Population:	9.1 million
Coverage:	35%
Services:	7 DAB, 2 Data

Last update: 20-01-2008

Radio is the most popular medium in Sweden. On an average day, just over 6 million Swedes aged between 9-79 years listen to the radio. The average radio use per day is 100 minutes. This makes radio more popular than television and the internet.

The future for digital radio in Sweden is currently looking positive. A report by the Swedish Radio and TV Authority for the Swedish government shows an unbiased review of various technology choices and gives a clear conclusion that DAB+ is the preferred choice for the Swedish market.  This will be considered when the Swedish government reviews the terms for the coming analogue licensing period starting in January 2010. Not least because all major Swedish broadcasters have declared that digital radio should be a part of the future radio landscape and that the coming licenses should cover both digital and analogue radio.

DAB coverage from the the Public Service broadcaster, Sveriges Radio, currently reaches about 35% of the population. 

Network operator, Teracom AB, continues work to improve network coverage to take advantage of the relaxations allowed by the Geneva-06 international frequency plan.

In this country there is

• National multiplex: 1 Regular

Digital radio in Sweden has switched its focus from coverage to content. Swedish Radio, the public broadcaster, is now offering 6 unique services on digital radio: SR Bubbel (children's programming), SR Klassiskt (classical music), P3 Star (aimed at young people), Sisuradio (for the Finnish spoken audience), SR Minnen (content from the archives) and SR Atlas (World music and multi-lingual programmes).  These sit alongside SR P1 a station simulcast from FM.

In addition to the audio services there are also a few data services available which include: SR Plus, a BWS service which contains a condensed version of the SR web and SR EPG, a trial version for testing electronic programme guides and SR TPEG, which is a test service for future TPEG streams.  

Alongside the regular programmes from Swedish Radio, there have been various test broadcasts.  These include trials of DAB, DAB+ and DMB as well as test broadcasts of eight Danish digital radio programmes across the Stockholm area.

The government gave the task of investigating the future of digital radio in Sweden to the Swedish Radio and TV Authority (RTVV) who commissioned Stelacon to write a report on this. Over a three year period, three reports were submitted to the Swedish government, the most recent in June 2008.  The report gives an unbiased review of various standards and outlines why DAB+ is considered the most appropriate for the Swedish market. It is expected that the Swedish government will probably make a decision during the second half 2008.

Meanwhile, the digital licence for the Public Service broadcaster, Sveriges Radio (SR) has now been reissued for the next three years although licences for commercial broadcasters still remain an unsolved issue.