the following sounds very much like the idea of
the "free box" presented by Frank Fremerey in his
workshop at the net.radio days in berlin. (soon
available online)

i can not hesitate to recommmend you to read
the15 DAB-Commandments written in 1995:
http://www.afrika.net/aepol2.htm

more later
/pit 
(from wmf)

---

A Unique Vision for Radio

(reuters)

6:04pm  11.Jun.98.PDT 

Noah Samara wants to take radio to remote African villages where children
ride on wooden bikes and roads don't even exist. And he wants to do it via
satellite.

On Thursday, the Ethiopian lawyer's vision of bringing about a radio
revolution in the Third World took a step closer to reality with new deals
announced to sign up four African and Middle Eastern stations to start
digital audio broadcasts.

Samara's Washington-based WorldSpace Corp. will use satellite technology to
transmit digital radio signals to advanced handheld receivers that it plans
to sell for US$200 each.

The Western world may be suffering from an information glut, but for
millions of illiterate people in Africa's traditionally oral society, radio
is the only medium for information. That is one commodity Samara is hoping
to cash in on.

"In Africa, information is scarce. So our project makes great business
sense. I can make a lot of money and do a lot of good," the WorldSpace
founder, chairman, and chief executive officer said in an interview.

He cited the example of Rwanda, where extremists used radio broadcasts to
exhort Hutus to kill Tutsis during the 1994 genocide.

"If a state radio station contributed to the genocide in Rwanda, imagine
what a digital and peaceful radio station could do to counter it," said
Samara.

Many radio stations in Africa and the Third World are state-controlled and
reflect only the views of the rulers. Samara says new technology will
enable a plurality of views to be broadcast.

"We will be providing services directly to the people," he said, when asked
if his broadcasts will bypass governments.

Samara expects the digital radios to be available to the retail market
early in 1999.

He recognizes the weakest link in his ambitious project -- how to sell
state-of-the-art digital radios to people at a price equal to their annual
incomes.

"Our main challenge will be getting the receivers to people who are
starving for information," said Samara.

The son of a former diplomat, Samara said he would initially target
middle-class listeners who can afford the radios. Once the market begins to
expand and more sets are produced, Samara hopes, the price of the receivers
will come down.

Africans will potentially be able to receive the signals when AfriStar, the
first of three satellites WorldSpace is planning to launch for the
developing world, is launched in October.

The broadcasts will include programs on health, education, women's issues,
news, and music and story channels for children, as well as relief
information for humanitarian emergencies.

The company plans to invest $1.5 billion in the project over the next three
years, and to make money by leasing capacity to Western and regional
broadcasters, sharing advertising revenues and selling information services.

Samara said the firm had a target of 8 million listeners with its receivers
within the next three years, in order to make a profit.

Check on other Web coverage of this story with NewsBot











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