Chances are that your local commercial radio station plays a mix of current and classic pop hits.  Throw in bit of banter from the DJ, news on the hour and the occasional competition and you’ve got the formula for what works in 99% of the local radio markets in the UK.  So why, until a couple of weeks ago, was Oldham’s The Revolution playing obscure indie in prime time?

It’s a question their listeners were asking too.  The Revolution’s listening figures have fallen through the floor over the past couple of years since they switched from a normal local radio format to a mix of post-punk, little-known local artists and Northern Soul.  While some people (me included) enjoyed this rather niche offering, the traditional local radio audience of taxi drivers and factory workers weren’t so keen.

The switch back to a more popular format came when veteran radio DJ Steve Penk bought the station last month.  He’s now put himself into the breakfast show a slot and has gone back to playlisting Alphabeat and Adele alongside 80s classics.  It’s safe and unoriginal but hey – it might just be profitable.

What, though, for the small but loyal listenership of The Revolution’s previous incarnation?  Hope may be on the horizon for them.  A group the station’s old presenters have banded together to form Radio Republic with the aim of recreating the ‘old Revolution’ on a new station.

The question is how do they plan to achieve this?  Airspace is pretty much full in Greater Manchester so they don’t have a hope of getting a new FM license.  Their options are:

1. Buy an existing station

Definitely the expensive option.  Even if any local FM stations are for sale, Radio Republic will need a lot of money to buy them.  Even then it’s unlikely that Ofcom would allow them to change the station’s format to what Radio Republic want the their station to be.

2. Broadcast sporadically

Certain FM frequencies are set aside by Ofcom for short-term broadcasts of up to 30 days.  These Restricted Service Licenses (RSLs) are relatively cheap and easy to get hold of.  The only problem is that the same company can only have two RSLs in every 12 month period.  That means that Radio Republic would only be on air for up to 60 days per year.  That’s not exactly great for building a long-term audience.

3. Broadcast on DAB digital radio

While there’s room for lots of stations on DAB it’s notoriously difficult to make a profit.  If one of the nation’s biggest radio groups, GCap, can’t make a profit from it what chance does a tiny startup have?  The problem is that takeup of DAB has been so low in the UK that it’s just not appealing to advertisers.

4. Broadcast online

While setting up an internet radio station may seem a fantastic way of building a worldwide audience it’s not that simple.  Music licensing costs are set at level that is prohibitively high for many small companies.  With the right financial backing, some targeted promotion and a bit of luck they might be able to make it work but profits would be limited.  Seeing as they’ve already promised that Steve Coogan (brother of Radio Republic’s Martin Coogan) will be on air maybe the numbers just won’t add up to make it a viable proposition.

It’ll be interesting to see what route Radio Republic eventualy take.  At the moment they’re apparently in and out of lots of meetings to sort out exactly that.  I wish them well and I’ll certainly be listening if they get sorted.  As you can see though, they’ve got a tricky road ahead.