South African digital radio trial is about to go live - Aldred Dreyer — DRM South Africa Group chairman Aldred Dreyer

South Africa’s latest digital radio experiment is nearing lift-off, with DRM (Digital Radio Mondiale) trial broadcasts expected to go live within weeks, potentially timed to coincide with World Radio Day on 13 February.

That’s according to Aldred Dreyer, chairman of the DRM South Africa Group, the organisation that’s spearheading the development, roll-out and promotion of DRM radio in the country. It follows the granting of a trial licence by communications regulator Icasa late last year.

“We received approval at the end of November, and we’re now planning the trial itself and the demonstrations we want to do,” Dreyer said in an interview with TechCentral on Wednesday. “Our hope is to launch everything on World Radio Day, although it’s very close, so we’ll see if we make that date.”

The trial will be conducted from a high site in Northcliff, Johannesburg, using spectrum in the FM band. With regulatory approval now in place, the project team is free to switch on the transmitter as soon as preparations are complete.

“We couldn’t switch on without Icasa approval. Now we can,” said Dreyer. “Transmission isn’t live yet, but it will be soon.”

Initial trial participants include Hot 102.7FM and Radio Pulpit, with the organisers actively inviting other broadcasters – particularly community radio stations – to participate. Dreyer said he also plans to approach the SABC’s technology division to gauge interest in joining the trial.

The licence allows for an eight-month trial, with the option to extend it by a further six months if needed.

Different from earlier tests

While South Africa has experimented with DRM before, Dreyer said this trial is different from earlier tests, which focused largely on coverage modelling and transmitter performance. “This time, we want to test the features,” he said.

Key use cases to be demonstrated include:

Emergency warning systems, one of DRM’s flagship capabilities;
Distance learning and data services, which the team hopes to demonstrate publicly on World Radio Day;
Multi-channel broadcasting, where a single transmitter can carry multiple digital radio signals within one frequency slot; and
Energy efficiency, with detailed measurements of actual power savings compared to analogue FM.

Read: New digital radio trial to kick off in South Africa

DRM’s ability to carry multiple services on a single transmitter is of particular interest to signal distributors such as Sentech, Dreyer said, because of the potential savings in infrastructure and operating costs. “We want to measure the actual energy costs and show what the real savings are,” he said.

The trial will also examine how digital radio’s interactive features can be integrated into broadcasters’ day-to-day operations – from workflows to audience engagement and new content formats.

One of DRM’s most compelling advantages in South Africa is its ability to operate in the guard bands between existing FM stations.

“FM spectrum in Gauteng is very populated – so much so that Icasa once issued a moratorium on new FM licences,” said Dreyer. “With DRM, you can slot a digital service between existing FM services without causing interference. Whether the regulator wants to allow that is ultimately their decision.”

Under the trial framework, Icasa assigns a frequency using the same regulatory process as traditional broadcasting, but with DRM’s more efficient spectrum use opening up new possibilities.

Despite the imminent launch, listeners shouldn’t expect a full-scale commercial roll-out just yet.

“One of the conditions of the trial is that we can’t do commercial promotion,” Dreyer said. “We can create awareness, demonstrate the technology and explain what listeners will need – but we can’t say, ‘We’re live, go buy a receiver.’”

Even so, the organisers are actively engaging with retailers and manufacturers to prepare the market. Dreyer said he is writing to global DRM receiver manufacturers to supply sample devices for the trial, while the project will also purchase receivers independently for testing.

A key objective is to stimulate local retail – and potentially even manufacturing – interest ahead of any commercial launch.

What’s next?

South Africa’s digital sound broadcasting regulations are already in place. Once Icasa issues a formal invitation to apply (ITA), existing broadcasters – including commercial stations, community radio and the SABC – will be able to apply for digital licences and nominate their signal distributors.

That would trigger a three-year protection period, during which no entirely new digital-only radio licences would be issued, allowing incumbents time to recoup their investment. After that, Icasa could open the market to digital-only radio stations.

When that happens depends largely on spectrum availability, particularly the release of VHF spectrum following progress on digital television migration.

“I don’t think the regulator will wait for analogue TV to be switched off entirely – they’ll be waiting forever,” Dreyer said.

South Africa has formally adopted a dual-standard approach, allowing both DRM and a competing technology standard called DAB, or Digital Audio Broadcasting. Dreyer believes each has a distinct role to play.

DAB is well suited to large, multiplexed broadcasters such as the SABC, especially for national coverage and new digital-only services.
DRM, by contrast, works across multiple frequency bands and is ideal for community stations or commercial operators targeting specific metros.

“DRM works in long wave, medium wave, shortwave, FM and VHF Band 3,” said Dreyer. “That flexibility is why the department [of communications & digital technologies] mandated both standards.”

With countries like Indonesia and those in the Southern African Development Community following the same dual-standard path, Dreyer believes receiver manufacturers will increasingly respond with affordable devices that support both standards – something that has been missing until now.