Norway becomes first country to shut down FM radio
Norway will become the first country to switch entirely from FM radio to digital broadcasting, after an unpopular decision from parliament gave the go-ahead. On January 11th, at 11:11:11 AM, Norway will begin shutting the network down, first in the northern town of Bodø.
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By the end of the year, the entirety of the country's FM network will have gone dark, being replaced by Digital Audio Broadcasting networks.
Few are happy about this move: a poll showed that 66 percent of Norwegians opposed the switch, while only 17 percent supported it.
Though Norway currently broadcasts using both traditional FM and digital methods, many people still listen the old fashioned way.
Particularly concerning are the 2 million cars on the road that can't receive a digital transmission.
To do so, they'd need to buy a digital audio broadcasting (DAB) receiver, which costs the equivalent of $175 in U.S. currency.
In the case of an emergency, these cars may not be able to hear a crucial radio broadcast. Elderly people are also less likely to listen to the radio digitally, putting them more at risk for missing out on an emergency announcement.
The decision to turn off FM is based mostly on the cost of keeping the two systems running at once.
The FM broadcast network and the DAB network each cost about $29 million to run, money that could be used for other essential government expenses.
Norway is a large country, with only 5 million people spread out over mountainous terrain, making broadcasting far distances difficult.
Proponents of the switch say that DAB is clearer and a better fit for this environment. DAB would also allow eight times as many stations to broadcast than FM, for the same price.
Norway isn't the only country considering this switch. Switzerland is planning to transition in 2020, and the UK and Denmark are considering it. Norway's experiment will show the rest of the world whether this controversial idea can really work.