LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Frontier Smart Technologies, a leading supplier of digital audio solutions, announces that lifetime sales of the Group’s digital radio chips and modules now exceed 45 million units. Following a record year in 2017, cumulative sales achieved this peak in the opening weeks of 2018.
Sales in 2017 benefited from strong growth across Europe – not only with the switch-off of FM in Norway, but also with significant advances in Germany, The Netherlands, France, Italy, Denmark and Belgium.
The 45 million milestone has been achieved at a time when support in Europe for regulation requiring radio receivers to have both analogue and digital capability is growing:
- In October, the European Parliament published an amendment in favour of radio receiver regulation1
- In December, Italy passed a law requiring all new radio receivers from 1 Jan 2020 to have digital capability2
- In January, the French regulator confirmed DAB+ coverage is expected to exceed 20% of the population - triggering a legal requirement for new receivers in France to have digital capability3
- In Germany, the Bundesrat (the Länder) has called on the EU to revise the European Electronic Communications Code4 - effectively requiring radio receivers to offer digital capability
Switzerland is the next country to switch off its FM broadcasts, starting in 2020. In the UK, 2018 is likely to see digital platforms account for 50% of radio listening, a figure which will prompt a government review of the UK’s long term digital radio plans.
Anthony Sethill, Chief Executive Officer, Frontier Smart Technologies, said:
“The achievement of this milestone reflects both sustained growth in the digital radio market and Frontier’s strong leadership position in this sector. We expect to exceed 50 million units during 2018 – and, with Switzerland starting its FM switch-off in 2020 and growing interest in receiver regulation, prospects for further growth in volumes over the next three years are promising.”
About Frontier Smart Technologies Group Limited
Frontier Smart Technologies is the world’s leading supplier of technology solutions for consumer audio devices. Customers supplied by Frontier include Bose, Denon, Grundig, harman/kardon, Hama, JBL, Marshall, Onkyo, Panasonic, Philips, Pioneer, Pure, Roberts, Sony, TechniSat, UrbanEars, Yamaha, and many more.
1 http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?pubRef=-//EP//NONSGML+REPORT+A8-2017-0318+0+DOC+PDF+V0//EN (Annex X, para 2a.)
2 http://www.gazzettaufficiale.it/eli/id/2017/12/29/17G00222/sg (item 1044)
3 http://www.csa.fr/Espace-juridique/Decisions-du-CSA/Radio-feuille-de-route-2018-2020-pour-le-deploiement-du-DAB (section 3)
4 https://www.bundesrat.de/SharedDocs/drucksachen/2017/0701-0800/727-17(B).pdf?__blob=publicationFile&v=1 (paragraphs 13-16)
