Service requirements for digital audio broadcasting (DAB) from satellites are presented, and plans for implementing such systems in various countries are surveyed. Technical and economic constraints, including satellite transmitter power, frequencies of operation, transmission bandwidth, service interference and user receiver design are discussed particularly for DAB systems employing mobile receiving terminals where transmission outage from blockage and multipath fading must be addressed. Transmission performance improvement techniques such as spatial diversity, modulation, coding and interleaving are described. An illustration of a specific satellite DAB system design is presented to show the technical and economic feasibility of such new services.