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Not all television production crews today include a sound recordist but, as extreme location cameraman and director Phil Coates tells Kevin Hilton, that does not mean audio is any less important in the making of exciting and stimulating programmes.

With loudness standards now established and a vast array of metering and monitoring equipment available, the campaign has begun to ensure that everyone in broadcasting knows what should be done. Dolby's Jeffrey Riedmiller talks to Kevin Hilton about where we are now and the hopes – and fears – for the future.

After nearly 30 years of ineffectual laws and persistent complaints from viewers, France has got tough on loudness with a "global" loudness alignment system and severe penalties. Kevin Hilton looks at the new regulations and how France Télévisions has approached them.

Audio trade organisations have made headlines this year, with the AES restructuring its management practices and the launch of the Association of Sound Designers. And, as Kevin Hilton reports, in the last few weeks the Institute of Broadcast Sound is being renamed to reflect changes in the industry, while sound editors and designers are discussing whether their sector needs a guild to represent them.

Visually impaired or blind people can enjoy television programmes and movies, almost as if they were normally sighted, through the application of audio description. Dave Robinson listens to a man who knows more than most about it.

A great strength of radio is the sense of community it creates but, as Kevin Hilton reports, sound wireless now has to come to terms with social media and data technologies if it is to keep the position it has built over the years.

Volume is high on the broadcast technology agenda. First it was loudness and now it's audibility. Kevin Hilton looks at Fraunhofer's system for controlling speech and backgrounds independently and how it was used during Wimbledon.

The second screen was everywhere at IBC 2011, linking TV with smart phones and tablets. Among the many companies looking at this area is Dolby Laboratories, which envisions a five-screen future. Kevin Hilton looks at the approach.

Asset management is among the major technological talking points in broadcasting today. But there have always been assets in television and radio, with an equally long-established need to manage them, writes Kevin Hilton.

This year's IBC saw the low-key but significant first appearance of a newcomer to the radio microphone market, Audio Wireless. Company founder Aldo Hakligil talks to Kevin Hilton about starting again and his enthusiasm for all things RF.

In the run-up to IBC 2011, manufacturer and distribution company Canford's recently appointed chief executive, Leif Friestad, talks to Kevin Hilton about five year plans, new sales and marketing structures and his take on the broadcasting market.

Automation has become an integral part of broadcasting in the last 20 years but, as Mark Errington of IT automation specialist OASYS tells Kevin Hilton, the last five years have seen the biggest changes in how TV is played out, with audio a key factor in recent developments.

The newest addition to London’s post-production scene is due for an official launch next month. Kevin Hilton looks at the ambitions and technology behind Rain Post Production and how audio fits in with the facility’s overall plans to carve a niche for itself in Soho’s broadcast and film market.

A year after HME’s acquisition of Clear-Com, both companies are pleased with the results of the new alignment. “We work in the same markets but with complementary products,” HME president Mitzi Dominguez tells Mel Lambert.

London's post-production scene is used to seeing established facilities close and newcomers open. In the latest cycle Pepper Post closed in June, while Rain will launch soon. Kevin Hilton gets a snapshot of the market and hears about the part audio plays in bringing in business.