Radio New Zealand has signed a contract with Thales for a new digital capable (DRM) short-wave transmitter for its international broadcaster Radio New Zealand International (RNZI). The new 100 kW short-wave transmitter will be operational in early 2006.
RNZI’s current analogue short-wave transmitter (also from Thales) is nearing the end of its serviceable life. The new Thales transmitter will work alongside it and then replace it completely as RNZI’s transmission mode into the Pacific.
Radio New Zealand Chief Executive and Editor in Chief Peter Cavanagh says the decision to purchase from Thales recognizes the very significant contribution the company has made towards the DRM system. They have the largest number of transmitters in service carrying a DRM signal and they offer an excellent product.
The contract follows an announcement earlier this year by the New Zealand Government about a funding boost for RNZI to move to digital short-wave technology. RNZI Manager Linden Clark says DRM offers an ideal solution for a service like RNZI. The new transmitter will transmit a digital (DRM) signal for rebroadcast across the Pacific on our 14 Pacific partner radio stations. The current analogue transmitter will continue to deliver an analogue short-wave signal to individual Pacific listeners.
RNZI is New Zealand’s international broadcaster, on air 24 hours a day with a service to the Pacific which reaches from Papua New Guinea in the west to French Polynesia in the east and covers all the Pacific region in-between. While broadcasting mainly in English, RNZI also carries news in Pacific languages, making it one of the most listened to, and respected, stations in the Pacific. The service was set up in 1990 with one analogue short-wave transmitter.
Peter Cavanagh says the new transmitter secures the future of what has become a vitally important service for the people of the Pacific region. Radio New Zealand International plays a significant part in increasing an understanding and awareness of New Zealands role in the Pacific.