Monday, July 25, 2016

NXP honcho Sanjay Gupta bets big on DRM technology

Why self-driving cars no longer a fantasy; NXP honcho Sanjay Gupta explains


Excerpt..

What are the broad focus of activities for NXP Semiconductors in India?

India is definitely a growing market and we have a strong presence here. We have a clear focus of being leaders in security, connectivity and processing. Very recently, we achieved live reception of Digital Radio Mondiale (DRM) services for vehicles in India. Digital Radio Mondiale (DRM) is a service which helps to boost AM audio quality so as to provide individuals with enhanced radio quality. We designed a chipset module that is capable of handling three digital standard signals on a single platform. DRM module so developed will not only help to improve radio quality over AM channels but also provide users with utilities like updates pertaining to real time traffic scenarios, news and natural disaster warnings. In terms of business, India is a significant centre.

Sunday, July 24, 2016

Radio news broadcast completes 89 years

ANI  |  New Delhi July 23, 2016

The radio news broadcast completed its 89 years on 23rd July with first ever news bulletin in the country being aired from the Bombay Station on July 23, 1927.

The first bulletin was aired by a private company called the Indian Broadcasting Company.

Full story at :


Saturday, July 23, 2016

All India Radio Jammu launches new website


Mrs Priya Sethi, Hon'ble Minister of State for Education, Technical Education, Culture, Tourism, Horticulture, Floriculture and Parks, inaugurated the website of Radio Kashmir Jammu in Panjtirthi. Mr V.K. Sambayal, Station Director, along with other officials of the Radio Kashmir Jammu and dignitaries were present on the occasion. The URL address of the website is: www.radiokashmirjammu.com


After inaugurating the website, Hon'ble MoS Smt. Sethi said, "Everything is well connected with technology today. Children can access data from anywhere through mobile devices. The easiness of accessibility means that we need to provide quality service with transparency." Hon'ble MoS Smt. Sethi also said that radio has come alive in the recent years.

Radio Kashmir Jammu has been the pivotal medium of communication on which social, cultural and other interactions have been taking place ever since its foundation in December 1947. Radio Kashmir Jammu's website is a step towards openness and transparency. It will help connect with new audience using of mobile devices. The site has links for people seeking information on programming and advertising aspects of the station. It also carries information on the technical and cultural aspects of the station besides providing information related with many other facets to facilitate clear and transparent communication with its audience.

Thursday, July 21, 2016

RRI Contest “The 3rd RadiRo International Radio Orchestras Festival"

Dear friends of RRI, you are once again invited to a prize winning contest: "The 3rd RadiRo International Radio Orchestras Festival". It is dedicated to a unique musical event in Europe, bringing to the Radio Concert Hall stage 6 major orchestras and world famous soloists and conductors.

Radio Romania is the organizer of the 3rd  International Radio Orchestra Festival between 23 September and 1 October, the only musical event cultivating the skill and excellence of radio symphony orchestras around the world every 2 years, since 2012.

The 9-day festival will bring together on the Radio Concert Hall stage 5 famous classical music ensembles from around Europe, and, as a first for Bucharest, a Chinese ensemble, the Shenzhen Symphony Orchestra. The latter opens the festival on September 23rd with a concert headlined by Chinese pianist Zuo Zhang and Romanian violinist Gabriel Croitoru, playing the famous Guarneri de Gesu violin that used to belong to the great Romanian musician George Enescu.

The festival features the Norwegian Radio Orchestra, which performs every year at the Nobel Peace Prize awarding ceremony. One other notable presence is the MDR Leipzig Radio Symphony Orchestra, the oldest radio orchestra in Germany, under the baton of Kristjan Järvi, who is also the honorary director of RadiRo 2016.

The Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra brings to the festival famous violinist Gidon Kremer. The BBC Concert Orchestra, conducted by Barry Wordsworth, will close the festival on October 1st. The Romanian National Radio Orchestra will hold two concerts at the RadiRo Festival, on September 26th and 30th, featuring conductors Cristian Macelaru and Leo Hussain, alongside violin soloist Alexandru Tomescu and cellist Razvan Suma, with the participation of the Radio Academic Choir and the Radio Children's Choir.

You are invited to follow RRI broadcasts, our website, www.rri.ro, and our Facebook ,Twitter, Google+ and LinkedIn profiles, and to answer correctly, in writing, a few questions, and you may be a winner. The closing date is October 1st, 2016 mailing date.

The prizes and honorary mentions consist of Romanian and international classical music CDs signed by famous Romanian artists, as well as various cultural items. The contest is organized jointly with the Nicolae Tonitza Fine Art High School of Bucharest, Casa Radio Publishing House, and Electrecord label.

And here are the questions:

- Name the year of the first edition of the International Radio Orchestras Festival

-  Who is the honorary director of the 3rd edition of the festival?

 - How many orchestras will be performing at the 2016 edition of RadiRo?

 - Who is the organizer of the festival?

Please tell us what prompted you to participate in the contest and why you are listening to RRI's broadcasts and following RRI's content online. Our address is: Radio Romania International, 60-64 G-ral Berthelot Street, District 1, Bucharest, PO Box 111, zip code 010165, fax 00.40.21.319.05.62, e-mail: engl@rri.ro. Please send your answers by October 1st 2016, mailing date. The winners of the Grand Prize will be announced soon after that date. Good luck!

(Radio Romania International English Newsletter)

Heat Wave Could Bring Unusual TV, Radio Reception

The summer heat wave could bring unusual reception to TV's and radios in the Northland.

A phenomenon known as tropospheric ducting often accompanies hot summertime weather. The tropospheric layer of the atmosphere can help TV and radio signals travel hundreds of miles farther than normal, sometimes bringing all-day reception of distant signals.

Full story at :

North Korean Shortwave Numbers Station Active Again

North Korea broadcasted indecipherable five-digit number segments during a radio segment on Friday, a Cold War-era espionage method intended to relay information to agents in the field, says a North Korea intelligence source, according Korean Joongang Daily.

The source exclusively told the JoongAng Ilbo that the North's propaganda radio station Pyongyang Radio Station aired a 12-minute segment in which a female announcer read five-digit numbers for 12 minutes, the first such broadcast in 16 years.

Full story at :



Jeypore station struggles to be on 'AIR'

JEYPORE: ALL India Radio, Jeypore is pitiably understaffed and is struggling to maintain its normal day-to-day operations. Prime Minister Narendra Modi's 'Mann Ki Baat', the weekly programme, too has failed to revive the fortunes of the 45-year-old station, one of the leading radio stations in the State.

Full story at : 



Reach Beyond Australia - Broadcast schedule for 3rd transmitter

Reach Beyond Australia - Broadcast schedules for the third transmitter by program and by language :



By Program -    http://tinyurl.com/jaqfq9a



Tuesday, July 19, 2016

Digital Radio Mondiale at IBC 2016: ‘DRM: Smart Radio for All’

Digital Radio Mondiale (DRM) is busy preparing for this year's International Broadcasting Convention (IBC) in Amsterdam 9th - 13th September. IBC is the leading global tradeshow for broadcasters and media professionals and attracts over 150,000 visitors every year from over 160 countries worldwide.

This year we aim to have the strongest and most varied presence at IBC yet. Participants will be able to see and hear the latest on DRM; receive the latest updates on market developments in Asia, Africa, Europe and Latin America and attend demonstrations of all the latest DRM equipment.

All those interested are invited to meet DRM experts, broadcasters and manufacturers: GatesAir on Friday 9th September (Hall 8 B80 1400 to 1500), Thomson Broadcast on Saturday 10th September, from 1230 to 1330 (Hall 8 C35), Nautel in the afternoon between 1530 and 1700 (Hall 8 C49). And Sunday September 11th will feature a joint event between Ampegon and Transradio from 1400 to 1500 (Hall 8 D35).

DRM has made significant progress over the last twelve months particularly in the receiver and car industries

where the unveiling of software digital radio, the commercial launch of the full-feature DRM Indian receiver and the development of a line-fit car receiver by a top car manufacturer are among the highlights.

Ruxandra Obreja, the Consortium Chairman, says that: "If one thing has become clear to us in the last 12 months more than ever it is that digital radio is absolutely the future of radio. As more than one platform or one device is now capable of carrying digital audio broadcasting the various key organisations, regulators, broadcasters and the receiver and automotive industry have to be urged and convinced to embrace publicly the duality and complementarity of the open DRM and DAB standards as the complete Digital Radio solution able to offer full and comprehensive country coverage and full services to all listeners. In our view this means a digital future for all broadcasters large or small, offering more programme choice to listeners, extra multimedia services with text and images, increased energy savings and spectrum efficiency. We hope that IBC will be the perfect forum to demonstrate once again the benefits of DRM and its compatibility and complementarity with other open standards."

Other DRM members present at IBC are: Babcock International, Fraunhofer IIS, Panasonic, RIZ Transmitters and RFmondial.

If you want to attend the DRM events please contact: projectoffice@drm.org

About DRM

Digital Radio Mondiale™ (DRM) is the universal, openly standardised digital broadcasting system for all broadcasting frequencies.

The DRM standard comprises two major configurations: 'DRM30' intended for broadcasts on short, medium and long wave up to 30 MHz and providing large coverage areas and low power consumption. The configuration for the VHF bands above 30 MHz is called 'DRM+', tailored for local and regional coverage with broadcaster-controlled transmissions.

All DRM configurations share the same audio coding, data and multimedia services, service linking, multiplexing and signalling schemes. DRM provides high quality sound combined with a wealth of enhanced features: Surround Sound, Journaline text information, Slideshow, EPG, and data services.

The DRM Consortium was awarded by ITU for it outstanding contribution to the Telecommunications over the past years and has signed the EBU Smart Radio Memorandum that promotes access to free to air radio on all devices.

For more information and DRM updates please visit www.drm.org or subscribe to DRM news by writing to pressoffice@drm.org.  Click here for the Newsletter with all the latest DRM news from around the world.

--
DRM Consortium
Site for DRM: www.drm.org

RTI German special broadcasts

The German service  of Radio Taiwan International will have special broadcasts during August, Septemeber and October 2016 directly from Tamshui transmitter site in Taiwan. Reception reports will be verified with a special QSL-card.

Here's the schedule :

Frequency : 11665 kHz

July 22, 2016 at 1600-1610 UTC in AM and at 1620-1630 UTC in DRM (Test)

Aug 26, 27, 28 , 2016 and Sep 02, 03 and 04, 2016 all at 1600-1700 UTC AM

Oct 01, 02, 03, 08 and 09, 2016 all at 1000-1100 UTC in AM

Oct 10, 2016 at 1000-1100 UTC in DRM.

(Ghibaudo, DX-Window No. 559, Danish  Shortwave  Club  International)

Wednesday, July 13, 2016

Germany: Media Broadcast Adds More Transmitter Sites

Germany's digital radio network has grown, with service provider Media Broadcast announcing it added additional transmitter sites across the country.

More at:






Broadcast Australia Updating Sites With Nautel

In an effort to upgrade legacy 50 kW transmitters across Australia, Broadcast Australia has announced that it has acquired four NX50 50 kW AM transmitters from Nautel Limited and its in-country partner Sonifex Pty Ltd - Australia. 

More at :


Voice of America Marks 40th Anniversary of its 'Charter'

This week marks a major milestone for the Voice of America - the 40th anniversary of the VOA Charter.

On July 12, 1976, President Gerald Ford signed the Charter into law, institutionalizing what long had been the Voice of America's standard for journalistic excellence. "The VOA Charter has never been more important than it is today," said VOA Director Amanda Bennett. "The world needs a reliable and authoritative source of news and information, which is what the VOA Charter intends us to be. It also states that we are to represent all Americans, not just a single aspect of American society. We are tasked with telling the truth and to tell it from all sides. That's free press; that's fair press. That's the Voice of America."

VOA Charter

The long-range interests of the United States are served by communicating directly with the peoples of the world by radio. To be effective, the Voice of America must win the attention and respect of listeners. These principles will therefore govern Voice of America (VOA) broadcasts:

VOA will serve as a consistently reliable and authoritative source of news. VOA news will be accurate, objective, and comprehensive.

VOA will represent America, not any single segment of American society, and will therefore present a balanced and comprehensive projection of significant American thought and institutions.

VOA will present the policies of the United States clearly and effectively, and will also present responsible discussions and opinion on these policies.

Gerald R. Ford
President of the United States of America
Signed July 12, 1976
Public Law 94-350

Since its creation at the beginning of World War II, the Voice of America has told its audiences the truth. Through that conflict, the Cold War, and the fight against global terrorism and the struggle for freedom around the globe today, VOA has been an example to the world by upholding the principles of a free press.

(VOA Press release)

Monday, July 11, 2016

Radio Caroline Special Event Station on 5-8 August

Radio Caroline Special Event Station

July 10, 2016 Colin Butler

Over the weekend of 5-8th August 2016, amateur radio operators from the Martello Tower Group will be running the GB5RC special event station to celebrate offshore radio station Radio Caroline.

Now an online service, Radio Caroline started as an offshore "pirate" station over five decades ago.

The Martello Group will be operational from MV Ross Revenge, using verticals for 40m, 20m (adjustable to 17m), 15m (adjustable for 12m) and 10m upon the stern of the ship.

Special QSL cards will be available.

Radio amateurs were instrumental in keeping Radio Caroline on the air in the 1960's and 1970's. Among them was Chelmsford Amateur Radio Society member Carl Thomson G3PEM who was Chief Radio Engineer on both Radio Caroline North and Radio Caroline South in the mid 1960's.


Martello Tower Group - http://www.martellotowergroup.com/

Via KC9LDO

Saturday, July 02, 2016

The many avatars of the radio

Be it the public service broadcaster All India Radio, the FM channels, community radio or online radio portals, the airwaves are busy in India, says Pulugurta Chandra Sekhar

More at :


69th establishment day of AIR Guwahati

SIVASISH THAKUR
GUWAHATI, June 30 - The All India Radio (AIR) Guwahati will celebrate its 69th establishment day tomorrow. From its inception as the Shillong-Guwahati station of All India Radio on July 1, 1948, the Guwahati station of AIR is currently a full-fledged regional station airing wide-ranging programmes including news bulletins that have been able to retain their appeal even today despite the challenges posed by the boom in the electronic media.

Full story at :