Brussels pumps down the volume on music players

BRUSSELS - Music fans that like to pump up the volume on their iPods will soon no longer be able to rock out quite as much, as the European Commission, concerned about hearing damage caused by personal music players, is set to impose volume limits.

New default settings on the devices will limit volumes to within safe exposure levels, the EU executive announced on Monday (28 September).

"It's easy to push up the sound levels on your MP3 player to damagingly loud levels, especially on busy streets or public transport," said consumer affairs commissioner Meglena Kuneva upon the announcement of the move.

"The evidence is that particularly young people - who are listening to music at high volumes sometimes for hours each week - have no idea they can be putting their hearing at risk," she added.

Last October, the EU's Scientific Committee on Emerging and Newly Identified Health Risks (SCENIHR) warned that listening to personal music players at a high volume over a sustained period can lead to permanent hearing damage.

Between five and 10 percent of listeners risk permanent hearing impairment. These are people typically listening to music for over an hour a day at high volume.

Brussels estimates that up to 10 million people in the EU may be at risk.

"It can take years for the hearing damage to show, and then it is simply too late," Ms Kuneva said.

The new maximum will ensure that the default setting of a device keeps the volume at safe levels. Consumers will however be able to override the default settings if they wish.

The players will also in future have to carry warnings on the adverse effects of turning up the volume too loudly.

While parents have been warning their children about listening too loudly for years - Sony introduced the Walkman personal cassette player in 1979 - with the latest generation of devices, one can turn up the volume to the maximum with little quality loss.

Current EU standards currently prescribe no maximum sound limit.

The EU executive warns that at 80 decibels, exposure should be limited to 40 hours a week, but at 89 decibels exposure should not exceed five hours a week.

On Monday, the commission asked the European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardisation (Cenelec), to draw up new technical safety standards. This process could take up to two years.