The DRM Consortium held its 2025 General Assembly in Dubai on May 16–17, bringing together members from more than 20 countries to review progress and outline strategic goals for the upcoming year. The event, which included both in-person and virtual participation, focused on developments in India, China, Indonesia and across Africa.
The first day featured updates on key markets. In India, attention remains on the anticipated FM digitization decision following the recent Waves summit in Mumbai. China was another major focus. Delegates were told that the country’s regulators are advancing DRM and CDR as standard digital radio technologies for the automotive sector, with a formal project plan completed in April and an initial review already approved by the national standards committee.
DRM also featured prominently at the China Content Broadcasting Network event in Beijing, where four consortium members demonstrated an end-to-end solution, including Emergency Warning Functionality and live shortwave broadcasting in partnership with SAIC Motor.
Indonesia presented results from a recently completed digital-analog radio trial in Yogyakarta, using a multi-standard prototype receiver (DRM, DAB+ and analog) developed by RF2Digital and Elements Innovation. The trial confirmed stable performance and clear audio, with the receiver also on display at the Dubai meeting.
Hardware development
The session also included demonstrations by receiver manufacturers and technology developers, including Gospell, Starwaves, CML Micro, Inntot, RF2Digital, Fraunhofer IIS, Skyworks, NXP and others. There was sustained interest in multi-standard receivers, as well as solutions tailored for car dashboards, mobile devices and home use. Discussion also noted that more than seven million cars in India now support DRM, with more than a million using Indian-made Inntot modules.
The General Assembly reviewed progress on DRM’s distance learning project in West Africa, which was highlighted at a recent pan-African e-learning event in Tanzania. Members acknowledged the roles of Encompass Media, Starwaves and Fraunhofer IIS, with further deployments planned for The Gambia and other countries.
On May 17, members reviewed achievements from 2024 to 2025 and set new targets. DRM Consortium Chairman Ruxandra Obreja said the meeting served as a global forum for sharing positive developments and launching new initiatives. “We have more members and more projects than ever before,” Obreja said. “We need to build on the great achievements of DRM in China, Indonesia, Pakistan, Nepal, Africa and elsewhere, and be very clear that the open DRM digital standard is for all. DRM is efficient, saves money and offers services that leave no one behind.”
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