Amusing competition!
When Glastonbury Radio took to the airwaves in March 2007, we were the only radio station in Glastonbury, broadcasting to a global audience 24 hours a day 7 days a week. In that time we have built up a big worldwide following.
Since then, a local FM station has been granted an OFCOM licence to broadcast locally within a small radius of the town. Initially they couldn't raise the money to get on air, and we offered them £10,000 of funding which they refused. We felt there was room for both sations and we wanted to help and get involved. But they didn't want us!
It's a "community venture" funded by lottery money and at the moment they are advertising everywhere for volunteers, yet when anyone from Glastonbury Radio offers a show, they are turned down lol! So it's "community" when it suits them it would seem!
When they finally went to air, they offered us a one hour "best of the Internet" show which we turned down as we didn't want our programming diluted and edited down in this way. Now at this time they were an FM only station, but now they are advertising that they will shortly be streaming online, so thus entering into a direct competitive battle with us! lol
Being OFCOM governed, they can't broadcast free-speech in the way that we do, they are not allowed to "sell advertising" and they can only broadcast esoteric programmes under conditions laid out by the governing body, so realistically, they are VERY different to us.
They operate from a portacabin in a football club car park, whereas we have state of the art studios in a custom built unit in the town centre, and the unit is often closed when I drive past, so a lot of the time they are rolling out un-manned programming.
So why I ask, are they not talking ti us and working WITH us instead of tryingto take us on in a very commercial market-place? So many community radio stations fold within two years and have to hand back their licences and it seems that their short-term vision may see them experience difficulties in the future.
Ah well - I guess time will tell lol!
Ross
Since then, a local FM station has been granted an OFCOM licence to broadcast locally within a small radius of the town. Initially they couldn't raise the money to get on air, and we offered them £10,000 of funding which they refused. We felt there was room for both sations and we wanted to help and get involved. But they didn't want us!
It's a "community venture" funded by lottery money and at the moment they are advertising everywhere for volunteers, yet when anyone from Glastonbury Radio offers a show, they are turned down lol! So it's "community" when it suits them it would seem!
When they finally went to air, they offered us a one hour "best of the Internet" show which we turned down as we didn't want our programming diluted and edited down in this way. Now at this time they were an FM only station, but now they are advertising that they will shortly be streaming online, so thus entering into a direct competitive battle with us! lol
Being OFCOM governed, they can't broadcast free-speech in the way that we do, they are not allowed to "sell advertising" and they can only broadcast esoteric programmes under conditions laid out by the governing body, so realistically, they are VERY different to us.
They operate from a portacabin in a football club car park, whereas we have state of the art studios in a custom built unit in the town centre, and the unit is often closed when I drive past, so a lot of the time they are rolling out un-manned programming.
So why I ask, are they not talking ti us and working WITH us instead of tryingto take us on in a very commercial market-place? So many community radio stations fold within two years and have to hand back their licences and it seems that their short-term vision may see them experience difficulties in the future.
Ah well - I guess time will tell lol!
Ross