European Broadcasting Union hosts live radio shows from European Parliament

Geneva, 11 October 2011 – The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) will today host live radio shows in French and English from inside the European Parliament, in Brussels, to demonstrate how practical, cheap and easy it is to broadcast with digital hybrid (multimedia) radio technology. The event is a prelude to the EBU New Radio Group's annual Digital Radio Conference, and is timed to coincide with the release of the EBU Viewpoint on the Future of Digital Radio (download here).

The one-hour live shows are to take place in French between 1400 - 1500, and in English from 1600 - 1700 in the Vox Box, a multimedia studio in the European Parliament. The English language show will be hosted by award-winning Swedish Radio presenter, Lotta Bromé (P4 Extra).

A live online stream of the shows can be found via the link: http://digitalradioconference.ebu.ch/listen

It is the EBU's firm conviction that digital broadcast radio is pivotal to radio's progress, and that the future of radio listening will be via a combination of broadcast and internet. But the EBU believes that for digital radio to succeed in Europe, national governments must act decisively, and plan digital launch scenarios amid a broader, coordinated EU-wide approach.

These arguments and others are laid out in the EBU Viewpoint, a document that explains in straightforward terms why digital radio is important for Europe, and calls for greater impetus to drive the technology's implementation to the top of the radio agenda.

This year's EBU Digital Radio Conference gathers key figures from public service and commercial broadcasters, politicians and radio industry professionals from across Europe to discuss the future of radio. Policymakers, broadcasters and other stakeholders in the future of radio will scrutinise current trends and identify ways to ensure radio remains accessible and relevant to life in the digital age.

Confirmed conference speakers are:

• French MEP Jean-Marie Cavada
• Norwegian State Secretary Roger Solheim
• Michael Niebel (European Commission)
• Michael Reichert (Project Manager, Future Radio, ARD)
• Francis Goffin (Radio Director, RTBF)
• Anthony Sethill (CEO, Frontier Silicon)
• Raina Konstantinova (Director of Radio, EBU)

Note to editors:
About the EBU

The EBU serves 85 national media organizations in 56 countries in and around Europe. It represents its Members and promotes the values and distinctiveness of public service media in Europe and around the world. The Eurovision and Euroradio networks deliver news, sports, events and music to EBU Members and other media organizations. Services to Members range from legal advice, technical standardization and development to coproduction and exchange of quality European content.  For more information about the EBU: www.ebu.ch