Note: This website was automatically translated, so some terms or nuances may not be completely accurate.
TBS Radio & Communications, Nippon Cultural Broadcasting, and Nippon Broadcasting System, three Tokyo-based AM radio stations, will launch their FM complementary broadcasts "Wide FM" today, December 7, at 1:00 PM.
To mark the occasion, the three stations will jointly broadcast a special opening program that same day. A unified advertising campaign will also be launched.
The reasons for the launch are "disaster countermeasures" against potential damage to broadcasting facilities from major disasters like a direct-hit earthquake on the capital, and "reception improvement measures" to address issues like noise interference. Since receiving provisional licenses for FM complementary relay stations from the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications on September 3 last year, the three stations have collaborated to install transmission antennas on Tokyo Skytree in Sumida Ward and conducted test broadcasts, advancing preparations.
Signals will be transmitted from the three stations' shared antenna atop Tokyo Skytree at 7 kilowatts of power. Listeners in Tokyo's 23 wards and major urban areas of Saitama, Chiba, and Kanagawa Prefectures will enjoy clearer sound quality compared to conventional AM radio.
The frequencies are 90.5 MHz for TBS Radio, 91.6 MHz for Nippon Cultural Broadcasting, and 93.0 MHz for Nippon Broadcasting System. Conventional car radios and other devices that can only receive up to 90.0 MHz will not be able to pick up the signal.
However, as the campaign's main slogan "Buy a radio now" suggests, manufacturers have been releasing compatible receivers one after another to coincide with the start of Wide FM. This campaign is expected to boost the adoption of these devices.
A list of compatible receivers is available here (on the Wide FM Promotion Committee website).
Details on Wide FM are available at the special site below.
Wide FM Official Site: http://widefm.jp/
TBS Radio & Communications http://www.tbs.co.jp/radio/jokr_fm/
Bunka Hoso http://www.joqr.co.jp/widefm/
Nippon Broadcasting System http://www.1242.com/kaikyoku/
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