A year-long study of one of the standards that would enable South Africa to migrate its radio broadcasting from analogue to digital has quietly been making strides in determining what is required to keep radio relevant in a digital age.

A Southern African Digital Broadcasting Association (Sadiba) and National Association of Broadcasters-led working group, headed by Dave Cherry, in November kicked off a DAB+ trial using two 10 kW transmitting stations in Johannesburg and Pretoria to assess the potential replacement for the current AM and FM bands.

Speaking on day two of the three-day Sadiba-hosted Digital Broadcasting Now conference, in Randburg, Cherry explained that the trial aimed to establish the parameters of the DAB+ standard, test and evaluate the technology, examine end-to-end technical functionality and analyse vehicle and building penetration loss and clutter on coverage, as well as field test typical consumer equipment, besides others.

The high-powered DAB+ transmission trial, which would end in October, allowed the rotational distribution of up to 40 radio services from the public, commercial and community sectors across 21 185 km².

Signal distributor Sentech technology executive Leago Takalani added that the digital trial aimed to review current technology developments, standards, regulations and reports, while developing a roadmap for regulatory frameworks and commercial models.

While the trial assessed national, business and regional imperatives against available new digital technology, it would also open the way for the identification and establishment of potential collaboration opportunities.

She added that South Africa also needed to examine the success of other countries and apply relevant developments to the country’s digital radio implementation, as well as record and share the knowledge gained with those that follow.