DAB Eureka-147: a European vision for digital radio

Abstract

Like its analogue counterpart, digital radio is one of the 'older' forms of new media. The technology of digital radio broadcasting has been under active development for at least 25 years and has produced a number of different technical solutions, the longest established of which is Eureka-147 or Digital Audio Broadcasting (DAB). This article explores DAB's distinctly European vision for the future of broadcasting. DAB is traced to its origins in 1980s European research and development policy and its affinity with traditions of European public service broadcasting. Ironically, it was DAB's failure to capitalize on its 'Europeanness' that contributed to the fragmentary political support that it later received, compromising its subsequent implementation. From a contemporary perspective DAB's original mission, while visionary, to provide enhanced, interactive information and entertainment services through audio, text and visual content, appears to have misread trends towards convergence and appears out of step with contemporary media consumption patterns.