Jakarta, Indonesia – The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) in Indonesia has announced that it has ceased its analogue radio operations in Indonesia on December 30, 2022, in favour of transitioning to digital broadcasting.
This marks the end of BBC Indonesia’s 73-year air streak, since it was first launched in 1949.
According to BBC News Indonesia editor Jerome Wirawan, this was done to save the broadcasting company around GPB 28.5m in expenses. This also follows ceasing radio operations of BBC Arabic, BBC Persian and BBC Chinese.
This was not the first time a government-funded broadcasting company has pulled the plug of its local radio operations. In 2012, The Netherlands’ Radio Netherlands ceased operations globally. Meanwhile, Germany’s Deutsche Welle pulled the plug on its Indonesian radio operations, alongside Bengali, Urdu, Dari/Pashtu, in 2011.
Despite radio operations ceasing, BBC Indonesia’s broadcasts will continue to air on digital platforms, including their local website, as well as listening on streaming platforms.
The BBC is the government-funded broadcaster of the United Kingdom. Its Asia-Pacific presence includes Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea, Japan, China, India, Australia, and Taiwan.
