Emap Sets Launch Date For Kerrang’s FM Debut
Emap Performance has begun the countdown to Kerrang! Radio‘s seminal FM debut with the confirmation of a 10 June launch date for the station’s first analogue broadcasts in the West Midlands.
Kerrang 105.2, which has been in development for over two years, will cover Birmingham and Wolverhampton as well as surrounding areas and parts of Warwickshire and Staffordshire (see Kerrang! To Rock West Midlands).Last October saw Emap beat off stiff competition from Capital, Jazz FM and Virgin Radio to secure the last FM licence available for the region. The launch will be backed by a massive £1 million advertising campaign, comprising above and below the line creative, street teams and guerrilla marketing.
Commenting on the launch, and the station’s content, Andrew Jeffries, programme director for Kerrang, said: “Our presenters are going to be real and relevant to the audience but we won’t be threatening. Rock music is a much wider genre than some people may realise. Anyone who thinks they can dismiss Kerrang! 105.2 as just a “heavy rock” station is in for a huge surprise.”
He added: “We take our inspiration from Kerrang! magazine and TV but we can be much broader than them in terms of daytime artistes and we can go much deeper in the evenings. This is the fifth radio station I have helped launch and it is the most exciting and well prepared project I’ve ever had the luck to work on.”
The West Midlands license represents a major foothold for Kerrang! Radio, a brand which Emap plans to develop into one of three ‘hero brands’, alongside Kiss and Magic. The company hopes to use the format to apply for a string of new FM licenses as they are advertised by Ofcom later this year (see Ofcom Plans To Roll Out Raft Of New Radio Licences).
Kerrang! Radio has already completed a one-month trial run broadcasting on 97.6 FM in Manchester, a market which will be high on Emap’s hit list when a raft of local licences becomes available over the coming 12 months (see Kerrang Radio Prepares FM Broadcasts In Manchester).
Last month saw the installation of Travis Baxter as managing director of Kerrang! Radio with responsibility for driving growth of the rock station. Baxter’s appointment follows the station’s rapid expansion but disappointing RAJAR results in the three months to December 2003. A 16.4% decline in weekly reach to 722,000 was revealed by the radio ratings authority, down from 864,000 in the previous period (see Kerrang! Radio Appoints Baxter To Oversee Expansion).
Job cuts at Emap Performance have also raised concerns that the company’s brand development could be slowed. The company announced redundancies last month as part of an ongoing strategy to reduce costs and increase profit margins (see Emap Performance Restructures To Cut Costs).
Emap: 01733 568 900 www.emap.co.uk
Recent Radio Stories from NewsLine MXR Expands Marketing Remit To Focus On Brands Tindle Radio Signs For Eurolink Sport Bulletins Capital Pushes Vaughan With TV Ad Campaign
Subscribers can access ten years of media news and analysis in the Archive