Mike Butcher

DAB radios being sold in the shops today will not be able to receive any of the many new stations that will launch using the new “AAC+” format in the coming years. Many of the new AAC+ radios will probably launch within the next three years, some as early as summer/autumn 2007:

“How quickly it will be before AAC+ is used on DAB is dependent on the proportion of DAB receivers in the UK market that support the new DAB standard. The good news is that DAB is still in the relatively early stages of growth, and sales are forecast to really take off over the next few years.”

James Cridland, head of new media at Virgin Radio, is leaving after six years to work for the BBC, as Head of Future Media & Technology, Audio & Music. "It’s a massive change for me, and a thrill to work with such a great team," he wrote on his blog today. Cridland has spearheaded Virgin's new media strategy and in many respects has enabled the radio station to use new media to punch above its weight, including overtaking Capital Radio's early lead on the web in the late 90s. The move presages another big change tbites is aware of, where a BBC big-hitter is about to switch to a rival broadcaster. Watch this space.