DAB Digital Radio is a ‘flavour’ of digital radio that lets you listen to a variety of local, regional and national radio station on a specific type of radio - a DAB Digital Radio. There are radios available in car, on the move and for the home. Just like the regular radio you can pick up different radio stations depending on where you live. To check your coverage visit DigitalRadioNow.com.

In each area a number of stations are broadcast together in something called a ‘multiplex’. The multiplex operator hold a licence and builds a transmitter network. This operator then contracts with lots of different radio stations to broadcast on its platform. As the multiplex operator pays for the running of the entire multiplex, the radio stations pay a carriage fee to the operator, to help cover their costs.

Whether a station broadcasts on a specific multiplex is down to whether there is enough space to broadcast the station and whether the station wants to broadcast on DAB in that area. If you’re interested in knowing why a station you like isn’t broadcasting on DAB in your area, the best thing to do is to contact that station direct and ask them.

There are currently a number of multiplex operators running local, regional and national platforms, you can use this link to find out more about each multiplex. Further information is listed below.

National

Digital One run the current national commercial multiplex. It broadcasts to the majority of the UK (excluding Northern Ireland). Digital One’s website is http://www.ukdigitalradio.com.

BBC

The BBC also operate a national digital radio multiplex covering the majority of the country. This only broadcasts national services. Their website is: http://www.bbc.co.uk/digitalradio.

4digital

4digital was awarded a licence to run a new national multiplex in July 2007, they are due to go on-air in July 2008. Gill Hind is currently responsible for multiplex matters. http://www.channel4.com/radio/4digital.

Regional Multiplexes

Two companies operate regional multiplexes - MXR Digital and SwitchDigital.

MXR Digital

MXR operates regional multiplexes in the North East, North West, South Wales and Severn Estuary, West Midlands and Yorkshire. They are owned by a consortium including Chrysalis Radio, GCap Media, GMG, UBC and Ford. Their consumer website is: http://www.getdabdigitalradio.com/. The Managing Director of MXR is Dianne Wray.

SwitchDigital

Switchdigital is responsible for the regional multiplex in Central Scotland. It is owned by UTV Radio and the Carphone Warehouse. Their website is at www.utvdab.com and the multiplex is overseen by Piers Collins at UTV in London.

Local Multiplexes

There are a number of local multiplex operators in the UK. These include:

NOWdigital

NOWdigital (operated by GCap Media) has a website: http://www.now-digital.com. The multiplexes are managed by Nicky McPherson and Ash Elford. The areas that NOWdigital operate are: Bristol, Coventry, Wolverhampton, Essex, Cardiff, Cambridge, Dorset, Kent, Leicester, Norfolk, Nottingham, Peterborough, Plymouth and Cornwall, Exeter, South Hampshire, Sussex Coast, Swindon & West Wilts and Reading.

Most multiplexes are wholly owned by GCap Media, though Leicester and Nottingham are part of consortiums with Chrysalis and Sabras Radio and Plymouth/Cornwall is owned by GCap and UKRD.

EMAP Digital Radio

EMAP operate a number of multiplexes, mainly across the North and Scotland. There is information about their operations at: http://www.emapdigitalradio.com.

The multiplexes they operate are: Central Lancashire, Humberside, Leeds, Liverpool, South Yorkshire, Teesside, Tyne and Wear, Dundee and Perth, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Inverness and Northern Ireland. The multiplexes are managed by Gordon MacArthur.

UTV

UTV operate multiplexes in Aberdeen and London and are overseen by Piers Collins, their website is: www.utvdab.com.

Local Multiplexes - Joint Ventures

A number of local multiplexes are operated by consortiums. GCap and EMAP operate CE Digital, which runs multiplexes in London, Birmingham and Manchester - these are managed by Gordon MacArthur of EMAP. UTV-EMAP Digital operate the multiplexes in Bradford, Swansea and Stoke-on-Trent - these are overseen by Piers Collins at UTV. Additionally a consortium of GCap, SMG,UTV and Carphone Warehouse operates the third London multiplex, this is managed by Ash Elford from NOWdigital.