DW and BBC joint service on DRM

[drmdab]

Press release: DW and BBC Join Forces on DRM

Deutsche Welle and BBC to create new stream with a mix of global news and current affairs all in clear, digital quality on Digital Radio Mondiale (DRM) Shortwave. Two of the world’s major international broadcasters, BBC World Service and Deutsche Welle, have just announced plans to launch a joint radio service to Europe on DRM Shortwave.

The new stream, which will be entirely in English, is expected to go live in early 2009. Broadcast in clear digital quality, it will be available from early morning till late at night targeting Western and Central Europe and a potential audience of 170 million listeners with global news and current affairs and a rich mix of in-depth analysis, documentaries and cultural programs. The service will provide a multimedia offer of audio and text, the latter coming automatically from the BBC News website.

Erik Bettermann, Director General at Deutsche Welle, said: “It is great that two of the world’s most established broadcasters can work together on a project of this scale. This is an exciting venture that will offer European listeners top class content and provides the perfect opportunity to reintroduce listeners to DRM.”

September 12, 2008

For more information on DRM, please contact: Fanny Podworny, DRM Consortium, E-mail: pressoffice at drm.org

Source: http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,...640845,00.html

[drmdab]

The new channel will replace the existing broadcasts of Deutsche Welle and BBC World Service, as Mr. Scholz told me some minutes ago.

[pb1]

extende press release BBC press office:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/pressoffice/pre...r/16/drm.shtml

[drmdab]

A new schedule popped up on DW's homepage: Here it is.

It looks like the frequencies starting on December 4, will be used for DW/BBC.

[simone]

European radio listeners will be able to hear live broadcast of the Wimbledon finals on the DRM digital channel jointly operated by British Broadcasting Corporation and Deutsche Welle. The BBC & DW DRM channel will broadcast the Wimbledon Ladies and Men's Singles Finals on Saturday 4th July and on Sunday, 5th July, respectively. The DRM transmission will be on air from 1300 GMT until 1800 GMT.

from news on drm.org

Simone

[simone]

Please see this post from RadioFelix in reception results (3995 kHz from Sines/Skelton):
http://www.drmrx.org/forum/showpost....&postcount=140

Originally Posted by Radio Felix

Hello, please forgive a non-technical person like me intruding on your Forum but I produce the Proms for BBC WS and would like to know what the sound quality is like at the receiving end please. I'm told that the Proms are being broadcast on DRM every Saturday at 21.06UTC (I don't have a DRM receiver so can't check:-). Thank you very much. Radek Boschetty

Please post comments here.
Thanks,
Simone

[simone]

The Proms are also being broadcast at 14:06 Sundays (15640 kHz and 5790 kHz).
Simone

[Ager]

Nice new content for drm listeners, with 18.0 kbps sound, and quite pleasant quality.

But there is one thing to make a complaint about. Every (half) an hour the programme is interrupted in an ugly manner by a BBC/DW/drm-jingle. I wonder if that automatism could be set off??

I made a small sound file about that (at 14:30 UTC):
http://www.infoverstas.fi/mp3/15640kHz_proms.mp3

[drmdab]

Originally Posted by Ager

But there is one thing to make a complaint about. Every (half) an hour the programme is interrupted in an ugly manner by a BBC/DW/drm-jingle. I wonder if that automatism could be set off??

I think it's quite good they have a jingle like this in their broadcast. Actually, I did not listen to BBC&DW for some time as I was on holiday but when I heard this promo last, it was placed very well and fit into the usual program. I do not know, if there are still those information on special broadcasts, that was quite good (e.g. "On 09:05 CET you can hear Concert Hour on DRM digital radio").

Just noticed their programe-schedule on www.bbcdw.org was updated. I hope they will respond to listener's feedback again sent to the special e-mail-address. For me, it seemed like "the love is gone" out of (BBCDW-)DRM for some time.

[simone]

Originally Posted by drmdab

I think it's quite good they have a jingle like this in their broadcast.

I also heard this jingle on Sunday which abruptly interrupted the concert, I agree with Ager that the jingles should not be used like this, actually the jingle had not been there on the nighttime transmission on Saturday night, so I guess (hope!) it was sent in error, as the Proms broadcast were a change to the regular schedule. Audio quality was quite good with both configurations, slightly higher audio bitrate available on Sunday in mode A, using p-stereo was OK.
Anyway, I would prefer to have such special broadcasts available from Orford Ness.

Simone

[drmdab]

Of course I agree with you that the jingles have to be used in a wise way. As I did not listen, I did not know it was thrown into the broadcast that senseless.

[pb1]

Has the schedule changed? If it did, I cannot find it. But during my holidays I listened often to this DRM service, as it is (almost) the only way to reveive the BBC WS in Europe. I noticed that at 18 CET, Newslink is being broadcast and not Europe Today. And currently DW programs are replacing Sunday Sportsworld. I thought the BBC was broadcasting between 18 and 19 CET?

[simone]

Hi pb1,
seems there was a problem with the BBC WS programs this weekend, not a planned change in the schedule.
Simone