Reliance ADAG to launch radio station at Rs 400 cr investment

New Delhi, Sep 5 (UNI) Reliance ADA Group, through Adlabs Radio, is going to launch an FM radio station at a total investment of Rs 400 crore, the company announced today.

The FM radio station, Big FM, will be launched initially in six metro cities of Delhi, Hyderabad, Bangalore, Mumbai, Kolkata, and Chennai and will be available at a common frequency of 92.7.

The availability of the channel will be gradually widened to 45 centres, including Jammu and Srinagar.

''We are adopting a two-pronged launch strategy. While the metros are ideal to establish brand recognition and recall, the other virgin markets are completely new and fresh to explore, giving us an opportunity to provide an entertainment medium to the listeners,'' Adlabs Radio COO Tarun Katial said.

There will be high amount of interactivity on the station and it will be used as a platform for consumers by taking on issues which are word of mouth and bring listener emotions to the fore, he said.

''By early next year, we will be present across India from Srinagar to Trivandrum and Surat to Guwahati. Our station will reach 1000 towns and 50,000 villages across the nation,'' Mr Kaiyal said.

The Reliance ADA Group has geared up to tap the tremendous market share following the revised license fee structure from a flat fee model to a revenue sharing one announced in 2005.

with Rs 400 crore investment dedicated to transmission equipment, infrastructure and licensing, the proposed network for Adlabs Radio will be the largest ever. The overall manpower strength will stand at 1,500 employees countrywide.

The IP protocol technology being utilised for the station has been sourced from US-based AXIA making this station amongst the first to utilise such superior gear in Asia.

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