The UK communications regulator Ofcom announced last week that ‘Listen2Digital’, a consortium consisting of Radio Group, Orion Media and Babcock International Group plc and chaired by Phil Riley, founder of Orion Media, is competing against “Sound Digital” for a licence to run the UK’s second national commercial digital radio 'multiplex' in the UK.
Ofcom has invited bids for the multiplex to deliver a range of new national digital audio broadcasting (DAB) stations next year. Listen2Digital proposes to provide 18 national DAB services appealing to a rich variety of tastes and interests, including Share Radio, while Sound Digital proposes to provide 15. Ofcom hopes to award the licence by summer 2015 and the first new digital stations are expected to be on air in 2016.
In response to this announcement, Gavin Oldham, founder and managing director of Share Radio said:
“We wholeheartedly support the bid from Listen2Digital as it offers choice and competition in the provision of DAB multiplexes. Listen2Digital not only introduces powerful competition into transmission arrangements, but also provides a well-balanced range of radio stations.
“At Share Radio, our mission statement is ‘sharing ideas about money’ and we have been broadcasting on Greater London Digital since November 2014. Our aim is to empower people from all walks of life, and our experience thus far demonstrates that we are meeting that need: the national channel would enable us to do so across the United Kingdom.
"Share Radio offers a varied and engaging media channel that helps people feel better informed and better able to make financial decisions, no matter what their starting point. At a time when people need and want to manage their money and investment matters for themselves, we want to help make decisions easier and more rewarding. At present we are broadcasting on DAB throughout London and to a national audience online and via our app. It’s vital that we are able to broadcast on national DAB to enable us to help thousands more people feel better informed on money issues”.
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For further information please contact:
Teamspirit PR
Adam Smith / Victoria Robinson
0207 360 7878
[email protected] or [email protected]
or Gavin Oldham
07767 337696
Note to editors:
About Share Radio
Share Radio is the UK’s first radio station dedicated to providing information on handling money and investments. Share Radio is primarily talk-based and aimed at a broad financial audience, from City professionals to consumers looking for the best deals. The station aims to demystify finance by entertaining and educating its listeners as the team shares ideas about money. The station broadcasts 24 hours a day, seven days a week and is available on Greater London DAB and on Broadband through the United Kingdom at www.shareradio.co.uk. Listeners can also download the Share Radio app from the Apple app store.
A full list of the channels being offered by Listen2Digital is as follows:
• A food channel
• A national children’s station, Fun Kids, where children can learn and be entertained
• Wireless, a station aimed at older listeners, from Age UK
• A national station for financial and money news, Share Radio
• RTE1, a simulcast of the principal channel of Irish public-service broadcaster Raidió Teilifís
Éireann
• Gem, a national version of Orion’s adult contemporary music station, featuring ‘Sam & Amy’
• Nation, a soft rock station
• Top 40, a contemporary hits station
• A modern rock, indie/alternative station for a trend-setting audience
• A specialist jazz, blues and soul station
• A new sports talk station
• A country music service, embracing the new energy surrounding the genre in the UK
• Gaydio, targeting the LGBT community
• Two Asian stations: Sabras Sound and Panjab Radio
• Two Christian stations from Premier Christian Radio
• Upload radio, an innovative channel for independent radio producers