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French broadcasters have united in a call for mandatory FM/DAB+ receivers in new vehicles and free, prominent access to terrestrial radio through a physical control or the first screen of the multimedia interface. France’s public broadcaster Radio France, commercial radio trade group Alliance de la Radio and community radio umbrella organization Les Locales set out their requests in a joint statement issued Sept. 21. They urged the government to guarantee terrestrial radio a prominent place on the dashboard.
“French people’s access to radio cannot depend on a commercial agreement between an automaker and a streaming platform. It is up to lawmakers to guarantee it, not the market,” said Alliance de la Radio President Constance Benqué. Under the European Electronic Communications Code, any radio receiver integrated into a new category M vehicle — one designed to carry passengers — must be capable of receiving digital terrestrial radio. The requirement does not mandate a receiver, however, so selling a vehicle without one does not breach that provision. As RedTech reported from IBC2026, industry organizations are calling for the proposed Digital Networks Act to require terrestrial reception and cover additional vehicle categories.
A French government response published Sept. 10, however, outlined a different approach. In response to a written question from French Sen. Laure Darcos, the Industry Ministry said the ministers responsible for industry and digital affairs favored retaining the existing requirement but opposed extending it to category N goods vehicles and category T wheeled tractors. It cited regulatory burdens, costs and changing media habits in vehicles. It also proposed testing a radio discoverability solution, potentially software-based, for a new category of small electric vehicles under consideration at EU level, with an application managed by a trusted third party.
The broadcasters are urging France to support mandatory FM/DAB+ reception in EU negotiations and back Article 2 of French Sen. Laurent Lafon’s radio modernization bill without weakening it. Introduced in June and awaiting its first reading, the bill would require FM and digital terrestrial radio receivers in new passenger vehicles and motorized quadricycles. It does not, however, specify physical controls or first-screen access.
The statement also points to car radios as a way to receive emergency information when power and telecommunications networks fail. “A car without a receiver is a blind spot for civil protection,” said Radio France president Sibyle Veil.
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