The German-speaking Community is now almost completely covered by DAB+. At the weekend, the Belgian Broadcasting Corporation (BRF) switched on the second major site in Wallerode (municipality of Amel). This means that digital radio can now be received in large parts of the Eifel region.
In the north of East Belgium and parts of the Euregio Meuse-Rhine, listeners have been able to receive BRF's digital transmitter network since last year.
Stations BRF1, BRF2, 100,5 DAS HITRADIO, Radio Contact Ostbelgien NOW, Radio Sunshine and Radio 700 are broadcast on the multiplex operated by BRF. Channel 8A is used by the stations Petergensfeld (municipality of Raeren) and, since the weekend, also by the Wallerode site (municipality of Amel).
The "DAB+ in East Belgium" pilot project is the result of an initiative by the BRF, which is making the necessary investments for the pilot phase. A corresponding decree from the government of the German-speaking Community allows the BRF to use the DAB+ frequency with the inclusion of private radio stations from East Belgium. The aim of the pilot phase until the end of 2024 is to determine the coverage achieved in mobile and indoor operation in the German-speaking Community and to define the requirements for a full roll-out.
Alain Kniebs, Director of BRF: "We are delighted to be able to offer our users in the south of East Belgium greater listening comfort thanks to digital radio. A big thank you goes to our technical and IT teams who made the switch-on possible - much earlier than planned. BRF has been available on DAB+ in large parts of Belgium since 2019. The fact that we are now expanding our presence in the core broadcasting area is particularly pleasing. As a network operator, we are also fulfilling our public service and social mandate."
The abbreviation DAB+ stands for Digital Audio Broadcasting. This is the digital transmission standard for terrestrial radio reception. DAB+ is the successor to analog FM radio. It offers many advantages, including improved audio quality, a noise-free signal, additional services such as text information and images as well as complete independence from internet or mobile phone signals. Thanks to the more efficient use of frequencies and lower transmission power, DAB+ is more environmentally friendly than FM - up to twelve programs can be broadcast simultaneously on one frequency block.the abbreviation DAB+ stands for Digital Audio Broadcasting. This is the digital transmission standard for terrestrial radio reception. DAB+ is the successor to analog FM radio. It offers many advantages, including improved audio quality, a noise-free signal, additional services such as text information and images as well as complete independence from internet or mobile phone signals. Thanks to the more efficient use of frequencies and lower transmission power, DAB+ is more environmentally friendly than FM - up to twelve programs can be broadcast simultaneously on one frequency block.