Yes, I know there is a small market exemption from the local content rules which allows them to do this. Thanks for that info; can’t say I’ve listened to the stations in either market recently (if they even stream).
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I don’t think I’d want to own either Carnarvon or Charleville. If you analyse the Section 30 schedules since 1996 of licence areas back then that had 15,000 or less its pretty bleak (despite Australia’s overall population growth).
Some observations:
- ACMA has dropped the ball on updating Section 30 for population changes, given it is nearly 5 years since the 2016 census.
- Queenstown has always been the worst and has declined. IMHO I’d merge it into the Hobart licence area, thereby giving some extra competition in that market - but with the condition of maintaining the transmitters in Queenstown.
- I think the numbers clearly explain why the Carnarvon announcer wasn’t replaced.
- Charleville and Longreach both have 5% overlap in each other. Just merge the licence areas.
- When considering Katanning, there is a 25% overlap with Narrogin, which once again suggests merger. BTW I think there is an argument that some of the larger licence areas should either be split or have extra licences issued (eg Wollongong).
- Port Headland was the dual licence to own!
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Working regularly and visiting the west coast my first thought is leave 7XS alone. West Coasters do seem to have a real connection with XS. And I think that’s due to isolation, and poor phone coverage/internet not allowing streaming services really taking hold.
West Coasters see themselves as defiantly not part of Hobart. They align more with Burnie. Travel times to Burnie are significantly less heading north and its a much faster/better road. Shopping, medical appointments, schooling and socialising all align with Burnie not Hobart.
Tasmania’s radio markets are tricky with 1 dominant commercial broadcaster, Grants and a lot of ‘networking’ within the state does take place.
I think there is merit in looking at minimising the radio area’s. But I would caution the ACMA just looking at municipal boundaries or postcodes and populations.
For example you could amalgamate the Scottsdale area into a greater North East licence area, as that area is really now serviced by the greater launceston area, with commuting a regular situation. However force the licencee to cover places like Flinders Island.
Burnie Devonport and the West Coast could be combined, but once again force the broadcasters to cover Queenstown, Smithton and King Island, places that would generally be considered un profitable.
Whilst the Hobart Licence area does cover the east coast services are poor at best. Once again I would force broadcasters to provide coverage into the area.
The tricky bit in Tassie is our hilly terrain. Frequency re-use is common, and finding free space for the translators would be tricky, consideration would need to be for both the local incumbent stations but the ducting that regularly happens across Bass Strait. ACMA over to you!
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All really good comments, especially:
You are right that adding licence areas is easy to do, but understanding which areas have “commonality of interests” and therefore could be amalgamated to make a licence area viable is a degree harder. As a comparison, when the AFL has forced lower leagues to restructure in areas of declining participation, the less successful restructures result in individual clubs changing leagues in the following years. A form of self-selection of “commonality of interests”.
Anyway, all hypothetical stuff. The idea that either Grants or ACMA would be in favour of changing the current structure is low. Grants won’t want competition and ACMA won’t want work. I am not aware of ACMA/ABA ever undertaking any significant review of licence area definitions, just tinkering at the edges (such as 3TR/Sale prior to its s39 licence issue), but there might be wiser heads than me on here that know otherwise.
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7HT and 7SD are good ones too
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scored a 7CAE 92.1 sticker on Ebay. Apparently, this was the call sign before it was changed to 7THE in 1981.
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On the subject of Ebay, I’ve found on there a compilation CD for 2WS’ Jukebox Saturday Night that was released in 1993 (the year it converted to FM) that a seller is currently selling.
Here’s the cover:
And here’s the track listing:
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If anything, Tasmania might be an interesting case to disband license areas completely and make it a whole state license similar to TV and then compel the potential licensee to do the engineering work and frequency allocation themselves.
For example Grants may like another station in Hobart, lets say a Classic hits/Talk station, maybe on AM, to compete directly with the ABC, but its up to them to prove that they wont effect any incumbent services.
Like wise SCA into Lonny…up to the aspirant, not the ACMA to nominate a freq…
Oh hang on…what’s that sound…its the current licensees running off to their lawyers and the courts… HA!
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While we’re on the subject of old radio station logos, I was going through some old APN Annual Reports via archive.org and saw this. From the 2001 Annual Report, released in Early 2002 just as ARN was getting into standardised branding for all their stations:
A possibly unused logo for Mix 106.3 Canberra because if archived versions of the station website are anything to go by, it seems that the local logo remained in use until Late 2003/Early 2004 when a new one in the 2002-04 Mix Network logo style (which is slightly different to the 2001/02 Mix station logo design) was launched before being ditched in September 2004 when the purple “Feel Good” logo was adopted. Also for what it’s worth, Mix 106.3 had a locally generated website until July 2006 when they finally adopted their version of the standard Mix station website look about two years after the other cities!
Meanwhile if you want proof as to how quickly ARN repositioned their stations (and to some extent themselves - check out that corporate logo!) after about May 2001, this is the what the portfolio of radio stations looked like in the 2000 APN annual report:
Which by the 2003 APN annual report, had been condensed into two core brands (+ The Edge 96.1 for that Western Sydney station). It’s to my understanding that these generic Mix/Classic Hits logo were used in the national advertising for concert tours, on CD releases, things like that:
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Using Statistical Areas (which is Census driven) makes sense in terms of determining the population of a licence area - but because they follow defined boundaries they have issues.
Given that issuing new commercial licences has basically ceased, it doesnt really have much impact any more. The industry’s success in ensuring that new licence issue has stopped is something that Government should be ashamed about
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Mix 106.3 definitely used the red, yellow and blue logo in 2003/2004, before changing to the new network logo in late 2004 (they had the purple “swoosh”, for a lack of a better word). I know their website wasn’t updated for awhile after they started using it, but their Mix Cruiser definitely had that logo in 2003.
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That Edge 96.1 logo looks nice - looks more like a Rock station than anything though, just from that tiny glimpse.
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I like the 4BH logo from that era.
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You really have to wonder how much money is in these towns. At least in Charleville and Longreach the Commercial AM and FM are owned by the same company (Resonate).
There is an indigenous community station in Charleville possibly creating competition and ABC broadcasting from Longreach (which would surely be one of ABC Radio’s smallest markets).
Sane deal in Roma. Resonate owns the AM commercial and Hot Country on a narrowcast licence but SCA owns the FM and there’s also competition from a community station.
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I still recall when 96.1 became “The Edge”.
It was around the time of Nova969 launching and was to avoid confusion between 96.1 and 96.9 and was to give 96.1 a proper identity.
IMO The Edge’s best era was their “Live Sexy” era.
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WAFM remote became Red FM in about 2002/2003. The new slimed down WAFM network was Broome, Hedland, Karratha, Carnarvon and Geraldton from 2005.
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I was disappointed in this period that ARN did not have stations in Perth. Although I later found out ARN did agency sales for 96FM (Then owned by Southern Cross Broadcasting)
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Is there any info on how it happened that ARN/DMG ended up going into joint ventures in Perth/Brisbane rather than going for outright ownership?
They seem more hands off than other joint venture stations as well - I suppose because each of them control one each, unlike the Canberra situation?
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I preferred their original ONE FM era.
At least back then, there was some resemblance of fulfilling their obligation of being a station for Penrith and the Blue Mountains.
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I always thought the name Edge was referring to being for the Edge of Sydney.
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