“Digitization will also greatly improve the emergency preparedness system, facilitate increased competition and offer new opportunities for innovation and development.” 
 
 Norway’s DAB network already has 25 national radio channels and can support 20 more, whereas FM radio currently only has five channels. Critics who oppose the transition say that by killing the remaining national FM radio channels, drivers might miss out on emergency alerts if they don’t upgrade to DAB or aren’t within the area of receiving a local FM radio signal — which will continue to air programming despite the national FM switch-off.  66 percent of Norwegians oppose the forced switch to DAB. “We are simply not ready for this yet,” Ib Thomsen, an MP from the Progress party, a partner in Norway’s Conservative-led government, told Reuters. “There are 2m cars on Norwegian roads that don’t have DAB receivers, and millions of radios in Norwegian homes will stop working when the FM net is switched off. So there is definitely a safety concern.” 
 
 Those who don’t already have a car with digital radio will have to purchase a digital adaptor for FM car radios, which cost about 1,500 Norwegian Krones —about $176, so it’s definitely an investment. The Norwegian government has been planning this transition for years and made it official in 2015, which gave Norwegians some time to adapt and install digital radio in their cars and homes. “We’re the first country to switch off FM but there are several countries going in the same direction,” said Ole Jørgen Torvmark, head of Digital Radio Norway, set up by the national broadcasters NRK and P4 to help the transition. Norway’s transition to DAB radio will be watched closely by several other countries considering the move, notably Denmark, Sweden, Switzerland and South Korea.
– Norway is entering the history books with a radio-related first: The country is shutting down its FM radio network in favor of digital-only transmissions, reports the Local. The country will begin cutting its FM network on Wednesday, starting with the northern city of Bodo, before moving south. All five national channels on FM will stop broadcasting by the end of the year, per Vocativ, though some local stations will continue FM broadcasts until 2022. The plan has been in place for years as digital radio costs Norway the same as the FM network, $29 million, but allows for eight times more radio stations. But residents aren't impressed. A poll shows 66% of Norwegians oppose the move, compared to 17% in favor and 17% undecided, reports Reuters. Among the critics are the owners of 2 million vehicles without digital audio broadcasting receivers who will need a $170 digital adapter and those who fear emergency alerts usually broadcast on FM radio will go unheard. "We are simply not ready for this yet," says a member of the ruling coalition government, noting "millions" of in-home radios will be rendered useless. "But Norway has made its decision," says the chairman of the Norwegian Local Radio Federation. "For practical and economic reasons it is too late to turn back now." Norway will now be watched closely by the UK, South Korea, Sweden, and Denmark, all considering the switch. Switzerland plans to switch to digital in 2020. (Norway is home to the world's slowest TV show.)