Commercial radio broadcasters would bear costs estimated at more than $300 million to fully convert from analogue to digital broadcasting according to Commercial Radio Australia’s Joan Warner, who was speaking at the Digital Radio Study Group consultative forum in Sydney.
“We have invested a lot of money and we don’t apologise for looking out for our commercial interests,” she said after some strong lobbying from other attendees at the forum who urged the government to get on with introducing digital radio to Australia.
“As the commercial radio industry has invested billions of dollars in setting up free to air commercial radio in this country and pays on average $12 million dollars a year in licence fees, we are firmly of the view that the needs of the existing in-band broadcast community must be considered first in any future planning for digital radio,” she said.
Warner believes it is essential that the government set aside spectrum to enable the consortium of commercial broadcasters, the ABC and SBS, in conjunction with community broadcasters and narrowcasters, to run consumer trials of digital radio in major metropolitan cities and regional areas of Australia.
The consortium of commercial radio broadcasters, ABC and SBS have to date invested more than $1.4 million to establish consumer trials in Sydney which will start before the end of the year.
“Commercial Radio Australia, on behalf of the broadcaster consortium, has applied for spectrum on VHF Band III to start trials in Melbourne early next year followed by a trials in other parts of Australia. Australia is a diverse country with a range of geographies, weather conditions and listener needs and we need to ensure that the trials will help us to assess the best technology to meet all of Australia’s needs – not just Sydney’s,” said Warner.
Radio broadcasters are seeking equity of treatment with television broadcasters in relation to any future digital broadcasting. This means that once the industry, in co-operation with Government, has trialled the various technologies available and agreed on future directions, commercial radio broadcasters will be seeking an appropriate transition/simulcast period to allow the migration of the current listeners and their 40 million radios to the new technology.
Warner also said:
“The Australian radio market is well serviced. Australians enjoy a greater choice of commercial, public and community radio services per head of population than anywhere else in the world with nearly 260 commercial radio licences, 5 national services plus SBS, 333 community broadcasters, 99 aspirant community broadcasters, 182 high-powered open narrowcasters and 1775 low powered open narrowcasters – all for a population of 20 million people…
“We believe that, as the major commercial stakeholder and investor in radio in this country, we have the right to a big say in the future of our own industry. Digital broadcasting in this country should be about better, more robust delivery of current in-band radio services to all Australians. Any transition to digital radio broadcasting should focus on developing and enhancing the experience for listeners, allowing a sufficient simulcast and transition period for listener changeover, and, importantly, should recognise the considerable commercial investment of the current industry – this must not be devalued.”