Oxford, Taunton, West Hull and York DAB radio licences awarded

Ofcom has granted four more licences to operate small-scale DAB multiplexes in Round 3 of the awards.

They have been given out in Oxford, Taunton, West Hull and York.

Taunton and Hull only had one applicant each, whilst Oxford and York were two horse races.

Oxford has been awarded to Oxdab Limited which proposes to cover 98% of the total population count in the initially advertised area with two transmitters. It is owned by Martin Steers, Barry Clack and Dean Kavanagh.

York has been awarded to York Digital Radio CIC which aims to cover almost all of the City of York and surrounding areas, representing 70% of the population – or 165,000 people. It is owned by Wayne Chadwick of YO1 Radio and Nick Piggott from Radiate Digital Radio Limited.

In Taunton, Tone Community Media Group won the licence, associated with community radio station Tone FM. It has signed a multiplex management agreement with Radiate Digital Radio.

Finally, in West Hull, solo applicant Hull DAB Limited, owned by Ryan Davis, Ash Elford, West Hull Community Radio and Nation Broadcasting, aims to begin broadcasting within 12 months from two transmitter sites.

See the latest in small-scale DAB developments, including Round 3 and known applicants for Round 4.

This story first appeared on radiotoday.co.uk