5-year licence for Resonance FM
Resonance 104.4 fm, the arts radio station for the South Bank and Bankside, has been awarded a new five-year community radio licence by Southwark Bridge-based media regulator Ofcom.
Although its studios are in Soho, the station's official coverage area is the South Bank and Bankside, and the transmitter is at London Bridge.
The station is backed by the London Musicians Collective, based in Leathermarket Street.
Despite financial worries the station has been widely acclaimed for its quirky range of programming, with regular weekly contributions from nearly two hundred musicians, artists, thinkers, critics, activists and instigators.
On air since May 2002, Resonance FM was part of a community radio pilot scheme introduced by Ofcom's predecessor, the Radio Authority. The community radio model is now widely accepted and 62 such licences have now been awarded around the country.
Community radio is designed to become the third tier of radio which will complement the mix of services already provided by the BBC and commercial radio sectors.
The characteristics of community radio are distinct from commercial radio in that the services will cover a small geographical area and be provided on a not-for-profit basis focusing on the delivery of specific social benefits to enrich a particular geographical community or a community of interest.
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