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The FM local commercial radio licence for the Solent region was awarded on 5 September 2005 to Original 106 FM Ltd.

Solent licence award decision

When the Solent licence was advertised in February this year, we stated that, given the number and type of services already available in the area to be served by this licence, Ofcom would be likely to place particular importance on criterion (c) – the extent to which a proposed service would broaden the range of programmes available by way of local (commercial) services in the area, and would cater for tastes and interests different from those already catered for – when it came to consider the applications for this licence.

We also said that, in respect of criterion (d) – the extent to which there is evidence of local demand or support for a proposed service, Ofcom would be likely to attach greater weight to robust and meaningful evidence of demand as demonstrated by findings from research undertaken in the licence area and, if appropriate, detailed analysis of the existing market, than to evidence of local support as demonstrated by letters from potential listeners and/or advertisers.

We also noted that this guidance is subject to discretion, and that Ofcom will always consider each of the four statutory criteria when making a licence award.

Of the 14 applications received by Ofcom for the Solent licence, the overwhelming majority (12) were for services aimed primarily at older listeners, reflecting historical and current RAJAR audience data which show that, in the Solent area, local commercial radio’s share of listening among the 45-plus audience is considerably smaller than it is among the younger half of the population. It was also noted by RLC members that the share of listening obtained by existing local commercial radio in the area is smaller among men than women, and particularly among ABC1s (compared to C2DEs), in a region where the ABC1 population is higher than the national average.

Among the applicants proposing to target their service at older listeners, the RLC believed that – with regard to sections 105(b) and (c) – Original 106’s eclectic and distinctive ‘Adult Alternative’ music policy would be likely not only to extend commercial radio choice for its target audience of 40-59 year-old adults (with a male and ABC1 bias), but at the same time provide listeners of all ages in the Solent region with greater access to a number of different styles of music in a local commercial radio market which currently lacks specialist music stations.

More specifically, it was felt that Original’s decision to focus on album tracks and lesser-known singles (the station’s Format restricts past or present top 20 chart singles to a maximum 35% of music output), plus the inclusion in its main music mix of a number of music genres and styles that are currently under-represented on local commercial radio in the Solent region (such as classic and contemporary adult rock, classic alternative rock, blues, eclectic easy-listening and adult acoustic material), means that Original 106 would significantly broaden musical choice not only in terms of genre and style but also with regard to the overall variety of individual tracks available to Solent listeners. This facet of the application was well-supported by Original’s output monitoring of existing stations in the licence area, which demonstrated the extent of musical homogeneity (in particular, the dominance of past and present mainstream pop) among existing stations in the Solent marketplace.

In addition, it was felt that the range and nature of Original’s speech proposals, including around-the-clock local news bulletins and a minimum 40% speech commitment at weekday breakfast and drivetime, would further extend choice in the local marketplace and would be likely to appeal to the station’s target audience.

With regard to section 105(d), the application demonstrated through its research that there was demand among its target audience for a service that featured a significant proportion of album tracks, and for a service which features a mixture of genres and eras (rather than a radio station defined mainly by a particular era or music genre). The chosen genres to be featured in Original’s music policy were supported by research among the station’s target audience, as was the desire for substantial amounts of speech programming.

In relation to section 105(a), the Committee considered that the business plan put forward for Original 106 clearly indicated the ability of the applicant company (which is 95% owned by CanWest MediaWorks, a subsidiary of CanWest Global Communications Corp) to maintain its proposed service. Whilst the RLC recognised that ‘Adult Alternative’ is an untried format in the UK, its likely ABC1 bias and potential ability to attract new listeners to commercial radio from BBC services is likely to be of particular appeal to potential advertisers.

Finally, the RLC considered that, in relation to Section 314 of the Communications Act 2003, Original 106 demonstrated evidence of demand for the amount of local material and proportion of locally-made programming it proposed in its application. The station’s proposed Format is committed to locally-produced output 24 hours per day, and includes a commitment to airing local news bulletins 24 hours per day.

The following pages set out the statutory requirements relating to radio licensing, and details of the licensing process. Further information about these, and detailed information relating to the applications for the Solent licence, can be found at: http://www.ofcom.org.uk/radio/ifi/rbl/car/ifmapps/

Statutory requirements relating to radio licensing

In carrying out all of its functions, Ofcom is required to have regard to the general duties set out in Section 3 of the Communications Act 2003. In addition, under section 85(2)(b) of the Broadcasting Act 1990, it is the duty of Ofcom to do all that it can to secure the provision within the UK of a range and diversity of local radio services.

'Localness'

In carrying out its functions in relation to local commercial radio services specifically, Ofcom is required (under section 314 of the Communications Act 2003) to act in the manner that it considers is best calculated to secure:

• that programmes consisting of or including local material are included in such services but, in the case of each such service, only if and to the extent (if any) that Ofcom considers appropriate in that case; and
• that, where such programmes are included in such a service, what appears to Ofcom to be a suitable proportion of them consists of locally-made programmes.

For the purposes of the licensing process, Ofcom does not consider it appropriate to prescribe an amount of local material or a proportion of locally-made programming that new services should contain, as such matters may well vary greatly between different types of service. Rather, it is for applicants to set out in their application the amount of local material and the proportion of locally-made programming they propose to provide, supported, as appropriate, by evidence of demand or support for such proposals. Ofcom will then consider on the basis of the application whether the amount of local material included is appropriate, and whether the proportion of locally-made programming is suitable, for that particular service proposal.

Specific local licence award criteria

In considering the applications it receives for local commercial radio licences, Ofcom is required to have regard to each of the statutory criteria set out in section 105 of the Broadcasting Act 1990. These are as follows:

1. the ability of each of the applicants for the licence to maintain, throughout the period for which the licence would be in force, the service which he proposes to provide;
2. the extent to which any such proposed service would cater for the tastes and interests of persons living in the area or locality for which the service would be provided, and, where it is proposed to cater for any particular tastes and interests of such persons, the extent to which the service would cater for those tastes and interests;
3. the extent to which any such proposed service would broaden the range of programmes available by way of local services to persons living in the area or locality for which it would be provided, and, in particular, the extent to which the service would cater for tastes and interests different from those already catered for by local services provided for that area or locality; and
4. the extent to which there is evidence that, amongst persons living in that area or locality, there is a demand for, or support for, the provision of the proposed service.

The legislation does not rate these requirements in order of priority, but it may be that Ofcom will regard one or more of the criteria as being particularly important in view of the characteristics of the licence to be awarded and the applications for it.

Process for assessment of applications

The Solent licence was advertised on 3 February 2005. By the closing-date of 5 May 2005, fourteen applications were received, as follows:

• All Talk FM Solent Ltd.
• The Arrow (Solent) Ltd.
• Children’s Radio UK (Solent) Ltd. (Fun FM)
• The Coast Radio Ltd.
• Emmis Atlantic Radio Solent Ltd. (C106)
• Original 106 FM Ltd.
• Real Radio Ltd. (Smooth Solent)
• Saga Radio (South) Ltd.
• Scottish Radio Holdings plc (South Coast Radio)
• Solent Life Ltd.
• Solent Radio Ltd. (Kerrang 106)
• Solent Regional Radio Ltd. (Melody 106)
• Tide FM Ltd.
• Virgin Classic Rock Ltd.

The membership of Ofcom's Radio Licensing Committee (RLC) for this licence award was as follows:

• Kip Meek, Senior Partner, Competition & Content (Chair)
• Ian Hargreaves, Ofcom Board member (Co-chair)
• Matthew MacIver, Content Board member for Scotland
• Peter Bury, Director of Strategic Resources
• Peter Davies, Director of Radio and Multimedia
• Martin Campbell, Head of Radio Content & Standards
• Neil Stock, Head of Radio Planning & Licensing

The applications were circulated among all members of the RLC as well as among relevant Ofcom colleagues. Copies of the non-confidential sections of the applications were made available for public scrutiny on the Ofcom website, and public comment on the local radio needs of listeners in the area, and the type of programme service required, was invited both at the time of the licence advertisement and on the day after the applications were received. The Radio Licensing Committee took all replies into account when reaching its decision.

The Radio Licensing Committee had an initial discussion of the applications at its meeting on 4 July 2005. This comprised an initial presentation by a member of Ofcom's Radio Planning & Licensing team, summarising the proposals put forward by each applicant as they relate to the statutory criteria, followed by an opportunity for the RLC members to highlight any questions of clarification and/or amplification they wished to be put to the applicants.

Shortly after this meeting, each applicant was invited to respond, within a two-week period, to written questions of clarification and/or amplification on aspects of their proposals. The non-confidential questions and responses were subsequently made available for public scrutiny on the Ofcom website.

In line with Ofcom's published procedures, each application was awarded a score (of between 0 and 10) for each of the four statutory criteria contained in section 105 of the Broadcasting Act 1990. These scores provided an indicative picture of the perceived strengths and weaknesses of each application, and were used for guidance only. A summary of the scores was presented to the RLC at its 5 September 2005 meeting, as part of a paper which summarised the issues of relevance for each application under each of the statutory criteria. The information included in this paper was drawn both from the applications and the subsequent responses to questions of clarification and/or amplification.

Points for future applicants

1. Applicants for licences in other areas should note that this licence award was made based on the particular characteristics of the Solent licence area, and the applications which were submitted. Each licence award will be made on an individual basis, with regard to the factors which, in the view of Ofcom, are particularly relevant to that case. Where possible, the likely weight accorded to each of the statutory criteria will be signalled as part of each licence advertisement.

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