Reproduced from UK Government Press Releases 19 August, 1997

The Authority will need to conduct a number of 'public interest tests', both radio-specific and cross-media, in respect of applications for this licence which are affected by the ownership provisions of the Broadcasting Act 1996. Full details will be issued later this month.

The details of those applying are listed below, together with a brief outline of each group's proposed programme format:

105.4 ACE FM (CAPITAL RADIO NORTH WEST LTD.) - Capital Radio plc, 30 Leicester Square, London WC2H 7LA (contact: David Mansfield, 0171 766 6240; or Sally Oldham, 0171 766 6019 or 01489 587702); an entirely new programming format, 'rock contemporary' ('RC'), which is rock music designed for a core audience of 30-39 year-old adults, offering a unique mix of rock styles and contemporary music with stylish presentation;

RADIO ACTION LTD. (ACTION 105) - Tithebarn, Pepper Street, Mobberley, Knutsford, Cheshire WA16 6JG (contact: Chris Dickens, 01189 845389; or David Cousins, 0181 995 1507); classic and adult oriented rock music, with sports news and features, health and leisure;

ARENA 105.4 LTD. - Orrell Lodge, Orrell Road, Orrell, Wigan, WN5 8HJ (contact: Tony Dewhurst, 01942 777660; or Peter Salt, 01942 777666); a full service adult music and speech radio station broadcasting primarily to the 25-44 year-old market with a blend of adult contemporary music hits from 1970 to date, with a quality speech content reflecting the interests and tastes of North Westerners;

ASIAN SOUND FM LTD. - Asian Sound Radio, Globe House, Southall Street, Manchester M3 1LG (contact: Shujat Ali or Shafat Ali, 0161 288 1000); a colourful and professional service of music, entertainment, news, information and sport for the Asian population of the North-West; BOSS FM LTD. - Border Television, The Broadcasting Centre, Carlisle CA1 8AB (contact: John Myers, 0191 477 6666); 24-hour regional news, listener-friendly talk and melodic adult contemporary music for a 25-54 audience;

THE BRIDGE (MISSIONRANGE LTD.) - 83 Bradshaw Meadows, Bradshaw, Bolton BL2 4NF (contact: Don Heginbotham, 01204 307991; or Mike Shaft, 01204 366219); a 24-hour service of contemporary Christian music and other types of music, with testimonies, interviews, etc. to Christians and non-Christians in the North West;

105.4 EASY FM LTD. - Orrell Lodge, Orrell Road, Orrell, Wigan, WN5 8HJ (contact: Tony Dewhurst, 01942 777660; or Peter Salt, 01942 777666); a high quality mix of easy listening and soft adult contemporary music coupled with North West specific speech items offering a much-needed service to the region's 40-64 year-olds;

HEART 105.4 (CHRYSALIS RADIO NORTH WEST LTD.) - Chrysalis Radio, The Chrysalis Building, Bramley Road, London W10 6SP (contact: Richard Huntingford, 0171 221 2213; or Tony Ingham, 0161 236 1558); an entertaining music-based station, playing a mix of melodic songs from the 80s and 90s, together with the news and information that matters to its target audience of 25-39 year-olds across the North-West;

KLCX LTD. - 46a Willow Tree Road, Altrincham, Cheshire WA14 2EG (contact: Anthony Hawkins, 0860 898347; or Christopher Hatton, 01925 650161); a music format of classic album rock, unique to the North-West and the UK, playing rock album music which has not been released in a 'single' format. KLCX will also broadcast contemporary album rock. Speech content will include a dedicated regional news and sport service, and regular rock music information, lifestyle features and social action advice. The target audience range will be broad, from ages 16 to 54;

LIVE 105 (REGIONAL RADIO NORTH WEST LTD.) - Northcliffe House, 2 Derry Street, Kensington, London W8 5TT (contact: Charlie Cox, 0171 938 6790; or John Revell, 0171 577 7100; a music and personality led adult contemporary station aimed at the 25-44 adult audience and designed to provide a cohesive and relevant service reflecting the tastes and interests of North West residents as a whole;

MORE 105.4 FM LTD. - 1st Floor, Regent House, Heaton Lane, Stockport SK4 1BX (contact: Mark Story, 0161 285 4545; or John Josephs, 0191 286 0000); a modern adult contemporary music service with information, entertainment, lifestyle and community oriented features, designed to appeal to 25-44 year-old listeners in the North-West;

NEW ROCK RADIO LTD. (FM 105) - Ducie House, 37 Ducie Street, Manchester M1 2JW (contact: Tom Bloxham, 0161 237 9499; or Jonathan Arendt, 0468 731758); an alternative station for young adults mixing classic and modern rock with news, information, humour, and concise features;

NOMAD 105.4 LTD. - Orrell Lodge, Orrell Road, Orrell, Wigan, WN5 8HJ (contact: Tony Dewhurst, 01942 777660; or Kris Burford, 01942 777656); a new music format targeted at the 15-29 year-old market in the North West, incorporating a quantity of innovative speech elements alongside carefully selected music tracks taken from both established and developing artists;

NORTH WEST NEWS RADIO LTD. - 200 Gray's Inn Road, London WC1X 8XZ (contact: Nigel Reeve, 0171 312 8500; or M. J. Olaore, 0171 312 8505); the first commercial 24-hour news and newstalk station for the North West, providing a mix of regional, national and international news, travel, finance, sports, entertainment and weather;

NORTH WEST ONE (NORTH WEST 105.4 FM LTD.) - Barraclough Carey North, Granada Television, Quay Street, Manchester M60 9EA (contact: Peter Weil, 0161 827 2073; or David Rodgers, 01392 444444); a carefully produced service of high quality music appealing to a mature audience, offering substantial news and information content, features and lively phone-ins, all presented with pace and flair and designed to fill a substantial gap in ILR provision in the region;

NRJ NORTH WEST (STORM MEDIA LTD.) - P.O. Box 750, Altrincham, Cheshire, WA15 8GE (contact: Alastair McFarlane, 0161 941 2121; or Mick Brophy, 0161 445 6825); a specialist radio station which will be a focus for alternative rock music culture in the North-West, targeting the socially active 15-24 year-old listener and attracting significant interest from a like-minded 25-34 age range;

NWBC (NORTH WEST BROADCASTING CO. LTD.) - Suite 1, Courthill House, 66 Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire SK9 5AP (contact: Joe Dwek CBE, 01625 549081; or Alan Mullett, 01952 727602); a station with a social conscience that will provide a mixed music and speech based programme format to generate pace and excitement into a bright, lively and informative service, aimed mainly, but not exclusively, at the 35+ age group in the North West region;

ROUTE 105 LTD. - 55 Bondway, Vauxhall, London SW8 1SJ (contact: Michael Betton, 01522 549900; or Richard Findlay, 0141 306 2200); a 24-hour radio station playing today's country music complemented by a robust regional news service, unique pro-active weather and travel information and live music performance;

SAGA RADIO LTD. - The Saga Building, Middelburg Square, Folkestone, Kent CT10 1AZ (contact: Tim Bull, 01303 711003; or Michael Green, 01727 844381); a high quality service of music and speech, planned to meet the needs of and respond to the interests of people of the North West, with particular emphasis on interests of listeners aged 45 and over;

VIRUS RADIO LTD. - The Church, 360-380 Deansgate, Manchester M3 4LY (contact: Pete Waterman, 0161 833 3630; or David Rogers, 01865 381800); a totally new and format-breaking radio service mainly appealing to young people, and featuring the best of new music well before it becomes available to the rest of the world;

XL RADIO LTD. - Harley Homes, Harley House, Cocker Street, Blackpool, Lancs. (contact: Bill Beaumont or Ian Harley, 01253 20074); a sport and music format with a comprehensive view of all sporting activity in the region and music from established artists and new talent, with particular reference to the melody and lyrical content selected from the wide range of music currently not played on existing services.

Copies of these applications will be available for public scrutiny in the reference sections of Manchester Central Library, Liverpool Central Library (Business and Technology Department), and the Harris Central Library in Preston, and at the Radio Authority's headquarters in London. The Authority welcomes public comments on the proposals put forward by the applicants, and upon the tastes and requirements of listeners in this local area. These should be sent to the Head of Development, Radio Authority, Holbrook House, 14 Great Queen Street, London WC2B 5DG, to arrive by 1 December.

The Authority hopes to announce its decision about the award of the licence at around the turn of the year.

1. This is the second regional licence for North-West England to be advertised by the Radio Authority. The first North-West regional licence, covering the same area as this, was awarded to Jazz FM 100.4 which came on air in September 1994.

2. The Radio Authority is responsible for licensing and regulating Independent Radio in accordance with the statutory requirements of the Broadcasting Acts 1990 and 1996. It plans frequencies, awards licences, regulates programming and advertising, and plays an active role in the discussion and formulation of policies which affect the Independent Radio industry and its listeners.

Press enquiries only - contact: Marion Shelley 0171 405 7058 All other enquiries (the public and licensees) - contact: Press and Information Office 0171 430 2724.