OXFORD’S FM107.9 Request to change Format Consultation Publication date: 19 February 2010 Closing Date for Responses: 19 March 2010 Format change request – Oxford’s FM 107.9 Contents Section Page 1 Summary 2 2 Background 4 Annex Page 1 Responding to this consultation 5 2 Ofcom’s consultation principles 7 3 Consultation response cover sheet 8 4 Consultation question 10 5 Oxford’s FM 107.9 request for a change of Format 11 6 COMMERCIAL RADIO STATION (PRESENT) FORMAT 25 7 Other Commercial and community radio stations operating in the Oxford area 26 1 Format change request – Oxford’s FM 107.9 Section 1 1 Summary 1.1 Ofcom has received a request from Passion Radio Oxford (PRO) to change the Format of Oxford’s FM 107.9. The station is currently a “voice for the young” with a requirement to deliver the sort of cutting-edge and credible music that would be appreciated by Oxford’s students and youth community. PRO wishes to change the character of the station to become an easy listening station targeted at an older audience of over 45’s. Current Format THE STATION WILL BE THE VOICE FOR YOUNG OXFORD THROUGH A MIX OF PRIMARILY NEW, ‘CUTTING EDGE’ AND CREDIBLE CHART MUSIC (eg URBAN, DANCE AND ALTERNATIVE) WITH NEWS, PHONE-INS, INFORMATION AND YOUTH CULTURE FEATURES TARGETING 15-29s IN THE CITY. Proposed Format THE STATION WILL BE THE VOICE FOR OXFORD THROUGH A MIX OF EASY- LISTENING SOFT MUSIC AIMED AT 45+ ADULTS WITH LOCAL NEWS, PHONE-INS, LOCAL INFORMATION AND CULTURE FEATURES TARGETING THE CITY 1.2 Ofcom has published guidelines with regard to criteria that will be considered when stations request a change of Format. 1.3 If a station wants to make changes that will substantially alter the character of its service, Ofcom consults publicly before coming to a decision. In this case the request would, if granted, substantially alter the character of the station’s service. 1.4 Ofcom must consider the request by the station to change its Format against the statutory criteria set out in the legislation below, and the consultation question, at Annex 4, reflects that. Ofcom has the ability to consent to such changes under conditions included in the Oxford’s FM 107.9 licence, in accordance with Sections 106 (1A) of the Broadcasting Act 1990 if it is satisfied that at least one of the following criteria is satisfied: (a) The departure would not substantially alter the character of the service (b) The change would not narrow the range of programmes available in the area by way of relevant independent radio services (c) The change would be conducive to the maintenance or promotion of fair and effective competition or (d) There is evidence that, amongst persons living in the affected areas, there is a significant demand for, or significant support for, the change. 2 Format change request – Oxford’s FM 107.9 1.5 In this case, the change of character would be stark, and criterion (a) above is not satisfied. So, the changes can only be approved if one of criteria (b) to (d) is satisfied. In these circumstances Ofcom is required to carry out a public consultation. 1.6 In particular, when considering whether criterion (b) is satisfied (the change would not narrow the range of programmes available in the area by way of relevant independent radio services), neither local DAB services nor BBC services ‘count’ as relevant independent radio services. The relevant independent radio services are those local analogue commercial which operate in the region, which are listed in Annex 7. (There are no operational community stations in the area.) 1.7 Even if Ofcom is satisfied that the proposed change would meet one of these statutory criteria, Ofcom still has discretion as to whether to agree to the change. Ofcom has published guidance about how it generally expects to exercise its discretion. The guidance is attached to this paper at Annex 8 and is at : http://www.ofcom.org.uk/radio/ifi/rbl/formats/formats/fc/changeregs/ 1.8 Ofcom, therefore, seeks views on the requests, having particular regard to the Broadcasting Act 1990 Section 106 (1A) (b) (c) and/or (d), as set out above. 1.9 Annex 5 contains the Format change request, in which an argument is made that over 45’s are underserved, that there is a call for such a service and that targeting a student audience will never be commercially viable because it is transient and unlikely to be RAJAR diary-friendly. 1.10 Other commercially sensitive information has been provided in confidence to Ofcom, and will be taken into account by Ofcom in coming to a decision. 3 Format change request – Oxford’s FM 107.9 Section 2 2 Background 2.1 A small-scale licence was awarded by the Radio Authority in late 1996 and launched, as Oxygen FM, in February 1997, as a very student-oriented station. Its Measured Coverage Area is 214,000. 2.2 It has never been successful financially, and it was sold and re-launched as Fusion FM and again as Passion FM, before being bought by PRO and re-named Oxford’s FM 107.9 in June 2006. Its present, new-style Format is attached as Annex 6. 2.3 PRO also own the Jack FM licence, which covers Oxford and South Oxfordshire with a Format delivering pop and rock for the over 35s. The stations share studios. 2.4 The third commercial station available in the area is Heart (formerly Fox FM), which covers a wider area (Oxford and Banbury) with chart and contemporary music for under 44s. 2.5 PRO proposes a station that serves over 45’s with the sort of melodic Format that has become associated with Smooth FM ; a service aimed at older audiences but focusing on slightly more contemporary artists (eg Susan Boyle, George Benson and the like) than Saga Radio, Smooth’s predecessor in the Midlands. 4 Format change request – Oxford’s FM 107.9 Annex 1 1 Responding to this consultation How to respond A1.1 Ofcom invites written views and comments on the issues raised in this document, to be made by 5pm on 19 March 2010. A1.2 Ofcom strongly prefers to receive responses using the online web form at http://www.ofcom.org.uk/consult/condocs/oxfordsfm1079/howtorespond/form, as this helps us to process the responses quickly and efficiently. We would also be grateful if you could assist us by completing a response cover sheet (see Annex 3), to indicate whether or not there are confidentiality issues. This response coversheet is incorporated into the online web form questionnaire. A1.3 For larger consultation responses – particularly those with supporting charts, tables or other data – please email: [email protected], attaching your response in Microsoft Word format, together with a consultation response coversheet. A1.4 Responses may alternatively be posted or faxed to the address below: Oxford’s FM 107.9 consultation FAO Martin Campbell Chief Advisor, Radio Ofcom Riverside House 2A Southwark Bridge Road London SE1 9HA Fax: 020 7981 3850 A1.5 Note that we do not need a hard copy in addition to an electronic version. Ofcom will acknowledge receipt of responses if they are submitted using the online web form but not otherwise. A1.6 It would be helpful if your response could include direct answers to the question asked in this document, which are listed together at Annex 4. It would also help if you can explain why you hold your views and how the proposals would impact on you. Further information A1.7 If you want to discuss the issues and questions raised in this consultation, or need advice on the appropriate form of response, please contact Jon Heasman on 020 7783 4509. Confidentiality A1.8 We believe it is important for everyone interested in an issue to see the views expressed by consultation respondents. We will therefore usually publish all responses on our website, www.ofcom.org.uk, ideally on receipt. If you think your response should be kept confidential, can you please specify what part or whether 5 Format change request – Oxford’s FM 107.9 all of your response should be kept confidential, and specify why. Please also place such parts in a separate annex. A1.9 If someone asks us to keep part or all of a response confidential, we will treat this request seriously and will try to respect this. But sometimes we will need to publish all responses, including those that are marked as confidential, in order to meet legal obligations. A1.10 Please also note that copyright and all other intellectual property in responses will be assumed to be licensed to Ofcom to use. Ofcom’s approach on intellectual property rights is explained further on its website at http://www.ofcom.org.uk/about/accoun/disclaimer/ Next steps A1.11 Following the end of the consultation period, Ofcom intends to publish a statement. A1.12 Please note that you can register to receive free mail Updates alerting you to the publications of relevant Ofcom documents. For more details please see: http://www.ofcom.org.uk/static/subscribe/select_list.htm Ofcom's consultation processes A1.13 Ofcom seeks to ensure that responding to a consultation is easy as possible. For more information please see our consultation principles in Annex 2. A1.14 If you have any comments or suggestions on how Ofcom conducts its consultations, please call our consultation helpdesk on 020 7981 3003 or e-mail us at [email protected] .