 It's fast, it's simple and it's good, it's honest. For me it is the most exciting industry. I fell into it when I was 12 years old and it's been with me ever since. Radio has been around for over a century and throughout has managed to stay relevant and attractive to listeners by constantly rejuvenating and reinventing itself in its approach and delivery. At ITU, we're dedicated to connecting the unconnected. There are 3.9 billion people still offline in the world and working hard to bring them online. Radio happens to be one of the best technologies at doing so and today is World Radio Day. A day set aside to celebrate the wonders and magic of radio technology. We came to Paris to the European Radio Show to talk to some of Europe's leading innovators and personalities in radio to get a sense of what's happening now in the world radio and get a glimpse of what could be happening next. In the last few years, radio has seen major changes at an unprecedented pace. Radio professionals have had to adapt to keep up with the times. As Clarice Frigoul, a radio presenter based in Paris, explains. We have to keep up with today's trends. That means that we need to be cutting edge. Social media has grown tremendously. There are webcams in studios so everything is recorded. We are a long way from what radio was 20 years ago. We couldn't see the presenters messing around, having to imagine what they look like, that kind of thing. It's just not the same game anymore. Generations Y and Z do not consume radio in the way that their grandparents or even their parents did. Interactivity is the buzzword for today's audience. With over a quarter of a century experience in radio, Giacomo Mazzoni from the European Broadcasting Union has his finger on the pulse. Radio has always been interactive in the sense that you can have listeners calling the radio stations, talk shows on the radio. Even now it's a lot easier and the degree of participation could be a lot higher than before, even more integrated in the program. This means that the interactivity part of the radio is an integral part of the new concept of radio. In each part of the world we are looking through initiatives to different aspects of what interactivity means for radio. Radio has not only changed the way that content is created and shared, it has also changed the way content is transmitted to the listener. Jean-Marc Duboy, director of World DAB, can tell us why more and more radio platforms are shifting from analog to digital broadcasting. Radio was the last media which was not fully digital. And World DAB and DAB's technology that we are digital audio broadcasting is bringing radio to the 21st century. It's still all the values that we know and love from radio in digital. So what does that mean? Small choice. It's free of charge for the listener. It's better sound quality and the number of services that we are bringing with digital. But what happens when traditional radios are also being replaced by other devices? For my friend, controller of multi-platform at the BBC, it can only be a good thing. The number of teenagers who say in the UK that they're planning to buy a traditional radio device over the next 12 months is 0%. So if they're not going to buy a traditional radio, they're going to be listening via a smartphone or an iPod. Another way, it's great actually, it just means that radio has to produce the right content for you and give it to you in really easy, simple ways across all the devices you want to use. It's very good for the listener, for the consumer ultimately. For many professionals, the increased usage of new media devices only means one thing, more business and more connections. Haslaria Maluchelli from Radio Technology Company Accel attests to. It's a very interesting market to build community for people. It's a way to participate and to be involved also because of these social networks that we have nowadays. Radio is a way to use them in a positive way. And what about the future? On the internet and other digital means, the world of radio is definitely looking promising. Maximilian Knopp, CEO of Console Labs, has his own opinion on what the future will look like. I see as a developer that radio must involve as a service. So radio should be not a radio stream anymore. Radio should concentrate on putting small content snacks like news, like an information or whatever, for different platforms. And while philosopher Marcia McLoan may have professed that the medium is the message, for Philippe Chapeau of the European Radio Show, what matters most is the message itself. The future of radio, it's not technology, it's not the way you broadcast that is important. What is important is your voice and how you ask me questions and how I answer those questions so that I concern the person that is listening to me. And radio people are very good in that. And a final word from Mark Friend, the controller of multi-platforms at the BBC. You have to be able to switch on a device and get something utterly delightful. And there are plenty of other utterly delightful forms of media available now. So we have to make radio as kind of utterly delightful but as simple as just turning on. That's the challenge, that's what keeps me up. An ITU production for World Radio Day.