WorldDAB and the Asia Pacific Broadcasting Union (ABU) last week presented a hugely popular technical webinar series, attracting over 100 broadcasters, network operators, regulators and other radio stakeholders from across the APAC region. Over three mornings, participants joined a panel of WorldDAB and ABU experts who explained the features and opportunities that DAB+ offers broadcasters in the APAC region.The webinar series was initially focused on commercial and technical business case, providing the attendees with some specific examples of the benefits of the brand extension strategies, how DAB+ can be used to build new brands and the pros and cons of 5G mobile network functionality.
Day 2 switched gears with sessions on receivers, connected cars, headend systems and was completed by a presentation on the very successful Thailand DAB+ trial. Day 3 focused on transmission with presentations including state of the art transmitter technology and coverage planning methods. All the presentations from the webinar series are available to download here.
The webinar series finished with a presentation on the establishment of the new Asia Pacific Technical Group which will provide a regular forum for stakeholders in the APAC region to gather and discuss technical issues related to the establishment and operation of DAB+.
Membership of the APAC Technical Group is free and does not require WorldDAB membership. The first meeting will be virtual and will take place on the 2nd of December. Stakeholders who would like to be involved with the APAC Technical Group may register their interest with the WorldDAB Project Office.
In recent years, DAB+ activities have grown steadily in the APAC region. Indonesia established a number of DAB+ transmissions and is now waiting for the rollout of DVB-T2 to provide addition spectrum for expansion. Thailand has a 10 kW trial in Bangkok and is now planning further expansion. Trials are also ongoing in Myanmar and Vietnam and interest in DAB+ is shown in several other countries in the Asia and Pacific region.
Given the success of the APAC webinar series and the previous webinar series for the MENA region, WorldDAB is now considering future online events for 2021.