Global Group

This is Global Limited

Type	Private
Industry	Media
Founded	2007
Headquarters	Leicester Square, London, England, UK[1]
Key people	Ashley Tabor (Founder/Executive President) Stephen Miron (Chief Executive) Charles Allen (Chairman) Richard Park (Director of Broadcasting)
Website	www.thisisglobal.com

This is Global Limited is a British media and publishing holding company, which owns a number of companies including Global Radio, the largest in the country following acquisitions of Chrysalis Radio, GCap Media and Real and Smooth (formerly GMG Radio).

The company's Executive President and Founder is Ashley Tabor, Chief Executive Officer is Stephen Miron, while the Group Chairman is Charles Allen. Richard Park is Group Executive Director and Director of Broadcasting.

History

Global Radio was founded by Ashley Tabor and in 2007 purchased Chrysalis Radio, where Global took control of the radio brands Heart, Galaxy, LBC and The Arrow. A year later on 31 October 2008 Global Radio officially took control of all GCap Media and its brands. The GCap Media name was dropped at this time. The GCap purchase gave Global the network of FM stations which GCap had operated as The One Network (many of which are now part of the Heart or Capital networks), plus Classic FM, XFM, Capital Xtra, Gold and Chill.

Following the acquisition of GCap Media, Global were required to sell off a number of stations in the Midlands. The stations were bought by Orion Media, headed by Phil Riley, former Chief Executive of Chrysalis Radio.

Heritage local radio stations in areas which were not already served by Heart FM were gradually rebranded and incorporated into a larger Heart Network that covers most of southern England and parts of North Wales. The remaining stations briefly formed The Hit Music Network before being merged with the Galaxy network and Capital London into the Capital network.

On 25 June 2012, Global acquired GMG Radio for a sum thought to be between £50 and £70 million and continued to be run separately whilst a regulatory review was conducted. In May 2013, the Competition Commission ruled that Global would be required to sell seven stations across the network.^[2]

The company initially offered to dispose of three stations Real XS in Manchester & Scotland and Gold in the East Midlands ^[3] to try and prevent the sale of the seven stations mentioned in the ruling. When this failed Global Radio launched an appeal against the decision ^[4]

The appeal was based on three grounds: (a) Real and Smooth as alternatives to the Greater Manchester stations, (b) reliance on "significant adverse effects" in the North-West (c) Global's remedy proposal (see above). The appeal was rejected on all grounds and the company must sell the seven stations it was ordered to in the original judgement,^[5] Global said they were disappointed with the decision and were considering it further ^[6]

On 6 February 2014, it was announced that a number of stations would be sold to the Irish broadcaster Communicorp, with programming generally to be supplied by Global under contract.^[7] The deal saw control of Smooth Radio in the North East, the North West and the West Midlands, of Capital in South Wales and Scotland, of Real Radio in North Wales and Yorkshire, and of Real XS in Manchester. Most will stay under their current brands though the Real stations will be renamed Heart and carry the Heart network off-peak programming as provided by Global. The future branding and direction of Real XS is unclear at the present time. Global will retain control of all other stations, relaunching the existing Heart North West and Wales as Capital to allow Real North Wales to take on the Heart affiliation. Real XS in Paisley will be retained by Global and join the XFM network. Gold stations will switch to taking the Smooth London/Network output except in areas where Smooth is available on FM (London, Manchester and the East Midlands), where a reduced oldies service will remain, run by Global and taking programmes from London as now.

Radio stations

Capital

A group of stations playing chart music. On 3 January 2011, Capital London, The Hit Music Network and the Galaxy network became part of the nine-station Capital radio network. Known as “95 – 106 Capital, The UK’s No.1 Hit Music Station” all stations ID locally as [freq] Capital. Local news hours will be extended and local advertising will remain locally sold, all programming with the exception of breakfast and drive originates from Leicester Square, London.

Capital Xtra

An all-urban station based in London, originally named Choice FM. Until Summer 2010 it was part of the Galaxy network for marketing purposes only, but retained its own separate branding and programming. From then it sat as its own brand within Global Radio's lineup. On 7 October 2013 Choice FM was rebranded as Capital Xtra.^[8]

Heart

Heart is a network of adult-contemporary pop stations across southern England and north Wales. The network began with a regional station in the West Midlands and subsequently a station in London. Heart 106 in the East Midlands was sold to Orion Media and run as a franchise retaining its current name until the start of 2011 where it was rebranded to Gem 106. In 2009 many of the heritage CHR stations which had formed part of the One Network were renamed Heart, as were Ocean and South Hams Radio (which were not part of the One Network). Heart Hertfordshire is owned by Adventure Radio and uses the Heart name and format under licence from Global; also Heart South Devon is partly owned by UKRD Group, all other Heart stations are wholly Global-owned. Heart is also available on DAB in some areas where there is not a local Heart station receiving Heart Digital, which is a relay of Heart London.

Classic FM

Classical music station broadcast nationally on FM and DAB; also available on Freesat, Sky and Virgin Media.

LBC Radio

LBC is a London orientated speech-based station featuring news, opinion and information. Its sister station LBC News offers rolling news during daytime, but now simulcasts LBC's FM content overnight. Its presenters on the FM station include Nick Ferrari, Steve Allen, Iain Dale, James Whale, Anthony Davis, Ken Livingstone, David Mellor, Julia Hartley-Brewer, Clive Bull, James Max, Petrie Hosken, Nick Abbot, Ian Collins, Emma Barnett, Duncan Barkes, Andrew Gilligan, Ian Payne, Susan Bookbinder, Cristo Foufas & James O'Brien. In early 2014 it was confirmed that LBC would be made available across the UK on DAB from 11 February that year, taking the capacity earlier vacated by Jazz FM (UK) departing the Digital One platform.

XFM

XFM broadcasts alternative rock and independent music. It began officially in 1997 as an independent London station, it was purchased by Capital Radio Group (now Global). The XFM brand was extended in 2006-7 with the launch of stations in Scotland, Manchester and South Wales. The Scotland station was rebranded to Galaxy Scotland which is now Capital Scotland and The South Wales station was sold to Town & Country Broadcasting becoming Nation Radio.

Gold

A network of 'golden oldies' stations, there are two different variants of the station; England & Scotland, and Wales. Many of these were the AM sister stations to heritage CHR stations which are now Heart or Capital stations; though Gold Manchester was originally a standalone station Fortune 1458 and Lite AM before becoming part of the Big-AM and later Capital Gold networks. On DAB, Gold is available in some areas which do not have Gold on AM; in these areas Gold UK is carried, though it may carry local branding on the label. Global chose to close some unviable AM relays of Gold, but has continued to serve these areas on DAB. In the West Midlands, after the divesture of some radio holdings to Orion Media, the Gold brand continued as a franchise, however, in late 2012 these stations were rebranded as Free Radio 80s.

Digital-only stations

Global currently operates two stations exclusively broadcast to digital listeners:

• Chill - mellow music; DAB in London.
• The Arrow - classic rock music; DAB in London only.

A new digital station is expected to be launched by Global in 2014; this will replace Smooth Radio on the national Digital One platform and carry "music from the 70s, 80s and 90s".^[9] Smooth will roll down to local-layer DAB distribution, primarily in its FM broadcast areas.

Former stations

Several DAB-only stations previously operated by Global or its predecessors have now been sold off or closed down, including Capital Life, Core, The Storm, Capital Disney, Heart Digital, Galaxy Digital and theJazz. There was also a digital station called The Mix, which aired content from GWR's Mix Network to DAB and digital TV listeners, but this was withdrawn following the GWR-Capital merger.

Planet Rock was sold in 2008 to the Rock Show consortium led by Malcolm Bluemel. The station was later sold on to Global's major rival Bauer Radio.

The 106 East Midlands radio licence is owned by Orion Media and it operated under a brand licence as Heart East Midlands until January 2011 when it was renamed Gem 106.^[10]

Criticism

In February 2009 Global Radio and LBC were the subject of criticism by technical and scientific bloggers following their threat of legal action against medical journalist Ben Goldacre for mounting part of an LBC 97.3 broadcast by Jeni Barnett on his website.^[11] The move was interpreted as an attempt to suppress criticism and debate rather than enforcement of copyright.

The broadcast has been characterised as irresponsible by David Aaronovitch in The Times, and LBC and Barnett were specifically identified in a critical Early Day Motion by Norman Lamb MP.

References

External links

• Global Radio