After two years of development, WorldDAB and Digitalradio Deutschland are formally launching the Automatic Safety Alert system for DAB+ in September.
ASA works to keep the public informed and aware during emergencies through reliable alerting messages even when mobile networks or internet connections are disrupted. The DAB+ transmission network ensure a high degree of resilience for the ASA system, which operates in the background and can deliver regionally targeted alerts.
“Radio is consistently named as one of the most trusted media around the world. It’s also rightly recognized for its critical role in times of crisis,” stated WorldDAB President Jacqueline Bierhorst. “Now, with this important digital innovation, DAB+ is future-proofing this, offering listeners the reassurance of receiving Automatic Safety Alerts, tailored to their location.”
The new ASA standard is expected to be standardized by European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) in September with public tests scheduled for the IFA Berlin consumer electronics show in early September 2024 and the Bundesweite Warntag (Nationwide Warning Day) across Germany on September 12th. By mid-2025, WorldDAB expects new DAB+ radio receivers to support the ASA standard.
ASA was developed though a collaboration among public and private broadcasters, device manufacturers, and German safety authorities after the failure of traditional warning systems during the 2021 Ahr Valley floods. Nearly 200 people died in during the catastrophic event.
As climate change worsens the possibilities for similar disasters, ASA will be an important tool for sending regional messages across wide areas, stated WorldDAB, ensuring people in affected areas receive timely and accurate alerts.
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With ASA, emergency alerts can take advantage of the DAB+ platform to carry text- and image-based warnings along with spoken messages. It also includes a “wake up” function to activate radios in the event of an emergency. Additional features of ASA, include a switch function that allows receivers to reference alerts on other stations and location codes to ensure warnings are heard only in the areas they are relevant. A full list of ASA functions was provided by WorldDAB.
WorldDAB, Digitalradio Deutschland, and chip manufacturer Frontier Smart Technologies are working with manufacturers such as TechniSat and JVCKenwood to bring ASA-compatible devices to market through the Siena Pro module and Kino 4 Pro chip and a new software SDK version. Other chip manufacturers are expected to follow suit.
ETSI will publish the ASA standard as ETSI TS 104 090 “Digital Audio Broadcasting (DAB); Emergency Warning System (EWS); Minimum requirements and test specifications for receivers.” With the corresponding system definition of ETSI TS 104 089 “Digital Audio Broadcasting (DAB); Emergency Warning System (EWS); Definition and rules of behaviour.”
Once the standard is released, WorldDAB is encouraging all DAB+ radio manufacturers to incorporate ASA, and a certification scheme has been established to ensure that hardware will respond correctly in typical ASA alerting scenarios. The ASA brand logo is registered trademark with the EUIPO for the European Union, United Kingdom, and Switzerland.
