By Hamish Mackay
An initial contender has emerged for a new commercial FM radio licence in Aberdeen.
The prospective new station – acrfm, short for Aberdeen City Radio –
would provide its own in-house news service, with bulletins through the
night being provided by IRN.
Aberdeen was among 16 metropolitan
areas which had been identified as “development opportunities” for new
commercial licences by the now defunct Radio Authority whose remit has
been assumed by Ofcom, which has taken on board these recommendations.
Although
Ofcom has not yet published plans for the city, it is understood that a
new licence will be advertised towards the end of this year.
Richard
Garvie, a former presenter with Connect FM and Heartbeat in
Hertfordshire who has also worked with GWR in Bristol and UKRD in
Slough, is managing director of a consortium aiming to secure the
licence for the proposed new Aberdeen station.
He said: “We have
been talking with some experienced presenters and personalities in the
area, but that’s where it is at this stage.”
Scottish Radio Holdings owns Aberdeen’s established commercial station, NorthSound Radio.
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