The re-entry of private players-FM Radio
In July 1999, the government of India decided to allow private players to enter the FM radio-broadcasting sector. It planned to offer ten-year license to private players in 40 cities across India. These private broadcasters would be permitted to offer only music, education and entertainment –based programs, not news or current affairs programs.
Hailing the government’s decision as a historic one, analysts said this would change the future of India radio broadcasting. They added that with this development, private companies would have better control of their respective radio stations, unlike in the mid -1990s, when private players were allowed to offer only programming content to the FM stations owned by the government operated All India Radio (AIR).
Following the announcement, many companies bid for licenses to operate in various cities. The first private FM radio station radio city began functioning in July 2001 in Bangalore, Karnataka, By October 2001; sixteen companies were issued licenses to operate FM radio stations. Some of these were entertainment network, India FM radio, vertex broadcasting, radio today, sun TV, music broadcast, millennium broadcast, Hitz FM radio India, Udaya TV, radio mid-day west India, mid-day broadcasting south, and mid-day radio north.
However, many industry observes were skeptical about the survival of all these private players. They said that radio broadcasts were not popular and that industry ad revenues had been very low throughout the 1990s. Advertising revenue was as low the total advertising expenditure.
The quality of radio advertising ere is pathetic. Today, when an agency plans spends; the bulk of the money goes to television. Then c0me outdoor media, print, and may be mailers. Radio comes last.
Radio has had a tremendous impact on society in the 20th century. Through radio was invented during the late 1890, public radio services offering information and entertainment content started only in the mid 1910, first in the US and then in European countries. World War I hampered public radio services to some extent, but at the end of the war, the business picked up momentum. Advertising on the radio started first in the US in 1930; this marked the beginning of commercial radio services. Radio broadcasting stations provided scheduled program of lectures, news bulletins and other recreational and informative material. On account of the growing popularity of such radio programs, the demand for commercial airtime increased heavily by 1923, and making radio broadcasting is a profitable business. The far-reaching capability and immediacy of radio made it very popularity across the world by the late 1920s.
In India, radio broadcasting started in 1927 at Mumbai and Kolkata with two privately owned transmission stations. In 1930, the government acquired these stations and started operating them under the Indian broadcasting service. This service was later renamed AIR in 1936 and has since been operated as an independent government department. From 1957, the radio service also to be referred to as `Akashvani’.
Vividh Bharati, AIR’s main entertainment Chennai, was started in the 1960s. Commercial broadcasting was first introduced on India radio in 1967. In the mid-1970s, AIR started offering sponsored programs. Radio’s commercials started during the early 1980s on its primary channel Vividh Bharati and were extended to other channels by the mid-1980. All these initiatives increased the popularity of radio in the country and also generated huge revenues for AIR.
AIR also operated External services Division (ESD) that broadcasted programs in 24 languages (16 foreign and 8 Indian, languages). These programs generally consisted of commentaries on current affairs, review of Indian press coverage; news bulletins; talk shows on socio-economic, cultural, historical, and political subjects; and classical, folk, and popular music from all corners of the country. The major ESD services included the general overseas services, Hindi services, and Urdu services. Through FM radio had long been popular in western countries. AIR started offering FM channels only in 1977. The first FM station was started in Chennai.
In 1993, the government allowed private players in the FM sector by permitting them to take blocks on AIR, for FM transmissions. The purpose of this move was to earn revenue for AIR and provide more variety for listeners. The major players in the private FM market during that period were times FM and radio mid-day.
The programs offered by these private stations were much more listener –friendly and innovative than AIR’s programs. As a result, the channels became very successful and attracted high advertising revenues.
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