Groups seeking the new Kildare area radio licence will make presentations today to the Broadcasting Commission of Ireland.
With the region's population growing fast due to its proximity to Dublin, the battle for the licence is expected to be one of the hardest fought as the independent radio business consolidates under new boundaries drawn up by the commission. Well-known media groups in the race include UTV, the Leinster Leader, LMFM and East Coast Radio, although some of the competing consortiums bear the same or similar names.
The competition takes place after the commission moved in January to scrap the Carlow-Kildare franchise, leaving Co Kildare on its own while merging the Co Carlow franchise with Co Kilkenny. But the process was suspended in April after the holder of the existing Carlow-Kildare franchise, CKR FM, issued High Court proceedings against the Commission. The process restarted after CKR withdrew its application for judicial review on June 4th, before the case reached the court.
The company has sought a licence under the name KFM Kildare Radio. Its founding director, Mr James Reddy, is a shareholder in INN News, the local radio news pool, and in the advertising network Independent Radio Sales.
Another of the applicants is also linked to CKR. The head of the Kildare Sound group, Mr Jerry Conlon, is a 43.75 per cent shareholder in CKR but says he has no executive involvement in the company. Kildare Sound is backed in its bid by UTV, owner of the ITV franchise in Northern Ireland and three local radio stations in the Republic - Cork-based County Media, owner of the Cork's 96 station and 103FM; and Treaty Radio, owner of Limerick's Live 95FM.
Major shareholders in the Kfm consortium include East Coast Radio and the Midlands Radio groups. Minor shareholders include the horseracing trainer, Mr Dermot Weld. The group's putative chief executive is Mr Padraig O'Dwyer, who was on the Highland Radio founding team in Co Donegal and was marketing manager for Radio Kerry.
The Co Kerry station and its affiliate Life FM in Dublin are behind a separate group using the KFM name.
The other bidder is Kildare 97fm, owned by the Co Louth-based station LMFM, which services the Louth-Meath franchise. Its other shareholder is the Leinster Leader group.
