ABC Nine push for FM radio licences in Western Australia

The ABC and Nine Entertainment Co have rejected claims they are setting a dangerous precedent by supporting a switch of three of its radio stations from AM to FM in Western Australia, urging the move should take place to ensure it can improve the quality of coverage for its listeners.

Australia’s media watchdog is considering allowing several media companies that use the AM bandwidth to takeover unused FM radiofrequency spectrum. The proposal is being considered because there is available spectrum that can be used for FM radio services, but it has started a war of words between the radio industry’s most prominent broadcasters.

The ABC wants to convert its AM stations in Perth to FM. Credit:Regis Martin

The Australian reported last week that Nova (owned by Lachlan Murdoch’s investment vehicle Illyria) and ARN Perth are concerned the move could hurt their financial viability, giving the ABC and others an unfair commercial advantage.

In its submission to The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA), seen by The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age, the ABC says the move would address the decline of AM audiences while helping it fulfil the responsibilities outlined in its charter. A further statement from the ABC says it does not consider itself a rival to the existing commercial broadcasters that have raised concerns.

“The ABC supports the conversion of Perth’s AM stations to FM due to poor AM reception in the city, which has been exacerbated over time by such things as high-rise development, the electrification of its metropolitan trains and additional electrical poles and wires across the city,” an ABC spokesperson said. “Conversion of ABC Radio Perth from AM to FM would significantly improve the quality of the station’s signal across the entire metropolitan region.

“The ABC has never opposed the many AM to FM conversions by commercial and community radio stations in regional and metropolitan markets where it can be done. As a talk station broadcaster in Perth the ABC does not consider itself to be in direct competition with existing FM music-based stations with AM to FM conversion.”

Nine, which owns 6PR as well as publishes this masthead, has said the change would only apply to Perth and is purely due to the geography in the region.

“AM reception has long been an issue in Perth due to poor soil conductivity and the local geography and has deteriorated further with the expansion of the electric railway service,” Nine’s radio boss Tom Malone said.

Like other parts of the commercial media sector, radio companies suffered large falls in revenue in the last 18 months due to economic factors related to the coronavirus pandemic. There are some in the commercial radio sector, which compete against one another for audience and revenue, that improvement of the ABC’s signal would reduce their listeners. Those concerned run music-based stations in Perth

ACMA is considering five options for use of the available spectrum in Perth, which were put forward in an options paper released in April. The proposal supported by the ABC and Nine involves converting its radio licence from AM to FM. It would also involve the conversion of licences for 6IX (owned by Capital Radio Network and Grant Broadcasters), and 6PR.

“It’s the only way to achieve the key public policy outcomes â€" putting listeners first, and making the content of the ABC and commercial broadcasters available to everyone,” Mr Malone said.

Alternatives include converting the three ABC AM services in Perth â€" 6PB, 6WF and 6RN â€" to FM and not converting the commercial AM services, and reverting the commercial AM services without the ABC. Another option is to convert one of three national ABC AM services and keep all other services on the AM bandwidth. The final option is to not covert any AM services to FM and instead allocate licences for three new FM services in Perth.

The ABC, which is at the end of a three-year indexation freeze, had said that running AM radio services is expensive. But it also said poor AM radio transmission in Western Australia - related to topography and commuter train network in Perth - made conversion the best use of spectrum.

Nine has argued that creating three new FM licences in Perth would be more harmful to the sector, diluting audience and revenue.

An ABC spokesperson said the ABC already occupies FM spectrum in other markets and it is preferred due to its quality and cost effectiveness. It would not set a precedent because there is no available FM spectrum in other capital cities, it said. The radio companies are waiting on a decision from the ACMA.

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Zoe Samios is a media and telecommunications reporter at The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.

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