German Public Broadcasters Plan LW and MW Shutdowns

Jul 8, 2013 - German public broadcasters Deutschlandfunk and Deutschland Radio Kultur will decommission their medium-wave and long-wave transmitters by the end of 2014, according to RadioNL. The money saved will go in to the expansion of their DAB+ transmission capabilities.

DeutschlandFunk has transmitters on 153 kHz and 207 kHz, along with seven MW frequencies, including 1269 kHz and 549 kHz. Deutschland Radio Kultur has stations on 177 kHz and 990 kHz. The LW power levels are 500 kW, and the MW power levels are between 100 and 400 kW. The broadcasters expect to save millions of Euros every year in electricity costs.

Both DeutschlandFunk and Deutschland Radio Kultur are available around Germany via FM, and increasingly, via DAB+. However, the shipping industry makes use of the 1269 kHz and 177 kHz frequencies, since messages regarding the shipping forecast are broadcast thrice daily. The public broadcasters both say that the same information is available via alternative methods, including DAB+ and via the public Internet.

(via Dennis Gibson, ABDX via DXLD)