UK: Do you want FM and AM radio to continue operating?

Question

No decision has been made yet to eventually switch off the transmitters to FM and AM.

I like DAB radio, but for battery controlled radios they are very expensive to run, we paid £149 for a ministry of sound pocket Dab radio it went wrong after just one year.

I think the best use of the wavebands currently used for FM and AM radio, are best used for those radio services.

Answer 1

yes

Answer 2

Yes,Music is my life

Answer 3

Yes.  As much as I love DAB and listen at home using DAB most of the time, when out and about, I keep finding areas (in London and when I visit family in the West Country), where there is little or no signal and have to switch to AM/FM.  With the whole digital switchover thing going on, I think that coverage and signal strength need to be sorted before everything is switched off.

Answer 4

yeah it should stay i love music

Answer 5

no i want to move with the times

regards x kitti x

Answer 6

Yes - if only (for FM) the far superior sound quality.

AM/Medium wave is still useful for speech based stations and for covering a large listener base due to the larger distances the signal can travel compared to FM/VHF (which is line-of-sight no matter how much power the transmitter broadcasts).

FM is also handy for pirate stations especially in London where the underground urban music scene still thrives partly due to new music getting it's first exposure on the pirates.

In the UK, there is still plenty of room to fit in lots more small independent and community based stations provided sensible power levels are used.

Answer 7

yes,im always listening to the radio.

Answer 8

I am a huge fan of DAB, but they use a lot of power, and considering that it would be good to reduce power consumption, it's rather unfortunate.  Also, it means everyone's going to have to throw out their old radios and buy new ones, which again is very un-Green.  I'm also not sure how well a DAB system would function in an emergency without electrical power, because the batteries would run down very quickly.  It also depends on more complex technology and therefore a more advanced infrastructure than analogue.  It's possible to knock up an analogue radio with one valve, but a DAB radio depends on integrated circuits.  This discourages self-sufficiency.  The DAB system also depends a lot on regulations and is therefore more vulnerable to state control, so it could restrict the freedom of the media.

On the other hand, if analogue radio is switched off, maybe it could be taken over by amateurs and be a sort of underground thing, like the pirate stations, which would be really great.

Answer 9

Yes, but only because my car doesn't have a DAB radio, also they need to come down in price to be as affordable as AM/FM radios. I like the amount of choice you have with DAB, but its just not ready yet.

Answer 10

DAB radios are now as cheap as £30. AM/FM to continue? A big yes. If the existing big boys leave then power to the community stations and pirates that take their place.

Answer 11

FM must continue, AM not so important  these days

Answer 12

XM radio is huge and if that was to take total control is am/ fm, then so be it. i wouldn't mind at all

Answer 13

What about short wave why leave that out.