Czech Radio to Launch DAB Praha on 6th August
As of 6th August, Czech Radio will go fully digital, providing experimental broadcasting in Prague and its surrounding areas. Czech Radio’s Director General, Peter Duhan, announced the date at today’s session of the European Broadcasting Union’s (EBU’s) General Assembly in Prague. Digital broadcasting will open up new possibilities for improving the public services we offer to our listeners – by extending our range of programmes, enhancing transmission quality and introducing new multimedia services.
During his speech at the opening of the EBU’s General Assembly today, Czech Radio’s Director General, Peter Duhan, explained: “One of our key strategic goals is currently the digitisation of audio broadcasting in the Czech Republic. I am very pleased to say that Czech Radio is ready to start its experimental, but fully parametrised DAB service for Prague and its surrounding areas – providing programming content to 17 per cent of the Czech population. Hand-in-hand with audio broadcasting digitisation, our Vision 2020 development project is under way.”
Transition to DAB Prague will be implemented in collaboration with Czech Radiocommunications. Output power from the Žižkov transmission tower, which serves as the main transmitter for the City of Prague, will be 20,000 Watts. An entire multiplex will be dedicated to Czech Radio’s service, which includes special digital stations and all nationwide stations. On the morning of 6th August, the Žižkov tower will also become the official venue for DAB Praha’s launch.
Deputy Director General for Programming and Broadcasting, René Zavoral adds: “By launching DAB Praha, Czech Radio again shows its commitment to standing at the helm of the development of digital radio broadcasting and its readiness to switch to DAB. We currently operate several special digital stations and are preparing several future projects that will support the development of digital broadcasting. We see the launch of DAB Praha as the spearhead for radio broadcasting digitisation.”
Czech Radio has prepared a detailed plan for the transition to digital broadcasting and is now ready to make the switch to DAB. The station has also introduced specific prerequisites intended for the advancement of DAB in the Czech Republic. These include: legislative changes, financing of simultaneous analogue and digital broadcasting and coordination with the private sector. In order to ensure a smooth and successful digitisation process, Czech Radio also calls for the formation of a national coordination group and the specification of a “digitisation timetable”.
The EBU’s General Assembly takes place in Prague between June 24 and 26 and is organised by Czech Radio in conjunction with Czech Television. It hosts almost two hundred top representatives from public service broadcasters from sixty-five countries across Europe. The EBU’s General Assembly is the EBU’s main decision-making body. Its task is to define the development strategy for all of its associated public service broadcasters. Czech Radio and Czech Television have been members of the EBU since 1993. The organisation was established in 1950 and is based in Geneva.
Jiří Hošna
Spokesperson
Tel.: +420 725 793 397
E-mail: jiri.hosna@rozhlas.cz