Isle of Wight Radio is an

independent local radio Independent Local Radio is the collective name given to commercial radio stations in the United Kingdom. As a result of the buyouts and mergers permitted by the Broadcasting Act 1990, and deregulation resulting from the Communications Act 2003, ...

station in Newport on the

Isle of Wight The Isle of Wight ( ) is a Counties of England, county in the English Channel, off the coast of Hampshire, from which it is separated by the Solent. It is the List of islands of England#Largest islands, largest and List of islands of England#Mo ...

. The station began transmitting from Briddlesford Farm AM transmitter on 15 April 1990. Isle of Wight Radio switched to FM in March 1998, its main transmitter is at Chillerton Down on 107FM, with three low power relays on 102FM in Cowes, Ventnor and Ryde. As of December 2022, the station broadcasts to a weekly audience of 33,000 with a listening share of 8.0%, according to RAJAR. Isleofwightradioanniversary

History

Ownership

Isle of Wight Radio was independently owned for two years before being purchased by GWR (now Global Radio) and then by

The Local Radio Company The Local Radio Company was a British media company, based in Redruth, Cornwall, that owned ten independent local radio stations in the UK. After takeover talks with UTV Media, UKRD Group and Hallwood Financial, UKRD acquired the majority sha ...

(TLRC). The station then came under the control of a joint venture between TLRC and the

Portsmouth FC Portsmouth Football Club is a professional football club based in Portsmouth, Hampshire, England, which compete in . They are also known as ''Pompey'', a local nickname used by both HMNB Portsmouth and the city of Portsmouth; the ''Pompey'' nick ...

, under the name of Quadrant Media Limited, which also owned Spirit FM in

Chichester Chichester () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and civil parish in West Sussex, England.OS Explorer map 120: Chichester, South Harting and Selsey Scale: 1:25 000. Publisher:Ordnance Survey – Southampton B2 edition. Publi ...

and

107.4 The Quay Easy Radio South Coast is an Independent Local Radio station based in Southampton, England, owned and operated by Nation Broadcasting. It broadcasts to the South Coast of the England. As of September 2022, the station has a weekly audience of 47 ...

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council. Portsmouth is the most dens ...

. In August 2009, the station was sold in a management buyout by programme controller Paul Topping, Claire Willis, Ian Walker and Hedley Finn, making it independently owned again.UKRD/TLRC sells IOW Radio
/ref> In October 2012, it was announced that the station, alongside local Beacon magazine which it owns, was to merge with Media Sound Holdings, now Total Sense Media, owner of Splash FM,

Bright FM More Radio Mid-Sussex, formerly Bright FM, is an Independent Local Radio station serving Burgess Hill, Haywards Heath, Lewes and surrounding areas. It is owned and operated by Total Sense Media and broadcasts from studios in Worthing, as part of ...

Arrow FM More Radio Hastings, formerly Arrow FM, is an Independent Local Radio station serving Hastings, Bexhill, Battle and surrounding areas. It is owned and operated by Total Sense Media and broadcasts from studios in Worthing, as part of a network ...

and

Sovereign FM More Radio Eastbourne, formerly Sovereign FM, is an Independent Local Radio station serving Eastbourne, Hailsham, Polegate and surrounding areas. It is owned and operated by Total Sense Media and broadcasts from studios in Worthing, as part of ...

, the latter two being former sister stations under TLRC. The merger involved the station's shareholders taking shares in Media Sound Holdings, with Willis and Finn joining the board. It was said that staffing would not be affected with continued broadcast from the Isle of Wight and no plans for content sharing amongst the stations, although this could be considered in future for off-peak hours.

References

{{Reflist

External links

Isle of Wight Radio website
Radio stations established in 1990 Radio stations in the Isle of Wight 1990 establishments in England