark, the Netherlands, Belgium, and Australia
Sales of consumer DAB+ receivers have performed strongly over the last 12 months – with annual sales in Italy and the Czech Republic more than doubling; sales in France growing by 45%; and sales in Germany, Netherlands, Belgium and Austria all growing at rates of over 20%
In all major European markets, at least 89% of new cars come with DAB+ radio as standard
The infographic details the rollout status in 24 emerging markets including information on trials and population coverage – not only in Europe but also in Africa, Asia and the Middle East. The infographic also gives a comprehensive overview of DAB receiver sales, road and population coverage, household penetration and the number of national stations on DAB/DAB+ compared to FM. The report covers Australia, Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Switzerland and the UK. […]

Orlando “Dondon” Dinoy, a radio journalist, was shot dead by an unidentified gunman inside his home in Bansalan town, Davao del Sur, Philippines, last weekend.Dinoy was a reporter with Newsline Philippines and an anchor for Energy FM. He covered local news, development issues and crime, according to a statement issued by Newsline Philippines editor Editha Z. Caduaya.According to the local police, a gunman entered Dinoy’s house last Saturday around 6pm and shot him six tomes in the head and body. he died instantly.

The motive for his killing remains unclear and an investigation was under way to pin down the motive behind Dinoy’s death, said Joel Sy Egco, executive director of the Presidential Task Force on Media Security (PTFoMS), a government body.Dinoy will be the 21st journalist to be killed in connection with their work since Rodrigo Duterte was installed as president in 2016.The Philippines is ranked 138th out of 180 countries in RSF’s 2021 World Press Freedom Index.Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), via its Global Impunity Index, ranked the Philippines as the seventh-worst country in the world for reporters, saying that 13 murders of journalists remained unsolved there.“Orlando Dinoy’s murder is particularly shocking because it was carried out in a very cold-blooded manner and with a great deal of premeditation,” said Daniel Bastard, the head of RSF’s Asia-Pacific desk. “Investigators must therefore be alert for evidence that allows them to identify those responsible as quickly as possible, and supports the hypothesis that it was linked to the victim’s journalistic activities.” […]