This is, as you can imagine, a very big story in the U.K. This article aims to bypass DAB (and DAB+) and suggests some pretty eclectic radio alternatives on the web. Some of these I knew, others I've never heard of. But it certainly is an interesting list!

Like Radio Swiss Classic.

"Its greatest asset lies in its sleek simplicity. “No advertisements, no news, no inane chatter, no one telling you their name every few minutes,” writes Ryder. “Just an announcer who tells you, at the end of the piece, its name in German.”

Forget DAB – eight great international radio stations you can listen to on the internet

Proof that it wasn't quite like Brylcreem - a little DAB won't do ya. 

Yes, the L-Band selection in Canada (1.5 GHz) was a fatal choice, probably predicated on the fact that it was about the only available spectrum.  The other problem is that the Americans would never adopt it because it was a spectrum reserved for military use in the U.S. DAB in Europe was implemented in Band III (174-240 MHz), which had been vacated as a result of all TV transmissions being on UHF. In North American, Band III continues to be occupied by VHF TV channels 7-13, albeit less so since the spectrum repack. Band III has the big advantage of a lot greater distance for less power compared to 1.5 GHz.

The obsolence of the original DAB by DAB+ arose due to the adoption of AAC audio codecs versus MP2, There was no reverse compatibility.  In the case of ATSC 3.0 versus 1.0, the modulation scheme has changed from 8VSB to OFDM, which ironically is what Canada pushed for unsucessfully in discussions with the U.S. when the DTV transmission standards were being set for North America.  OFDM has been used since the outset in Europe for DVB (Digital Video Broadcasting)
ATSC 3.0 supports a plethora of modulation schemes (up to 256 QAM) and video compression schemes.  This would enable 4k video if anybody really wanted to produce it in quantity.
In the past there was a big emphasis on backward compatibility, accompanied by signficant compromises. NTSC colour was receivable on black and white TV sets, and FM stereo was receivable on mono receivers. The problem is that you can't make quantum leaps in transmission reliability and video/audio signal quality without totally abandoning the old technology.  At least for many of the radio services on DAB in the UK (such as Classic FM) there is still an analog nation-wide FM stereo network underlying it.  The standalone new services are out of luck.
Having TV and radio receivers capable of a firmware upgrade would be the ideal solutions, but the consumer electronic manufacturers would be dead set against anything that guards against obsolescence. Unfortunately, historically the U.S. FCC has mandated transmission standards, not receiver standards.  A 2022 inquiry into mandating interference immunity has been met with considerable backlash.

 

It is always interesting that radio is such a big deal in Europe, much more than in North America.  And also the continued success of BBC radio and their many channels. 

The second quarter of 2023 all BBC radio stations combined had a weekly audience of 31.7 million people tuning in and a share of 43.2%. 

BBC Radio 2 is the UK's most listened to radio station with a weekly audience of 13.5 million listeners.  Nearly 1 in 4 adults in the UK listen to the station.  The BBC is also experiencing strong growth in digital listening across their many platforms. 

Some more data from BBC's Media Centre..https://www.bbc.com/mediacentre/2023/bbc-sounds-huge-digital-growth-listener-growth-bbc-radio-1-asian-network-5-sports-extra