article date: 31 March 2008

ref: 295

Forces station BFBS Radio has ended its trial on national DAB digital radio. The station came off air at 23:59 on 31st March 2008.

BFBS Radio's three month trial allowed it to conduct market research with its target audience in the UK and assess informal feedback from listeners. The results of the trial have now been passed to the Ministry of Defence to help with future consideration of whether to make the station permanently available via terrestrial radio across the UK.

BFBS Radio has been broadcasting to the British Forces overseas since 1943. The station currently has bases in eleven countries including Iraq, Germany and the Falkland Islands. It reaches dozens of other territories, including Afghanistan and Kosovo, via satellite. BFBS Radio plays a wide variety of music, has its own news and sports service and specialises in on-air messages and requests between servicemen and women and their families.

During the Digital One trial, listeners in Britain were able to hear programmes from BFBS studios in Iraq and Germany and send messages and dedications which could be heard by members of the Forces serving around the world.

BFBS Radio's Controller, Charles Foster commented "We're sad that the trial has ended and are disappointed that we have not been able to secure funding to continue. However, the project has been valuable. We know from all the emails and texts we've received that the UK audience values the link with people serving overseas. We've also gained insights from the market research we commissioned. There's strong evidence in favour of making BFBS Radio a permanent part of the DAB digital radio landscape and we'll continue discussions to try to achieve that. We're hoping that some of our DAB digital radio listeners will continue to listen via satellite television and the internet."

The Chief Executive of the national digital radio company Digital One, Quentin Howard, commented, "The trial delivered very positive evidence that BFBS Radio was highly valued both by people serving in the Forces, and also their families and friends. The wider civilian population also seems to have enjoyed and appreciated the station, forging a helpful link between ordinary citizens and Her Majesty's Armed Forces. We enjoyed working with the team at BFBS Radio and hope that in the not too distant future that the station will become a permanent feature of DAB digital radio."

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