The DRM Consortium demonstrated its digital radio technology during the four-day World Audio Visual & Entertainment Summit (Waves), held in Mumbai from May 1 to 4. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi formally opened the event, which included the launch of the government’s “Create in India” initiative, intended to strengthen the country’s global media and entertainment presence.
Key member organisations from India and abroad represented DRM. Its booth featured a live transmission setup and hands-on demonstrations of DRM reception on mobile devices, car dashboards and a new low-cost receiver, the N88, set for manufacture in India. DRM says the booth drew interest from visitors, including government representatives, broadcasters and a delegation from Tanzania.
During the summit’s only radio-focused session on May 2, DRM Consortium Chair Ruxandra Obreja and vice chair Alexander Zink of Fraunhofer IIS presented the case for extending DRM to the FM band in India. They noted that over seven million vehicles on Indian roads are already equipped with DRM-capable receivers, and advocated for wider deployment to benefit public and private broadcasters and listeners. They also emphasised that DRM can be integrated without disrupting current services by using white space and existing infrastructure in urban areas.
A Maruti vehicle equipped with a DRM receiver was stationed next to the booth throughout the event, allowing attendees to experience live DRM broadcasts from AIR Mumbai.
Member companies, including CML Micro, Fraunhofer IIS, Starwaves, Gospell, Inntot, Optm, NXP, RFmondial, Alongside Tech and Solar Grove Solutions provided demonstrations across the transmission chain. These included emergency alerting via Fraunhofer’s content server, distance education via DRM to tablets, mobile reception with dongles, and coordinated public signage.
