FM broadcasting in India
Encyclopedia
The first FM broadcasting in India was in the year 1977 at Madras.
In the mid-nineties, when India
first experimented with private FM broadcasts, the small tourist destination
of Goa
was the fifth place in this country of one billion where private players got FM slots. The other four centres were the big metro cities: Delhi
, Mumbai
, Kolkata
and Chennai
. These were followed by stations in Bangalore
, Hyderabad, Jaipur
and Lucknow
.
Indian policy currently states that these broadcasters are assessed a One-Time Entry Fee (OTEF), for the entire license period of 10 years. Under the Indian accounting system, this amount is amortised over the 10 year period at 10% per annum. Annual license fee for private players is either 4% of revenue share or 10% of Reserve Price
, whichever is higher.
Earlier, India's attempts to privatise its FM channels ran into rough weather when private players bid heavily and most could not meet their commitments to pay the government the amounts they owed.
, Mid-Day
, and BBC
are essentially newspaper chains or media, and they are already making a strong pitch for news on FM.
.
Reliance and South Asia FM (Sun group) bid for most of the 91 cities, although they were allowed only 15% of the total allocated frequencies. Between them, they have had to surrender over 40 licenses.
In the mid-nineties, when India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
first experimented with private FM broadcasts, the small tourist destination
Tourist destination
A tourist destination is a city, town, or other area that is dependent to a significant extent on the revenues accruing from tourism. It may contain one or more tourist attractions and possibly some "tourist traps."...
of Goa
Goa
Goa , a former Portuguese colony, is India's smallest state by area and the fourth smallest by population. Located in South West India in the region known as the Konkan, it is bounded by the state of Maharashtra to the north, and by Karnataka to the east and south, while the Arabian Sea forms its...
was the fifth place in this country of one billion where private players got FM slots. The other four centres were the big metro cities: Delhi
Delhi
Delhi , officially National Capital Territory of Delhi , is the largest metropolis by area and the second-largest by population in India, next to Mumbai. It is the eighth largest metropolis in the world by population with 16,753,265 inhabitants in the Territory at the 2011 Census...
, Mumbai
Mumbai
Mumbai , formerly known as Bombay in English, is the capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the most populous city in India, and the fourth most populous city in the world, with a total metropolitan area population of approximately 20.5 million...
, Kolkata
Kolkata
Kolkata , formerly known as Calcutta, is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal. Located on the east bank of the Hooghly River, it was the commercial capital of East India...
and Chennai
Chennai
Chennai , formerly known as Madras or Madarasapatinam , is the capital city of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, located on the Coromandel Coast off the Bay of Bengal. Chennai is the fourth most populous metropolitan area and the sixth most populous city in India...
. These were followed by stations in Bangalore
Bangalore
Bengaluru , formerly called Bengaluru is the capital of the Indian state of Karnataka. Bangalore is nicknamed the Garden City and was once called a pensioner's paradise. Located on the Deccan Plateau in the south-eastern part of Karnataka, Bangalore is India's third most populous city and...
, Hyderabad, Jaipur
Jaipur
Jaipur , also popularly known as the Pink City, is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Rajasthan. Founded on 18 November 1727 by Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh II, the ruler of Amber, the city today has a population of more than 3.1 million....
and Lucknow
Lucknow
Lucknow is the capital city of Uttar Pradesh in India. Lucknow is the administrative headquarters of Lucknow District and Lucknow Division....
.
Indian policy currently states that these broadcasters are assessed a One-Time Entry Fee (OTEF), for the entire license period of 10 years. Under the Indian accounting system, this amount is amortised over the 10 year period at 10% per annum. Annual license fee for private players is either 4% of revenue share or 10% of Reserve Price
Reservation price
In microeconomics, the reservation price is the highest price a buyer is willing to pay for goods or a service; or; the smallest price at which a seller is willing to sell a good or service...
, whichever is higher.
Earlier, India's attempts to privatise its FM channels ran into rough weather when private players bid heavily and most could not meet their commitments to pay the government the amounts they owed.
Content
News in not permitted on private FM, although the Federal Minister for Information-Broadcasting (I. and B. Ministry, Govt. of India) says this may be reconsidered in two to three years. Nationally, many of the current FM players, including the Times of India, Hindustan TimesHindustan Times
Hindustan Times is an Indian English-language daily newspaper founded in 1924 with roots in the Indian independence movement of the period ....
, Mid-Day
Mid-day
Mid Day is an afternoon daily Indian compact newspaper. Editions in various languages are published in Mumbai, Bangalore, Delhi and Pune .-Establishment:...
, and BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
are essentially newspaper chains or media, and they are already making a strong pitch for news on FM.
FM stations in New Delhi
- AIR FM Rainbow / FM-1 (107.1 MHz)
- AIR FM Gold /FM-2 (Early Morning till Midnight) (106.4 MHz)
- AIR Rajdhani/Gyanvani Channel (Non-Regular broadcast) (105.6 MHz)
- Oye FM (104.8 MHz)
- Fever 104 (104 MHz)
- Radio Mirchi FM (98.3 MHz)
- Hit FM (95 MHz)
- Radio One FM (94.3 MHz)
- Red FM (93.5 MHz)
- Big FM (92.7 MHz)
- Radio City (91.1 MHz)
- Radio Jamia 90.4 FM
- Delhi University Educational Radio (Available only in University area) (DU Radio FM) (90.4 MHz)
FM stations in maharashtra
- Vividh BharatiVividh BharatiThe Vividh Bharati Service of All India Radio was conceptualized to combat Radio Ceylon in 1957. Within no time it proved to be a popular channel of every household. Vividh Bharati radio channel was launched on October 3, 1957. The service provides entertainment for nearly 15 to 17 hours a day...
- Jago Mumbai 90.8
- Radio CityRadio CityRadio City can refer to several things:* Radio City , 1974 album by Big Star* Radio City * Radio City 96.7, an independent radio station in Liverpool** Radio City Tower, a radio and observation tower in Liverpool...
91.1 - Big FM 92.7
- Red FMRed FM (India)Red FM is an Indian FM radio brand, with stations broadcasting at 93.5 megahertz in the cities of Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata and Kanpur in addition to Jamshedpur, Bhopal, Gwalior, Jabalpur, Indore, Nashik, Aurangabad, Nagpur, Bangalore, Mysore, Mangalore, Gulbarga, Kochi, Trivandrum, Thrissur, Kannur,...
93.5 - Radio One 94.3
- Win FMWin FMWin 94.6 FM was a FM radio channel in Mumbai, India playing Hindi songs. It broadcast started on 30 April 2001 at 94.6 MHz. It was the Most Popular Radio Station in Mumbai when It was Onair. The Station played variety of Music, including the Old Songs and new songs. Limited was the Advertising with...
94.6 (The Station is closed) - Radio DhamaalRadio DhamaalRadio Dhamaal is a Indian radio channel of BAG Group.*Location**106.4 in Ahmednagar**106.4 in Delhi**106.4 in Muzaffarpur**106.4 in Hisar**106.4 in Karnal**106.4 in Ranchi**106.4 in Jabalpur**106.4 in Dhule**106.4 in Patiala**106.4 in Shimla...
106.4 - AIR FM GoldAIR FM GoldAIR FM Gold is a FM radio channel in Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata and Chennai, India. It is run by the All India Radio, a government owned enterprise, a division of Prasar Bharati . In Mumbai, it features Hindi songs, and occasionally English songs along with hourly news in English and Hindi...
100.7 - Fever 104 FMFever 104 FMFever 104 FM is an FM radio station in India. It is available in Delhi , Mumbai , Bangalore and Kolkata, India ....
104.0 - Meow 104.8
- AIR FM RainbowAIR FM RainbowAIR FM Rainbow is a group of FM radio channels across India. The group of stations was previously called FM Metro, but the name was changed to FM Rainbow in 2002. The group is run by All India Radio, or AIR, a government owned enterprise. It features Hindi and regional language songs, while also...
107.1 - Mumbai One
- Gyan VaniGyan VaniGyan Vani is an educational FM radio station in several cities of India.-Description:Gyan Vani is an educational FM Radio station in several cities of India...
- Radio MUST
FM stations in Bangalore
- Radio CityRadio City (India radio station)Radio City is a FM radio station in India. It broadcasts on 91.1 megahertz from Mumbai , Bangalore , Lucknow and New Delhi. It plays Hindi songs, English and regional songs. It was launched in Hyderabad in March, 2006 , in Chennai on July 7th 2006 and in Vishakapatnam October 2007...
91.1 FM - Kannada - Radio IndigoRadio indigoRadio Indigo 91.9 is the one of the all English radio stations in India. Its headquarters is based in Bangalore and was launched in 2006. It is broadcasted mainly in Bangalore, but is also available in Goa....
91.9 FM - English - Big 92.7 FM - Kannada
- Red FMRed FM (India)Red FM is an Indian FM radio brand, with stations broadcasting at 93.5 megahertz in the cities of Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata and Kanpur in addition to Jamshedpur, Bhopal, Gwalior, Jabalpur, Indore, Nashik, Aurangabad, Nagpur, Bangalore, Mysore, Mangalore, Gulbarga, Kochi, Trivandrum, Thrissur, Kannur,...
93.5 FM - Kannada - Radio ONE FM 94.3 - BollywoodBollywoodBollywood is the informal term popularly used for the Hindi-language film industry based in Mumbai , Maharashtra, India. The term is often incorrectly used to refer to the whole of Indian cinema; it is only a part of the total Indian film industry, which includes other production centers producing...
- Radio MirchiRadio MirchiRadio Mirchi is a nationwide network of private FM radio stations in India. It is owned by the Entertainment Network India Ltd , which is one of the subsidiaries of The Times Group....
98.3 FM Kannada - Amruthavarshini 100.1 FM (devotional)
- FM Rainbow 101.3 FM (Kannada, Hindi, English)
- Vividhabharathi 102.9 FM (Kannada, Hindi)
- Fever FM 104 FM (Hindi)
- Gnyanavani 106.4 FM (Kannada, English, Hindi)
FM stations in chennai
- AIR FM - RAINBOW
- AIR FM - GOLD
- Chennai Live 104.8 FM
- Hello FM (106.4),
- suryan FMSuryan FM 93.5Sun TV Network owns two Radio brands: Suryan FM in Tamil Nadu and for other territories Red FM. Sun is one of the largest Radio broadcasters in India....
, - Aaha FM,
- Big FMBig FM92.7 BIG FM is a nationwide private FM radio station in India owned by Indian businessman Anil Ambani. It broadcasts at 92.7 MHz ....
, - radio city FMRadio CityRadio City can refer to several things:* Radio City , 1974 album by Big Star* Radio City * Radio City 96.7, an independent radio station in Liverpool** Radio City Tower, a radio and observation tower in Liverpool...
, - radio mirchi FMRadio MirchiRadio Mirchi is a nationwide network of private FM radio stations in India. It is owned by the Entertainment Network India Ltd , which is one of the subsidiaries of The Times Group....
, - Radio-1 FM.
Market view
India's new private FM channels could also change the advertising scenario. Traditionally, radio accounts for 7% to 8% of advertiser expenditures around the world. In India, it is less than 2% at present.Current allocation process
In FM Phase II — the latest round of the long-delayed opening up of private FM in India — some 338 frequencies were offered of which about 237 were sold. The government may go for rebidding of unsold frequencies quite soon. In Phase III of FM licensing, smaller towns and cities will be opened up for FM radioFM 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"...
.
Reliance and South Asia FM (Sun group) bid for most of the 91 cities, although they were allowed only 15% of the total allocated frequencies. Between them, they have had to surrender over 40 licenses.