BNet

bNet is a network of current and former student radio radio stations in New Zealand. The network co-ordinates national advertising sales and shares ideas and programming between the member stations. It began as a loose grouping of university student radio stations in major centres (the Student Radio Network), but is now a commercial network that includes both student union stations and former student union stations in six markets. bNet stations broadcast local independent news and current affairs, and have provided a platform for new or independent New Zealand artists such as Fat Freddys Drop, Kora, Jordan Reyne, Dimmer, Jet Jaguar, Shocking Pinks, The Enright House, and some underground and electronica acts. From 1998 to 2007 the network held the annual bNet NZ Music Awards.

In 1986 member station Radio One launched the Rad-One Card, a low-cost discount and loyalty card with on-air competitions, to raise funds. Similar schemes have now been launched by other bNet stations, such as the Active card by Radio Active and the bCard by bFM and Bank of New Zealand.

Stations

bFM

bFM

City of license	Auckland
Broadcast area	Auckland (terrestrial) Worldwide (Internet)
Frequency	95.0 FM
First air date	1969
Format	Student radio
Owner	Auckland University Students' Association
Website	95bfm.com

bFM operates in Auckland, New Zealand on Schedule 7 (educational purposes) semi-commercial licence. The station is based in the Student Union Building at the University of Auckland, is owned by a trust on behalf of the Auckland University Students Association (AUSA), and broadcasts its signal to greater Auckland at 95.0 on the FM dial. It was the promoter of the b. Net New Zealand Music Awards (along with the other b. Net stations) and the popular Summer Series live events in nearby Albert Park.

The station has developed into New Zealand’s leading alternative music broadcaster, with (an estimated) 100,000 listeners. During the 2005 general election campaign, the station's news and editorial director Noelle McCarthy conducted an interview in which National Party leader Don Brash admitted that he had forewarning of a controversial leaflet campaign conducted by the Exclusive Brethren sect. Breakfast show hosts Zac and Ethan regularly interview New Zealand political figures.

The centrepiece of the bNews operation is The Wire, a music and current affairs show that airs every weekday from noon to 1pm. The Wire hosts are: News and Editorial Director Will Pollard, Jon Armistead, Talia Blewitt, Imogen Barrer and Lucas Jensen-Carey. Angus Thunder currently hosts the Sunday Best Of show. Daily "bCasts" (a stored mp3 audio file) are available on the station's website along with a full schedule of DJs/shows. The station's website was finalist at the 2006 South by South West Web awards. Its award-winning creative department creates most of its own broadcast advertising, rather than using supplied agency material, as most commercial radio does.

History

Founded in 1969, bFM was a pirate student radio station, broadcast from a boat - which ran aground in Auckland's Waitemata Harbour - and played illegally on speakers around the University. The iconic ‘b’ originally stood for "bosom".^[1] The station was originally run as an AUSA club but by the mid-1980s had seven staff (paid a nominal wage) and 100+ volunteers. All staff were voted into their position by collective vote - the collective being the staff and volunteers of the station at the time, with the appointments ratified by the AUSA. The AUSA formed Campus Radio BFM Limited in 1989, at which point the station was expected to run at break-even, having run up significant losses in previous years. That was not popular with many staff and volunteers, some of whom resigned when new station manager Simon Laan took over and started implementing changes recommended in a report titled "Saving BFM" by Kerr Inkson and Kelly Grove Hill (from the Auckland University School of Business). Their report had been commissioned by previous station manager Jude Anaru. Laan was the last station manager to be elected to that position, after he lobbied the Board to change its appointment processes and dispense with the voting system.

It transferred permanently from the AM to FM band (originally to 91.8FM, now the frequency of More FM) in the late 1980s, after a long legal application process (opposed by all other commercial radio stations operating in Auckland) begun in 1984 by station manager Debbi Gibbs, daughter of prominent New Zealand businessman Alan Gibbs, and completed by her successor Jude Anaru in 1988. The station initially broadcast on the FM band by applying only for a temporary short term broadcasting warrant, and then applying for another one when that one expired. This upset commercial radio stations who were also trying to make the switch from AM to FM, but were delayed by the New Zealand Government who were slowly auctioning off commercial frequencies to commercial broadcasters. By 'drip feeding' commercial frequencies onto the market the Government found it could maximise auction prices. In holding a Schedule 7 (educational purposes) semi-commercial licence bFM did not have to pay for its frequency.^[2]

During the 1980s the station changed its name from Radio B to Campus Radio (1404 AM), then back to Radio B, and then finally bFM. Its hours expanded and it eventually became a 24-hour station operating on a permanent warrant in 1989. Most show hosts are volunteers. The distinctive 95bFM 'b' logo was designed by Johnnie Pain, commissioned by then station manager Liz Tan to design it. The previous logo had been chosen through a vote by station staff and volunteers from a selection of entries in a public logo competition run by previous station manager Simon Laan.

Staff

Current and former staff include:

Programmes

The Most FM 100.4

Most FM broadcasts in Taranaki on 100.4 FM, was previously streamed online, is overseen by the Taranaki FM Trust and is operated by volunteers with the support and assistance of two expert paid employees. The station began in 1995, originally only broadcasting one month out of the year, but by November 1997, it was broadcasting full-time. It operated for almost a decade on 92.3 MHz, being run by a willing and enthusiastic pool of students and volunteers. As a result of a bureaucratic glitch, Most FM lost its original license in early 2008. The resulting public outcry caused by Most FM going off air led to the formation of the Taranaki FM Trust, a consortium of local businessmen and well-wishers who vowed to get the station back on air.^[3] In March 2008, after a two-month break in transmission, Most FM began operating on 107.6 FM, but on a very localised frequency range. However, on Friday 15 August, Most FM 'powered up' on the new frequency of 100.4 FM, moving up from 100 to 900 watts. The Most has a wide range of alternative and specialist shows, reflecting the eclectic tastes of its show hosts and DJs.

In April 2010 the station began relaying on 88.3 MHz to the town of Oakura which was previously out of range. Internet streaming also resumed on www.mostfm.com

Programmes

Staff

Former and current staff include:^[4]

Radio Control 99.4FM

Radio Control is a student radio station based in Palmerston North, New Zealand. Broadcasting on 99.4 FM across the city and streaming worldwide from the picturesque Turitea campus of Massey University, Radio Control is owned by the Massey University Student Association and transmits from an aerial atop one of the university's multi-storey buildings. The station was founded in 1981 as 'Masskeradio', and was for a significant period of time also called 'Radio Massey'. A notable figure in the history of Radio Control is the station mascot, Gordon the Dinosaur. The mascot embarked on a number of adventures, including his candidacy in the Palmerston North electorate. Gordon's sole election policy was the construction of a moving walkway from the city centre to the university campus.

The station currently has a handful of paid staff and in excess of 100 volunteers, who all contribute time and expertise to the continued running of the station. In addition to the general interest shows airing between 7AM and 6PM on weekdays, there are multiple specialist shows. These include a show dedicated to local music, a show focused solely in music found by searching on the internet, and other shows serving many other interest groups. Several of the hosts and shows on Radio Control have been associated with the station for several years. Radio Control also regularly hosts live broadcasts from various events both on and off the Massey University campus, and each Wednesday hosts a live broadcast from Massey University's spacious concourse during the university's common lunch break.

Radio Control has a strong listenership across the Manawatu region, and has played a significant role in the emergence of popular New Zealand artists such as Avalanche City and Evermore.

Radio Active

Radio Active is an alternative radio station broadcasting in Wellington, New Zealand on 88.6FM (formally 89 FM) as well as www.radioactive.fm. It began as the student radio station for Victoria University of Wellington Students' Association (VUWSA) in 1977, broadcasting on the AM frequency. It 1981 it became the first radio station in New Zealand to commence broadcast on the newly available FM frequency. In August 1992 VUWSA decided that Radio Active could not make any more losses, and sold the station to radioactive ltd, in the hope that the station could become financially viable. Radio Active commenced on-line broadcasting in 1997, being one of the first radio stations to do so. Today radioactive.fm has a very strong presence and following throughout the capital. It has a very strong listener ship of around 45000 weekly plus a huge on line audience via www.radioactive.fm. With a highly talented pool of volunteer announcers, many of whom have been with the station for over fifteen years, Radio Active is renowned for the wide variety of interesting music that it plays.

RDU

RDU 98.5FM

Broadcast area	Christchurch, New Zealand
Branding	RDU 98.5FM
Slogan	"Kill Your Television"
Frequency	98.5 MHz (FM)
First air date	1976
Format	Alternative student radio
Owner	RDU98.5FM Ltd
Website	Official

RDU 98.5FM is a student radio station operating from the University of Canterbury in New Zealand. It broadcasts on a frequency of 98.5 MHz and (since late 2006) through online streaming, but began in 1976 on 1413kHz which is now occupied by Radio Ferrymead. in 1986 the station converted to FM and changed its name to Radio UFM. Long running shows include Girl School,^[5] The Mixtape Sessions,^[6] The Joint,^[7] Guitar Media,^[8] Dollar Mix, Hauswerk and Vintage Cuts.

Wammo and Spanky became an infamous duo on the RDU Mornings show, most notably coaxing Don Brash into answering inappropriate love letters live on-air, and upsetting listeners by playing distasteful games poking fun at cancer victims. Sadly Wammo was scouted by Kiwi FM and was replaced by Kate Gorgeous, who hosted the show for a year till the end of 2007. After much searching for a new host, Spanky has returned to host the show solo under the new show title Breakfast with Spanky.

In 2007, the University of Canterbury Students' Association controversially agreed to sub-licence the RDU frequency to a newly formed company, RDU98.5FM Ltd and students against the sale selectively leaked information to the Press stating the station was sold for the price of $1. Actually the stations assets including broadcast equipment and transmitters were sold at market (book) value, a market level rental agreed for the space occupied and an annual licence fee agreed. Various arrangements were debated over the preceding three years following the previous limited liability company (controlled by minority shareholders) trading insolvently which forced UCSA to inject funds and restructure the organisation.

Radio One

Radio One

City of license	Dunedin
Broadcast area	Dunedin and eastern Otago (terrestrial) Worldwide (Internet)
Frequency	91.0 MHz
First air date	1984
Format	Student radio
Owner	Otago University Students' Association (through subsidiary Planet Media (Dunedin) Ltd)
Website	Official

Radio One, or The One, is a student radio station operating from the University of Otago in Dunedin, New Zealand. It broadcasts on a frequency of 91.0 MHz. The impetus for the station began with an open letter to the President of the Otago University Students' Association (then Phyllis Comerford) from Alastair Thomson, who had worked on the Waikato University student radio station. This letter brought together other interested parties including members of the bands Netherworld Dancing Toys and The Verlaines. With a grant from the OUSA of approximately $12,000, the station first went to air in early 1984 broadcasting from the OUSA's former boardroom. The station ran on a part-time basis during the university year until the mid-1990s, from which time it has been operating round-the-clock throughout the year in a new annex to the Student Union building which was specifically designed to house the station, the OUSA's offices, and the university's student newspaper Critic. The station celebrated its 25th birthday at the beginning of 2009.^[9]

In the station's early years, Radio One was broadcast from a 100-watt ERP transmitter atop the 11-storey Hocken Building (now Richardson Building) - then the tallest building on the university campus. In the late 1980s, the station moved their transmitter to Dunedin's main FM radio transmitter atop Mount Cargill, north of the campus. This gives the station a range which covers much of coastal Otago, from Oamaru to past Balclutha. Radio One can now be heard anywhere in the world as it streams all content in 128 kbit/s stereo mp3 over the Internet.

The station is run largely by volunteer announcers, with a small paid staff. It runs a wide variety of general interest and specialist shows, many of them catering for audiences not covered by Dunedin's other radio stations, such as The Local which plays only New Zealand content and Overgrown which is New Zealand's only Cannabis Law Reform themed radio show.

Staff

Previous and current staff include:

References

External links

• bNet website
• Radio Active's official website and source of streamed broadcast
• Radio One official website
• Internet streaming (32 & 128 kbit/s)
• Radio one myspace page