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:: MediaScan ::
:: SWEDEN CALLING DXERS ::
:: from Radio Sweden ::
:: Number 2191--Nov. 16, 1993 ::
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Satellite, shortwave and other electronic media news from Radio Sweden.
This week's bulletin was written by George Wood.
Packet Radio BID SCDX2191
All times UTC unless otherwise noted.
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NORDIC MEDIA NEWS:
RADIO SWEDEN--I'm back in Stockholm after three months of compiling the
program in California. But, because of the ongoing budget cut-backs and other
management decisions, the "MediaScan" radio program will remain twice a
month, on the first and third Tuesdays, and will not be returning to a weekly
format. The format will continue to be focused on Nordic media news, and
these electronic bulletins will reflect that to a greater extent, with less
non-Nordic material.
The World Radio Network is now broadcasting on MTV's transponder 22 on Astra,
audio 7.74 MHz, and we're pleased that Radio Sweden is part of the package of
international broadcasters and National Public Radio. Our program is carried
by WRN daily at 21:00 hrs UTC.
Now WRN will also be bringing Radio Sweden and other international
broadcasters to North America by satellite. The new service is scheduled to
begin on January 1st, 1994, but test transmissions will probably begin on
December 15th. The satellite will be the high-powered ASC-1 at 128 degrees West,
C-band transponder 23. That's the transponder used for SCOLA, which carries TV
news programs from many countries, including Sweden's TV4. So it's appropriate
that a similar radio service will be provided on an audio subcarrier.
We'll keep you informed on the times and the exact subcarrier.
SUPER CHANNEL--As we've reported before, the NBC television network in the
United States has bought Europe's Super Channel, and that station's
previously unfocused format has been replaced with many news programs from
NBC and its business network CNBC. Ironically, just as Super Channel has
turned into something worth watching, Sweden's largest cable operator, run by
Swedish Telecom, has removed it completely from its offerings.
According to the company's information director, Claes Gustavsson, the
decision to remove Super Channel was made three days before NBC's purchase of
the station was announced. The cable company is reviewing its channels in
January, and chances are good that Super Channel will be returning.
Stockholm's largest cable system, Stjaern-TV, contines to carry Super Channel.
RADIO Q--Radio Q, Stockholm's newest commercial radio station, went on the
air Monday morning, on 104.7 MHz. It's the fifth of the ten stations that won
licences in recent channel auction to go on the air.
But Radio Q differs from the other stations now on the air, Radio Z, Energy,
Radio City, and Radio Rix, which all sound pretty much the same, with lots of
pop and rock music. Radio Q is a station for women.
In today's "MediaScan" radio program you can hear an interview with Eva
Kaiser, Radio Q's program director.
COMMERCIAL RADIO--Two of the 5 new stations on the air in Stockholm are
carrying RDS, Radio Z on 101.9 MHz and Radio City on 105.9. The other
commercial stations on the air are Radio Energy on 105.1, and Radio Rix on
107.1 MHz. More stations are coming, and on December 6th, 21 frequencies in
southern and western Sweden are to be auctioned off to the highest bidders.
The board for local radio licencing says it's investigating licencing
stations in three more towns and at Stockholm's Arlanda International Airport
(where there is currently a station licenced under the communty radio law).
It remains to be seen how many of Sweden's new commercial radio stations can
survive. The editor of the media magazine "Etermedia", Bernt Hermele, says he
thinks at least six of the ten stations in Stockholm will go out of business
within 12 months. He points out that London, which has a population 10 times
that of Greater Stockholm, has only 6 commercial radio stations, of which
only three are profitable. (TT)
On the other hand, there's the example of American cities. In the San
Francisco area, where I've just come from, there are 39 commercial radio
stations on FM and 30 on medium wave.
TELE-X--When the new commercial stations here start networking, they can be
expected to use Sweden's Tele-X satellite. Radio Sweden and the Danish
commercial station the Voice are both found on the TV4 transponder there. But
when we checked out the satellite last night, we found Radio Sweden (7.38
MHz) and the Voice (7.74 MHz) doubled up on the TV5 Nordic transponder as
well. In between them, at 7.56 MHz, the Swedish news agency TT is carrying
its new service for commercial radio.
KINNEVIK EXPANDS--Sweden's Kinnevik media empire is expanding eastwards.
Kinnevik already owns TV3, TV1000, and part of TV4, as well as cable-only film,
music video and shopping channels, and 5 of Sweden's first commercial radio
stations. In August Kinnevik started the first independent television station
in Estonia, EVTV. Kinnevik also has received broadcasting time on the state-
owned television stations in Latvia and Lithuania, and hopes to establish
independent stations in those countries together with local partners. Kinnevik
is also looking at setting up TV stations in Poland and Russia. ("Dagens
Nyheter")
NORDSTJAERNAN--The proposed joint Nordic television channel, "Nordstjaernan",
or "North Star", has suffered a set-back. Meeting last week in the Finnish
city of Mariehamn, the Nordic Council of Ministers rejected the proposal of
the Finnish, Swedish, and Norwegian public broadcasting corporations for a
joint channel. The council, which includes cabinet ministers from each of the
5 Nordic countries, isn't opposed to the plan as such, but refuses to allow
taxpayers' money to fund it. The TV companies are now investigating the
possibilities for a pay channel.
EUROPEAN MEDIA NEWS:
ALBANIA--The newest European satellite TV channel is from Albania, on
Eutelsat II-F3, on 11.575 GHz. (James Robinson and BBC Monitoring) The sound,
of dreadful quality, is on 6.50 MHz, non-standard for Eutelsat.
NETHERLANDS--At least 16 local stations in the Netherlands have had their
transmitters stolen. Since they can't be used in most of Western Europe,
because they'd interfere with existing stations on their frequencies, the
authorites believe they're being delivered to Eastern Europe, where there's a
media boom, and the Western FM band is just opening up. The transmitters are
usually mounted outside stations, and since they only weight around 7 kilos,
they're pretty easy for a thief to remove.
DUBAI TELEVISION--One channel that will be coming to European and North
American TV screens in less than a month is Dubai Television, from the United
Arab Emirates. The existing 24 hour service, 70 percent in Arabic, the rest
in English, will be extended to Europe and North America on December 6th. The
European service will be on a Eutelsat II, probably F3, which carries many
Middle Eastern broadcasters. And North American relays will be on Galaxy 7.
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