Lyca Group has acquired the licence of Asian Sound Radio in East Lancashire and Greater Manchester.
Asian Sound, which was co-founded by Shafat Ali and brother Shujat Ali started broadcasting to East Lancashire on 963 AM in June 1996 as the first Asian radio station in the North of England to cater for the South Asian Communities.
This will be the third Asian radio station in the group after the Lyca Radio and Lyca Gold brands in Greater London, along with English station Time 107.5FM in the Romford area.
Chairman of Asian Sound Radio, Shafat Ali said: “It’s end of an era and start of an exciting time for Asian Sound Radio. We were ultimately the first Asian commercial Asian radio station to be awarded by Radio Authority for the North of England.
“As We’re hugely proud of our journey and I would like to thank advertisers, listeners, and my staff for 31 years of award-winning content. I would also like to wish Lyca Group all the best with their plans for the new Asian Sound Radio.
“One of the reasons we entered sales talks with the Lyca Group was for its excellence in broadcasting and its commitment to Muslim audiences in Greater Manchester with entertainment, religious content including the marking of Ramadan and Azaan being played out.”
Raj Baddhan, CEO of Lyca Media, said: “We are delighted to be making history as not only the largest Asian radio group in the UK but also acquiring the Asian Sound Radio frequencies – one of the legacy brands in the UK Asian radio industry.
“We can’t wait to share our exciting plans to bring the super successful formula we have created with Lyca Radio in Greater London, now for listeners in the North West of England.
“We are hugely grateful to Shafat Ali for working with the Lyca Group for a smooth sale. As we step into our 10th year of broadcasting excellence, this is just the start of a new era for the Lyca Radio Group.”
This story first appeared on radiotoday.co.uk