Applications have opened for the final round of small-scale DAB radio multiplex licences, covering 40 areas across the UK.
This eighth round marks the last stage of Ofcom’s programme, which has already led to 75 multiplexes going live across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Once complete, the initiative will support more than 100 small-scale multiplexes nationwide.
Each multiplex licence allows community services, specialist music stations and stations aimed at under-served groups to broadcast on digital radio. Ofcom says this expansion is designed to give listeners more choice and to provide opportunities for stations that may not otherwise reach digital audiences.
The new areas now open for applications include towns and regions across all four nations.
Licences are also being re-advertised for several locations where they have not yet been awarded.
Ofcom has set the closing date for applications as 5pm on 10 December this year. In addition to multiplex operators, the regulator is also encouraging applications from organisations who want to provide a Community Digital Sound Programme (C-DSP) service on small-scale DAB.
Areas are:
Aberystwyth
Andover
Armagh
Ballymena
Barnsley
Barnstaple & Bideford
Brecon
Burton-on-Trent & Lichfield
Bury St Edmunds, Thetford & Mildenhall
Cheltenham & Tewkesbury
Chesterfield
Chippenham & Malmesbury
Coleraine
Cookstown & Dungannon
East Cornwall
East Edinburgh & South Forth coast
Falmouth, Penzance & Redruth
Gairloch
Girvan & Cumnock
Grantham & Sleaford
Grimsby
Kilmarnock
Leamington Spa & Stratford-upon-Avon
Mansfield & Worksop
Monmouth
Newbury
Newquay, St Austell & Truro
North Powys
Omagh
Perth
Peterlee
Pitlochry & Aberfeldy
Scunthorpe
Skye & Lochalsh
South Hams
South Powys
Stroud
Telford & Shrewsbury
Tiverton
Ullapool
Plus:
Berwickshire & Roxburgh
Chester
Derby
Dundee & North East Fife
Guildford & Woking
Lincoln
Kintyre, Islay & Jura
South West Fife
South West Sussex
Weymouth & Dorchester
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