The Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications will allow terrestrial digital radio broadcasting to begin in 2006, five years earlier than originally planned, ministry officials said Thursday.

Earlier in the day, the ministry adopted a report that calls for an earlier start to digital radio broadcasting.

The radio industry faces heavy competition as television moves toward digitization and broadcast services over the Internet are growing.

Terrestrial digital radio broadcasts offers high-quality sound and enable listeners to see moving images on mobile phones and car navigation system screens.

The new service will be available in Tokyo and Osaka in 2006 and in Sapporo, Nagoya, Hiroshima, Fukuoka, Sendai, Shizuoka and Hamamatsu, Shizuoka Prefecture, in 2008.

It will become available nationwide as early as 2011, according to the ministry.

The ministry plans to issue digital radio broadcasting licenses to NHK and a private company that will be set up in the future.

The private digital broadcaster will be formed by a group of communication companies and radio stations, including Nippon Broadcasting System Inc. and Tokyo FM Broadcasting Co.

The radio industry will be revitalized by the digitization, according to the ministry's report, and the market size will roughly double to 367.6 billion yen by 2015.

Digital radio broadcasting is expected to intensify competition in the broadcasting industry as current analog radio broadcasting will continue and terrestrial digital television broadcasting will be available on mobile phones in fiscal 2005.

The private digital radio station will broadcast nationwide for free on several channels.

It plans to make a profit from advertising revenue and by allowing users to download music and through other services.

In 2011 or later, the ministry plans to allow two private companies to offer digital radio service nationwide and up to two more private companies to broadcast regionally.