Radio One goes on air in Chennai

Radio Mid Day has entered the FM radio space in Chennai with the launch of Radio One FM 94.3, which went on air from today. With this, the Rs 25-crore Chennai FM radio market now has seven players.

RadioOne's Rs 4.5-crore radio station will broadcast over a 40-45-km radius, said Rajesh Tihal, chief executive officer, Radio Mid Day West (India) Ltd.

"We expect to garner Rs 30 crore from our new FM operations this year. Our target is to achieve a 25 per cent share of the Chennai FM radio market. At present, the size of the Indian radio market is Rs 300 crore, which is expected to grow at 25-30 per cent in the next couple of years. After that, we expect a period of stabilised growth," he said.

Radio Mid Day is expected to launch its stations in Ahmedabad, Pune and Kolkata this year.

The programming content of Radio One will include Tamil film music targeted at the age group of 25-30 years. With 12 radio jockeys, Radio One aims to ride on 'local pride' to connect with young Chennaiites. The content will also include BBC non-news entertainment and sports updates.

Radio One is a joint venture between Mid-Day Multimedia and BBC Worldwide. BBC Worldwide has 20 per cent equity stake in Radio Mid Day West (India) Ltd, a subsidiary of Mid-Day Multimedia.