Virgin Radio
Virgin Radio launched in the United Kingdom in 1993 and in 2008, Virgin Radio UK was sold to TIML, a subsidiary of The Times of India group, and the name was changed to Absolute Radio. However the Virgin Radio name was not included in the sale.
Type | Private company |
---|---|
Industry | Commercial radio |
Founded | 2001 |
Headquarters | London, England, United Kingdom |
Area served | Global |
Revenue | Approx. US$100 million |
Parent | Virgin Group |
Website | https://www.virginradio.com/ |
In 2001, the Virgin Group teamed up with an Asia-focused investment fund to launch Virgin Radio Asia. Radio stations were launched in China, India and Thailand between 2002 and 2006. Virgin Radio Asia acquired a global remit in 2006, transforming into Virgin Radio International.[1]
Whilst expansion continued in Asia with additional stations in Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Kolkata, the United Arab Emirates, Thailand and Indonesia, Virgin Radio also launched in Italy, France, Lebanon, Turkey, Romania, Oman and Switzerland, as well as 12 cities in Canada. Virgin Radio re-launched in the UK in 2016 and there are now 4 Virgin Radio stations in the UK.[2] The stations in each country are owned and operated locally, and independently of each other and the Virgin Group, who license the brand name and logo.
Music television stations were also launched in France and Italy.[3][4]
As of January 2023, there are over 30 Virgin Radio stations globally.[5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15]
Stations
Country | City | Stations | Frequency | Year of launch | Operator |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Canada | Calgary | CIBK-FM | 98.5 FM | 2010 | Bell Media |
Edmonton | CFMG-FM | 104.9 FM | 2011 | ||
Halifax | CJCH-FM | 101.3 FM | 2016 | ||
Kelowna | CHSU-FM | 99.9 FM | 2019[16] | ||
Kitchener | CFCA-FM | 105.3 FM | 2016 | ||
London | CIQM-FM | 97.5 FM | 2012 | ||
Montreal | CJFM-FM | 95.9 FM | 2009 | ||
Toronto | CKFM-FM | 99.9 FM | 2008 | ||
Vancouver | CFBT-FM | 94.5 FM | 2015 | ||
Victoria | CHBE-FM | 107.3 FM | 2019[17] | ||
Windsor | CIDR-FM | 93.9 FM | 2020[18] | ||
Winnipeg | CKMM-FM | 103.1 FM | 2012 | ||
Italy | Virgin Radio Italia | Various FM | 2007 | Mediaset S.p.A. | |
Virgin Radio Italy Classic Rock | Internet Radio | 2010 | |||
Virgin Radio Italy Hard Rock | |||||
Virgin Radio Italy Rock '70 | |||||
Virgin Radio Italy Rock '80 | |||||
Virgin Radio Italy Rock '90 | 2015 | ||||
Virgin Radio Italy Alternative Rock | |||||
Virgin Radio Italy Rock Ballads | |||||
Virgin Radio Italy Rock Hits | |||||
Virgin Radio Italy Rock 2K | |||||
Virgin Radio Italy Rock Party | |||||
Lebanon | Virgin Radio Lebanon | 89.5 FM | 2013 | Levant Media Hub | |
Virgin Radio Stars Lebanon | 89.7 FM | 2019[19] | |||
Oman | Virgin Radio Oman | 100.9 FM | 2018[20] | SABCO Media | |
Romania | Virgin Radio Romania | Various FM | 2017 | Czech Media Invest | |
Switzerland | Virgin Radio Switzerland | DAB | 2018[21] | Radio Medien AG | |
Turkey | Virgin Radio Turkey | Various FM | 2013 | Karnaval | |
United Arab Emirates | Virgin Radio Dubai | 104.4 FM | 2008 | Arab Media Group | |
United Kingdom | Virgin Radio UK | DAB | 2016 | News UK | |
Virgin Radio Anthems UK | 2018[22] | ||||
Virgin Radio Chilled UK | |||||
Virgin Radio 80s Plus UK | 2022[23] |
References
- "ABOUT VIRGIN RADIO INTERNATIONAL". www.virginradio.com.
- "Virgin Radio | It's all about the music | Virgin". Virgin.com.
- "Europe 2 TV".
- "Virgin Radio TV". www.virginradio.it.
- Média, Bell. "VirginRadio". www.iheartradio.ca.
- "Europe 2". Europe 2.
- "Virgin Radio Jakarta".
- "Virgin Radio - Style Rock". www.virginradio.it.
- "Landing". Virgin Radio LB.
- "Homepage". Virgin Radio Oman.
- "Virgin Radio Romania. Ascultă radio online! Află tot ce e viral și tot ce e hot în muzică!". VIRGIN RADIO ROMANIA. 22 July 2021.
- "Virgin Radio Switzerland | Virgin Rock". Virgin Radio Switzerland.
- "Virgin Radio Türkiye Canlı Yayın | Karnaval.com Online Radyo Dinle". Karnaval.com.
- "Virgin Radio Dubai - The UAE's #1 Hit Music Station on 104.4 FM". Virgin Radio Dubai.
- "Virgin Radio UK | Listen Live | Love Chris Evans. Love Graham Norton. Love Music". virginradio.co.uk.
- "99.9 Virgin Radio Launches in Kelowna". Kelowna Capital News. 3 October 2019.
- "Victoria's KOOL FM becomes 107.3 Virgin Radio". CTV News Vancouver Island. 8 February 2019.
- "Bell Media Launches Pure Country 89 & Virgin Radio 93.9 In Windsor/Detroit". radioINSIGHT. 19 November 2020.
- "Ben Weston fronts new Virgin Radio Stars in Beirut". Radio Today. 2 September 2019.
- "Virgin Radio launches in Oman, targets youth market". Arabian Business. 10 March 2018.
- "Switzerland's Virgin Radio Launches Two New DAB+ Stations". Radio World. 24 January 2018.
- "Wireless launches new digital channels - Virgin Radio Anthems and Virgin Radio Chilled". News UK. January 2019.
- "Wireless brings back Virgin Radio Groove on DAB+". Radio Today. 30 December 2019.