Austereo Radio Network
Encyclopedia
Austereo Radio Network formerly operated commercial radio networks in metropolitan and regional areas of Australia
. On 6 April 2011, Southern Cross Media purchased a majority of the company and is in the process of unifying the Austereo networks with Southern Cross's regional brands. In July 2011, Southern Cross Media and Austereo were merged to form Southern Cross Austereo.
was introduced into Australia it acquired the licence for the metropolitan Adelaide
area; SAFM
commenced transmission in late 1980. The next station to join the network was FOX FM in Melbourne
in 1986, eventually to be followed by Sydney's
2Day FM
and 4BK
Brisbane
for which the company was successful in converting to the FM band in 1990. Austereo also purchased Perth
AM
radio station 6IX with the intention of converting the station to FM. 6IX, which had been re-launched by Austereo as The Eagle 1080 AM, was consequently sold off after being outbid for either of the two new FM licences by rivals 6KY
and 6PM, which Austereo now own.
1992 saw a monopolistic arrangement take place whereby Austereo purchased the Hoyts
owned Triple M
network, and Village Roadshow in turn purchased Austereo to form a single umbrella company. The purchases were part of a single deal that was unpopular due to the fierce rivalry between the two radio networks, and the fact that Village Roadshow and Hoyts
were also direct competitors in the film industry
.
Austereo had joint partnerships in Canberra
. Australian Radio Network
and Austereo have a joint partnership with 104.7 and Mix 106.3. Austereo is varied in the ratings, as of the last survey of 2009, its Hit Music stations top the FM ratings in most markets, with 2Day, Fox FM and B105 being the top FM stations in their respective markets, SAFM second in Adelaide and 92.9 coming in close behind sister station Mix 94.5 in Perth.
Conversely, Austereo's Triple M group of stations have suffered heavily from increased competition from new station Vega 95.3
and Vega 91.5
in Sydney and Melbourne respectively, with the stations in Melbourne and Sydney recording some of their lowest ratings of all time. Triple M stations currently occupy the last place among FM Commercial stations in the ratings, however in Brisbane and Adelaide they record much closer ratings results, with lower competition.
. Its Ticker symbol
was AEO.
As of July 2010 the upper management were:
In March 2011, Southern Cross Media launched a AUD$714m takeover bid of national radio broadcaster, the Austereo Group. On April 6, 2011 shareholders of the Austereo Group accepted the takeover bid, giving SCM a more than 90% share in the company.
's Number 1 Hit Music Station"
Since the purchase of the Austereo network by Southern Cross Media, Sea FM
will be incorporated into the Today Network, although their only Gold Coast station has been rebraded so far.
where Austereo programs 104.7 and Mix 106.3
and ARN
manages administration for both stations.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. On 6 April 2011, Southern Cross Media purchased a majority of the company and is in the process of unifying the Austereo networks with Southern Cross's regional brands. In July 2011, Southern Cross Media and Austereo were merged to form Southern Cross Austereo.
History
The company was founded by Paul Thompson, and when commercial FM broadcastingFM broadcasting
FM broadcasting is a broadcasting technology pioneered by Edwin Howard Armstrong which uses frequency modulation to provide high-fidelity sound over broadcast radio. The term "FM band" describes the "frequency band in which FM is used for broadcasting"...
was introduced into Australia it acquired the licence for the metropolitan Adelaide
Adelaide
Adelaide is the capital city of South Australia and the fifth-largest city in Australia. Adelaide has an estimated population of more than 1.2 million...
area; SAFM
SAFM
SAFM is a commercial FM radio station in Adelaide, Australia, primarily targeted at those in the 16-35 age group on a frequency of 107.1 MHz, and part of Austereo's Today Network.-Station History:...
commenced transmission in late 1980. The next station to join the network was FOX FM in Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
in 1986, eventually to be followed by Sydney's
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
2Day FM
2Day FM
Not to be mixed up with Today FM in Ireland.2Day FM is a commercial FM radio station broadcasting in Sydney, Australia, on a frequency of 104.1 MHz, and part of Austereo's Today Network.- Transmission :...
and 4BK
B105
B105 or B-105 may refer to:*B105 FM , a Mainstream CHR radio station broadcasting out of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia*WUBE, a country music radio station broadcasting out of Cincinnati, Ohio, United States of America...
Brisbane
Brisbane
Brisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...
for which the company was successful in converting to the FM band in 1990. Austereo also purchased Perth
Perth, Western Australia
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....
AM
AM broadcasting
AM broadcasting is the process of radio broadcasting using amplitude modulation. AM was the first method of impressing sound on a radio signal and is still widely used today. Commercial and public AM broadcasting is carried out in the medium wave band world wide, and on long wave and short wave...
radio station 6IX with the intention of converting the station to FM. 6IX, which had been re-launched by Austereo as The Eagle 1080 AM, was consequently sold off after being outbid for either of the two new FM licences by rivals 6KY
Mix 94.5
MIX 94.5 is a commercial music radio station owned by Austereo in Perth, Western Australia.The station originally began as 6KY, beginning broadcasting on 23 October 1941 and would eventually end up at the frequency 1206 kHz. On 1 June 1991, 6KY became one of two Perth radio stations to convert...
and 6PM, which Austereo now own.
1992 saw a monopolistic arrangement take place whereby Austereo purchased the Hoyts
Hoyts
The Hoyts Group is an Australian company consisting of Hoyts Exhibition, Hoyts Distribution and Val Morgan.Hoyts Exhibition manages 450 screens across 40 Australian and 10 New Zealand cinema complexes; making it Australia's second largest cinema chain. Val Morgan, the cinema advertising arm of the...
owned Triple M
Triple M
The Triple M Network is an active rock radio network in Australia owned by media company Austereo, who also own the Today Network.- History :...
network, and Village Roadshow in turn purchased Austereo to form a single umbrella company. The purchases were part of a single deal that was unpopular due to the fierce rivalry between the two radio networks, and the fact that Village Roadshow and Hoyts
Hoyts
The Hoyts Group is an Australian company consisting of Hoyts Exhibition, Hoyts Distribution and Val Morgan.Hoyts Exhibition manages 450 screens across 40 Australian and 10 New Zealand cinema complexes; making it Australia's second largest cinema chain. Val Morgan, the cinema advertising arm of the...
were also direct competitors in the film industry
Film industry
The film industry consists of the technological and commercial institutions of filmmaking: i.e. film production companies, film studios, cinematography, film production, screenwriting, pre-production, post production, film festivals, distribution; and actors, film directors and other film crew...
.
Austereo had joint partnerships in Canberra
Canberra
Canberra is the capital city of Australia. With a population of over 345,000, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The city is located at the northern end of the Australian Capital Territory , south-west of Sydney, and north-east of Melbourne...
. Australian Radio Network
Australian Radio Network
The Australian Radio Network is a group of commercial radio stations around Australia and New Zealand. A joint venture of Australian media conglomerate APN News & Media and United States radio company Clear Channel Communications, the group is the largest radio company in Australasia...
and Austereo have a joint partnership with 104.7 and Mix 106.3. Austereo is varied in the ratings, as of the last survey of 2009, its Hit Music stations top the FM ratings in most markets, with 2Day, Fox FM and B105 being the top FM stations in their respective markets, SAFM second in Adelaide and 92.9 coming in close behind sister station Mix 94.5 in Perth.
Conversely, Austereo's Triple M group of stations have suffered heavily from increased competition from new station Vega 95.3
Vega 95.3
95.3 FM is an Australian commercial radio station operated by DMG Radio Australia in Sydney.-History:In contrast to DMG's other Australian radio brand, the pop/rock Nova network, Classic Rock was originally positioned to target the baby boomer market of listeners in the 40 to 60 age bracket, with...
and Vega 91.5
Vega 91.5
91.5 FM is a commercial radio station based in Melbourne, Australia. It is run by DMG Radio Australia.-History:The station first named Vega began with a music and talk format, however it switched to a music format in 2006...
in Sydney and Melbourne respectively, with the stations in Melbourne and Sydney recording some of their lowest ratings of all time. Triple M stations currently occupy the last place among FM Commercial stations in the ratings, however in Brisbane and Adelaide they record much closer ratings results, with lower competition.
Corporate
Austereo was partially floated in 2001 on the Australian Stock ExchangeAustralian Stock Exchange
The Australian Securities Exchange was created by the merger of the Australian Stock Exchange and the Sydney Futures Exchange in July 2006. It is the primary stock exchange group in Australia....
. Its Ticker symbol
Ticker symbol
A stock symbol or ticker symbol is a short abbreviation used to uniquely identify publicly traded shares of a particular stock on a particular stock market. A stock symbol may consist of letters, numbers or a combination of both. "Ticker symbol" refers to the symbols that were printed on the ticker...
was AEO.
As of July 2010 the upper management were:
- Peter Harvie, Chairman
- Guy Dobson, Chief Executive Officer
- Craig Bruce, Group Program Director - Triple M and Today Network
In March 2011, Southern Cross Media launched a AUD$714m takeover bid of national radio broadcaster, the Austereo Group. On April 6, 2011 shareholders of the Austereo Group accepted the takeover bid, giving SCM a more than 90% share in the company.
Today Network
Slogan: "- 2Day FM2Day FMNot to be mixed up with Today FM in Ireland.2Day FM is a commercial FM radio station broadcasting in Sydney, Australia, on a frequency of 104.1 MHz, and part of Austereo's Today Network.- Transmission :...
- Sydney 104.1 MHz - Fox FMFOX FM (Melbourne)Fox FM is a radio station that serves the Melbourne, Australia, broadcasting on the FM band at a frequency of 101.9 MHz. Licensed to Mount Dandenong, Victoria, the station is currently owned by the Austereo Radio Network. The station's transmitter is located on the ATV-10 transmission tower on top...
- Melbourne 101.9 MHz - B105B105 FMB105 is a commercial FM radio station broadcasting on 105.3 MHz in Brisbane, Australia. It is part of the Austereo Radio Network. B105's primary audience is 10 to 24 age group.-History:...
- Brisbane 105.3 MHz - SAFMSAFMSAFM is a commercial FM radio station in Adelaide, Australia, primarily targeted at those in the 16-35 age group on a frequency of 107.1 MHz, and part of Austereo's Today Network.-Station History:...
- Adelaide 107.1 MHz - 92.9 - Perth 92.9 MHz
- NXFMNXFMNXFM is an Australian radio station, licensed to, and serving Newcastle, New South Wales and surrounding areas. It broadcasts at 106.9 MHz on the FM band from its studios in Charlestown...
- Newcastle 106.9 MHz (formerly a joint venture between Austereo and Southern Cross Media)
Since the purchase of the Austereo network by Southern Cross Media, Sea FM
Sea FM (Australian radio network)
Sea FM is a commercial Australian radio network, consisting of stations in Queensland, New South Wales and Tasmania and is owned by Southern Cross Austereo. Some Sea FM stations were later sold to meet media ownership requirements...
will be incorporated into the Today Network, although their only Gold Coast station has been rebraded so far.
Triple M Network
Slogan: various- 2MMM2MMM2MMM is a radio station broadcasting in Sydney, Australia. Triple M Sydney is part of the Austereo Triple M network and broadcasts on the 104.9 MHz frequency.-The Early Days:...
- Sydney 104.9 MHz - 3MMM3MMM3MMM is a radio station broadcasting in Melbourne, Australia. Its target demographic is the 30 - 54 age group...
- Melbourne 105.1 MHz - 4MMM4MMM4MMM is one of Brisbane, Australia's commercial FM Rock radio stations, primarily targeted at those in the 25-50 age group...
- Brisbane 104.5 MHz - 5MMM5MMM5MMM is a radio station broadcasting in Adelaide, Australia. Its target demographic is the 30 - 54 age group...
- Adelaide 104.7 MHz - Mix 94.5Mix 94.5MIX 94.5 is a commercial music radio station owned by Austereo in Perth, Western Australia.The station originally began as 6KY, beginning broadcasting on 23 October 1941 and would eventually end up at the frequency 1206 kHz. On 1 June 1991, 6KY became one of two Perth radio stations to convert...
- Perth 94.5 MHz - KOFM - Newcastle 102.9 MHz (formerly a joint venture between Austereo and Southern Cross Media)
Joint-Ventures
A joint venture of 50/50 ownership exists in Canberra with the Australian Radio NetworkAustralian Radio Network
The Australian Radio Network is a group of commercial radio stations around Australia and New Zealand. A joint venture of Australian media conglomerate APN News & Media and United States radio company Clear Channel Communications, the group is the largest radio company in Australasia...
where Austereo programs 104.7 and Mix 106.3
Mix 106.3
MIX 106.3 is a commercial radio station in Canberra, Australia and is owned by the Australian Radio Network and Southern Cross Austereo....
and ARN
ARN
Arn may refer to:given name*people called Arn** Arn Anderson , American professional wrestler** Arn Menconi, District 2 Commissioner in Eagle County, Colorado...
manages administration for both stations.
- 104.7 (joint venture with Australian Radio NetworkAustralian Radio NetworkThe Australian Radio Network is a group of commercial radio stations around Australia and New Zealand. A joint venture of Australian media conglomerate APN News & Media and United States radio company Clear Channel Communications, the group is the largest radio company in Australasia...
) - Canberra 104.7 MHz - Mix 106.3Mix 106.3MIX 106.3 is a commercial radio station in Canberra, Australia and is owned by the Australian Radio Network and Southern Cross Austereo....
(joint venture with Australian Radio NetworkAustralian Radio NetworkThe Australian Radio Network is a group of commercial radio stations around Australia and New Zealand. A joint venture of Australian media conglomerate APN News & Media and United States radio company Clear Channel Communications, the group is the largest radio company in Australasia...
) - Canberra 106.3 MHz
Digital Radio Stations
| Name | Format | Launch Date | Close Date | Markets |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Barry Barry (radio) Barry is a Comedy Digital Radio station broadcasting nationally in Australia. The station is owned by Austereo and is the second permanent digital only station the company has launched, alongside Radar Radio... |
Comedy | 16 July 2010 | N/A | All |
| Radar Radar (radio) Radar Radio is an Australian national Digital Radio station. It is run by Austereo and was launched on 11 December 2008.-History:Radar started broadcasting online before Digital Radio launched in Australia on 11 December 2008... |
New Music | 11 December 2008 | N/A | All (and Canberra) |
| U20 | Under 20s Audience Generated Content Station | 1 July 2010 | 20 November 2010 | All |
| The Main Stage | Touring artists music | 19 October 2010 | N/A | All |
| Caravan Radio Caravan Radio Caravan Radio is a pop up Digital Radio station broadcasting nationally in Australia while Hamish & Andy tour the United Kingdom in 2010 on their fourth Caravan of Courage journey... |
Hamish & Andy Caravan Of Courage | 24 May 2010 | 1 July 2010 | All |
| Radio Gaga Radio Gaga (radio) Radio Gaga was a pop up Digital Radio station broadcasting nationally in Australia while Lady Gaga toured the country in 2010. The station was part of the Austereo Today Network and only played Lady Gaga's music.-Programming:... |
All Lady Gaga | 15 March 2010 | 20 May 2010 | All |
| High Voltage Radio High Voltage Radio High Voltage Radio was a pop up Digital Radio station broadcasting nationally in Australia while AC/DC were touring the country in 2010... |
All AC/DC | 10 February 2010 | 15 March 2010 | All |
| I See Red | Salvation Army Red Shield Appeal | 20 May 2010 | 16 June 2010 | All |
| Choose the Hits Choose The Hits Jelli Choose The Hits was an all request Australian national Digital Radio station. It is run by Austereo and was renamed on 1 February 2010. Previously the station was trialled with the name Hot30 Jelli, launching on 27 November 2009... |
Real Time Requests | 27 November 2009 | 20 May 2010 | All |