Trade association takes issue with DAB+ campaign
Private radio stations and SRG competitors plan to take joint measures to promote digital radio. The Swiss Trade Association criticizes the SRG for using the private stations as a tool in this effort.
Last week, the radio industry signed an agreement defining the switch from analog FM to digital DAB+ broadcasting (Werbewoche.ch reported). The strategy paper sets out the modalities in terms of finances, organization, responsibilities and marketing. For the agreement to come into force, the people must approve the revision to the Federal Radio and Television Act (RTGB) on June 14.
The SRG is abusing digitization to win over the private sector in the referendum campaign for the media tax, SGV Director Hans-Ulrich Bigler told Schweiz am Sonntag. In this way, they are swearing them in to the media tax and luring them with additional subsidies. If the law comes into force, the SRG will finance two thirds of the marketing offensive. Until then, SRG will bear the agreed activities alone.
According to Bigler, this would also be an attempt to "create facts prematurely" with the use of fee money. Roger de Weck was putting the knife to the people's chest with this approach: "Either it's right in his mind, or he's producing losses in the millions."
The Association of Swiss Private Radio Stations (VSP) does not accept the accusation that private radio stations are being instrumentalized. They have their own reasons for being against the SGV referendum. According to President Jürg Bachmann, SRG would have an advantage if the SGV's referendum were accepted, because unlike the private stations, it could broadcast its programs digitally. An acceptance would "extremely harm" the private radio stations and endanger more than 1000 jobs. FM could only be taken out of operation when DAB+ had become the usual form of use. If the radios had to operate two technologies for years - with double the costs but the same number of listeners - "irreparable damage" would result.
FM is to be switched off definitively in 2024. This would only be possible with "massive investments in marketing," Bachmann said. The funds for this would have to be available as quickly as possible.
With the new law, radio stations can be directly supported in the changeover and the share from the fee pot for the private stations increases from four to six percent. (hae/SaS)
Image: Keystone/SRG
