LEO is the future indeed. Nice setup. Even lossless over Tidal would work over that I imagine.
There’s some invested interests at play here with the anti-streaming/ alternate delivery methods negatively, don’t be put off and go with the general consensus (aka pub test).
Fully agree, imagine if the J’s were what Radio 1 is (and was), a complete juggernaut in the music zeitgeist for multiple generations.
3 Likes
I’ve discovered some really great new songs via Double J over the past 6 months. But the play list is all over the shop and the presentation so flat that it becomes difficult to listen to regularly, which is a pity.
The concept is awesome. The execution a let-down.
4 Likes
Yeah works very good
1 Like
Double J is too low brow for my liking. I think ABC Local Radio used to say they played ‘intelligent adult music’. That should be what JJ aims for, more like the original Dig Music but a little more mainstream than that. Ditch the hip hop and heavier rock for a start and leave that for JJJ.
I have created my own intelligent adult station using Radio Paradise; you can save the songs they play as your personal Favourites and play them in a mix. Radio Paradise Main Mix is probably the closest to what Double J should be, obviously with the inclusion of more Australian content (surprisingly though, there’s stuff like Midnight Oil, John Butler Trio, The Waifs etc. on RP as is).
2 Likes
(this seems as good a place as any to continue the conversation, but if someone can recommend a better thread, let me know)
Its an interesting hypothetical and could be highly market dependent. I wonder whether it would attract outside interest or just from people looking to format shift
1 Like
I don’t think there is any space left on the spectrum in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and possibly Perth.
However, if the licence was for an existing commercial station to convert from AM to FM, they could make space by moving SBS’s FM station to the AM band.
2 Likes
I agree, and I feel like if SBS were to ever vacate their FM frequencies, it would probably do so to allow ABC local radio, not a new commercial competitor, to take it up. But even that I don’t see happening.
4 Likes
If the licences for Brisbane, Sydney, and Melbourne were sold as a bundle, I don’t think a $700 million price tag would be unreasonable.
Nova paid $80 million for 106.9 back in 2004 — which is about $137 million in 2024 dollars. When you factor in that this would create an instant eastern seaboard network, plus the likelihood that no new entrant will be allowed into the market for another 20+ years, it’s easy to see how the value could climb significantly.
1 Like
We had a bunch of new stations around 50-40 years ago, followed by more stations 20-25 years ago, so we’re about due for some more.
3 Likes
We really are. The whole industry needs a refresh and a big shake up. The incumbents are either lazy or incompetent, and that’s partly due to them being protected for so long.
5 Likes
Whoa! I don’t think so. Yes, if you extrapolate 2004 dollars into their current value you come up with some meaty figures. But the whole industry has changed.
Just look at the $30 million offers allegedly being made for Nine’s four stations in BNE, SYD, MEL and PER. Nine wants $60 million. No one wants to pay that. Yes, yes, they’re AM stations. But high performance ones.
On that basis, you could maybe double it to a total of $120 million for FM stations in the three markets you’re looking at. $45 million for SYD and MEL. And $30 million for BNE.
Doubt there would be many takers even at those prices. Look at the total valuation of SCA and ARN. And we don’t bundle licences in Oz. So any interest would have to be in the individual stations on offer.
5 Likes
Agree, I recall reading that TV advertising revenue has fallen 50% in the last 15 years against the rise of streaming / internet.
Radio would have suffered a similar fate, thus affecting their market value.
4 Likes
I would flip it actually. I suspect an FM licence in Brisbane might go for 40-50M, but Sydney and Melbourne around 30M, due to the greater number of stations already in those capitals. There’s a huge format gap in Brisbane and only 4 existing FM stations, and a LAP population approaching 3 million people. I also think a new Perth licence would prove valuable.
2 Likes
Good point! Still, they’re way more than any sensible entity would pay.
Maybe ACMA realises that, and given the backlash they would have to deal with from the incumbents, it’s probably not worth the trouble to add a little something to the federal govt’s coffers.
Just look at the carry-on in Perth over allowing two commercial AM stations to convert to FM.
5 Likes
I think they’ll try and get the ABC Local stations on FM in the other capitals, but that might be it unfortunately.
It’s a pretty poor outcome. They should have pushed forward with 6iX and 6PR and then looked at some restacks in the eastern capitals to get as many on FM as absolutely possible.
6 Likes
Adelaide, Sydney, Melbourne, Canberra, Hobart, Darwin and Brisbane stations are unaffected by the change
At this stage. I was talking about the future. There’s no doubt ABC would like to move their local metro stations to FM if they could. Oh and ABC Darwin already is on FM.
1 Like
They could already if they really wanted to eg. dump Classic FM and put Local Radio on those frequencies. Even more easily in Canberra by swapping News Radio and Local Radio around.
4 Likes
I think we will see massive changes at ABC Radio over the next decade which will result in the local capital city stations moving to FM. But that will only happen if ABC Classic and Triple J are changed to DAB/streaming only services and that could well happen. In the case of Sydney, it’s likely that 2BL would move to 92.9MHz.
Don’t be surprised in the future if NewsRadio and Radio National are merged into one station. In Sydney’s case, the newly merged service would end up on 105.7MHz.
Of course, this is just my thoughts on what could happen.
3 Likes