RTÉ IS looking at ways of providing vouchers to help elderly, sick and poor people to long-wave radio when the medium-wave radio service is closed next month, the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Communications, Energy and Natural Resources heard yesterday.
The medium-wave service will go off air on March 24th, and users will then have to switch to FM or long-wave frequency.
About 10 per cent of listeners to RTÉ radio listen on the medium-wave frequency.
Fine Gael's Simon Coveney told RTÉ director general Cathal Goan that the move would have "significant implications" for people who listened to religious services or sports programmes, yet no one appeared to have been consulted before the decision was made.
Mr Goan agreed that the move would have "social consequences" in certain rural areas, but said the closure had been signalled in the past and no one would be disenfranchised by the move.
He said the medium-wave service recently went off air for 16 hours but RTÉ only received one query about it.
Adrian Moynes, managing director of RTÉ radio, said you could buy a radio with long-wave service for just €8 in Argos.
Labour's Liz McManus claimed the closure of medium-wave service would be in breach of the Belfast Agreement as it was the most common method used by people in Northern Ireland to listen to RTÉ. This was rejected by Mr Goan, who said they could still tune in on another frequency or use methods such as the internet.
The committee also heard that RTÉ's plans to move to digital television were progressing well.
Mr Goan said the European switch over from analogue to digital television was expected to happen in 2012, but Ireland had not formally set a date. The cost to households had not been established, but he was hoping a digital box would cost about €100.
