York-based Minster FM and Yorkshire Coast Radio owner UKRD Group has been acquired by Bauer Media Group.
UKRD, which also owns Harrogate-based Stray FM alongside stations in East Anglia and the South, is Bauer’s fourth acquisition of the year and adds a further 722,000 weekly listeners to its portfolio.
Headquartered in Cornwall, it reported turnover of £19.1m for the year to September 2017, down from £20.5m 12 months earlier, with operating loses of £218,000 against a profit of £402,000 in 2016.
Bauer has already bought Wireless local stations, Celador Radio and Lincs FM Group this year.
Paul Keenan, CEO of Bauer Media UK and European Radio, said: “These stations are an excellent addition to our business and further extend our reach into completely new areas of the UK.
“This further demonstrates our long-term commitment and belief in commercial radio which has never been so exciting – for both listeners and advertisers. With record revenues for the third year running, the radio medium has grown by a third in the past five years alone, and with its highest share of listening since 2001, commercial radio is in a stronger position than ever before.”
As part of the deal, Bauer acquires UKRD’s interests in FRS and three local DAB multiplexes including Surrey and North Sussex Limited, North Yorkshire Limited and South West Digital Radio Limited.
William Rogers, UKRD’s CEO, added: “UKRD’s radio stations will make a great addition to the Bauer portfolio and the opportunities that may well present themselves to many of our talented and highly professional people will be greatly enhanced by this acquisition. The inclusion in the deal of UKRD’s interest in FRS ensures that the agency will continue to serve its clients.”
