CHANNEL 4 RADIO UNVEILS FIRST CONTENT

Channel 4 Radio has unveiled its first content partners for its bid for the new national DAB multiplex ? a mix of some of commercial radio?s biggest names and a range of strong media brands making their first foray into digital radio.

The new DAB multiplex, advertised by Ofcom last year, has capacity for a number of national digital radio services as well as a variety of data and multi-media services. If its bid is successful, Channel 4 Radio plans to launch a number of its own ‘4’ branded national stations from 2008 alongside new stations and other services supplied by its content partners.

Demonstrating its commitment to partnering with the rest of the commercial radio sector to drive the take-up of digital radio, Channel 4 Radio has reached agreement with a number of UK radio’s leading commercial players. Emap Radio, UTV Radio and SMG, the owner of national pop and rock station Virgin Radio, have all exclusively signed up to the Channel 4-led consortium as content partners, alongside Canadian media conglomerate, CanWest Global Communications, which is a recent entrant to the UK radio sector having won FM licences to operate in The Solent and Bristol. 

Channel 4 Radio has also signed an exclusive partnership with Disney, the UK’s leading commercial children’s broadcaster, to focus on developing radio programming for younger audiences.  In addition, a partnership with Sunrise Radio, the UK’s leading broadcast brand for Asian audiences, will help the multiplex represent the tastes and interests of a culturally diverse society.  Another internationally renowned brand, IMG, is partnering through its UK sports production arm TWI, looking to supply sports based content to the consortium.  

Reflecting Channel 4 Radio’s commitment to extending the range of distinctive, high-quality content available to UK radio listeners, the consortium will also work with a number of partners entirely new to radio in the UK.

Examples of some of these partners include two of the UK’s most powerful music brands: leading music weekly, NME, owned by the UK’s biggest magazine publisher, IPC Media; and, Universal Music Group, the world’s biggest music company, who, as previously announced, will work with Channel 4 Radio to explore new ways of distributing music via digital platforms.

Two of the UK’s best known and most respected publishing brands – The Financial Times and Penguin Publishing, have also signed up to supply content as part of the bid. The FT and Penguin Publishing are owned by Pearson plc, one of the world’s leading education, business information and consumer publishing companies.

UBC Media, Channel 4 Radio’s existing partner in national spoken word station, Oneword, is also a confirmed partner in the bid providing software and interactive services.

Channel 4’s Director of Radio, Nathalie Schwarz, commented: “This consortium is a formidable blend of the best of commercial radio in the UK and powerful brands from elsewhere in the media landscape looking to extend their offer to consumers in a converged digital world.

“All our content partners are brand leaders in their fields. I believe it is a combination guaranteed to appeal to a variety of tastes and interests as well as to offer something truly distinct from what is currently available to radio listeners in the UK. We also have exciting plans for multi-media content and innovative uses of the data spectrum, as well as driving DAB set penetration.”

The final station line-up for the Channel 4 Radio-led bid will not be made public until after its application for the licence to run the new national DAB multiplex has been submitted later this month.

Contact: Victoria Powell, Channel 4 – 020 7306 3636