BBC wants to keep FM radio This is good news for classic car enthusiasts with older radios - spotted by Keith Belcher. News item from the BBC says it wants to keep FM radio for the foreseeable future. More Report from DTG alongside - DTG is a self-funding UK collaboration centre for innovation in digital media technology, set up in 1995 with the purpose of looking after the digital TV marketplace. More Classic radio AM/FM clarified Radio 4's long wave goodbye Article in the Guardian. News Updated: 180326 Posted: 180325 The BBC says it wants to keep FM radio for the foreseeable future rather than switch over entirely to digital. BBC director of radio and music, Bob Shennan, said that "audiences want choice. We need to do more in the UK before we consider a switchover and for that to be genuinely led by the audience," he told a conference in Vienna. He added "we are fully committed to digital and we believe we should review the landscape again in a few years' time." DTG says "the BBC has cancelled its planned FM radio switch off with concerns that not enough listeners have made the switch to Digital Audio Broadcast (DAB) radios. Bob Shennan, Director of Radio and Music at the BBC, told the Radiodays Europe conference in Vienna that the BBC opposes a forced switch-off of FM broadcasts, arguing instead for a 'hybrid' future: "We all once thought that DAB was the only future of radio, but audiences want choice. We now know DAB is important, but is only a part of the story, along with FM and IP. We need to do more before we consider a switchover in the UK, and for that to be genuinely audience-led. For now, we believe audiences are best served by a mixed economy. Radio is also better served by a mixed economy." Shennan also urged commercial broadcasters to collaborate on initiatives to ensure that radio remains relevant in an era of 5G connectivity as Ofcom's spectrum auction gets underway, saying: "How can radio make the most of this technology? Or more pressing still, how can we protect the critical radio space in cars, where we need to work with suppliers to ensure that radio thrives as part of the connected dashboard?"