Capital Brighton

Capital Brighton was a local radio station owned and operated by Global Radio as part of the Capital radio network. It served the Brighton and Hove area broadcasting on 107.2 FM and across Sussex on DAB.

Capital Brighton
CityBrighton
Broadcast areaBrighton and Hove, Sussex
FrequencyFM: 107.2 MHz
DAB Digital Radio (mono)
Branding107.2 Capital
SloganBrighton's New Hit Music Station
Programming
FormatContemporary hit radio
Ownership
OwnerGlobal
Heart Sussex
History
First air date
As Surf 107: 27 March 1998 at 1:07pm
As Capital: 3 September 2018 at 6am
Last air date
5 April 2019
Technical information
Transmitter coordinates
50.8333°N 0.2083°W / 50.8333; -0.2083
Links
WebsiteCapital Brighton

In April 2019, the station was merged with a sister Capital station in Hampshire to form Capital South.

History

Surf 107

The station was first launched as Surf 107 in March 1998, when the Radio Authority licensed Brighton and Hove Local Radio Ltd[1] to broadcast on a commercial basis to the Brighton and Hove area.

Co-founders Daniel Nathan [2] and Eugene Perera had previously run a series of trial broadcasts in the city beginning with Festival Radio 97.7 operating under a Home Office special events radio licence in May 1990 during the Brighton Festival and in subsequent years using a Radio Authority restricted service licence from 1991 to 1993.[3] Writer and broadcaster Simon Fanshawe was the first chairman of the company with Eugene Perera as managing director. Various local companies held shares. Surf 107 began broadcasting on Friday 27 March 1998 [4] and went on to win its first Sony Award a year later.

Juice 107.2
Logo used by Juice 107.2

In December 2000, the radio station was sold to Forever Broadcasting plc [5] which rebranded the station as Juice 107.2. In August 2003, Daniel Nathan led a group of local investors with the aim of returning the station to local ownership.[6]

In 2011, Juice 107.2 managing director Ryan Heal was recognised as an Outstanding Brightonian for his stewardship at the radio station and leadership within the community.[7]

By this point, Juice 107.2 was required to pay for simulcast on the emerging DAB digital radio platform. The company's directors did not consider the format suitable or financially sustainable and began lobbying parliament.[8] In September 2012, in order to demonstrate an alternative approach to DAB, senior Ofcom engineer Rashid Mustapha together with Daniel Nathan initiated an experimental low cost DAB transmission that ran from the Juice 107.2 rack room and transmission site from September 2012 to January 2013 using open-source software.[9] This work was commended in parliament by the Minister of State Ed Vaizey in November 2013.[10]

An official trial was set in motion and on 31 July 2015, the Juice DIY DAB multiplex went live.[11] In the same month, radio group UKRD acquired a 51% majority holding in the broadcaster, with Daniel Nathan remaining as chairman and local shareholders retaining the minority stake.[12]

In August 2016, UKRD returned its holding in Juice to local investors.[13] As part of the sale, Laurence Elphick, who had departed as Juice managing director in 2014,[14] returned to the post.

In late October 2016, Ofcom's report [15] concluded that the small scale trials had been a success.[16] In March 2017, the Brighton multiplex became UK's first to only broadcast DAB+.[17] A month later, the work that began as an experiment in Brighton was officially recognised when the Private Members’ Small-Scale DAB Bill [18] received Royal Assent to pass into law as an Act of Parliament.[19] paving the way for a new generation of low cost DAB transmission around the UK.

Capital Brighton

In January 2018, Global Radio announced it had bought Juice 107.2 for an undisclosed sum.[20] The sale was expected to be finalised the following month.[21] The original owners continue to operate the trial DAB+ multiplex, carrying 15 radio stations in the city.[22]

On 2 August 2018, Global announced it would rebrand and relaunch Juice 107.2 as part of the Capital FM Network of contemporary hit radio stations.[23]

Juice 107.2 officially ceased broadcasting from its studios at 170 North Street at midnight on Tuesday 14 August 2018. The station relaunched as Capital Brighton at 6am on Monday 3 September 2018.[23]

Station merger

On 26 February 2019, Global confirmed the station would be merged with Capital South Coast. From Monday 8 April 2019, local output will consist of a three-hour Drivetime show on weekdays, alongside news bulletins, traffic updates and advertising.[24] Local breakfast and weekend shows were replaced with network programming from London while Capital's Brighton studio – shared with Heart Sussex – will close.

The last local programming from Capital Brighton aired on Friday 5 April 2019. Local news, traffic and advertising for the Brighton area continues to air as opt-outs on Capital South.

References
  1. Staff, MediaTel (22 January 1997). "Radio Authority Receives 8 Applications For East Sussex Licences". mediatel.co.uk. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
  2. "Daniel Nathan – Co-founder & Chairman – Juice 107.2, CEO – totallyradio".
  3. "Broadcasting: A Potted History".
  4. "New station to Surf airways".
  5. "Forever Broadcasting Buys Brighton & Hove".
  6. "Founders bring Juice back to Brighton".
  7. "Ryan Heal (R. 1989–94) wins "The Outstanding Brightonian Award"".
  8. "Letter from Mr Daniel Nathan, Director, Brighton & Hove Radio Ltd".
  9. "OPINION: What Brighton DAB test tells us".
  10. "Digital Radio Switchover".
  11. "UK's first 'DIY DAB' multiplex goes live in Brighton".
  12. "Brighton's Juice 107.2 joins UKRD Group".
  13. "Brighton's Juice 107.2 returns to local ownership".
  14. "Juice 107.2 recruits new Managing Director".
  15. "Small scale DAB trials:Final report" (PDF).
  16. "Ofcom blesses Linux-powered, open source DIY radio 'revolution'".
  17. "Brighton becomes home to first DAB+ only multiplex in the UK".
  18. "Broadcasting (Radio Multiplex Services) Act 2017".
  19. "Royal Assent for Radio Multiplex Services Bill".
  20. Global buys Juice 107.2 in Brighton & Hove, RadioToday, 17 January 2018
  21. "Brighton radio station's future secured with Global deal".
  22. "DAB Ensembles Worldwide:Brighton & Hove Minimux".
  23. "Capital Brighton to launch on 3rd September". RadioToday. 2 August 2018. Retrieved 11 November 2019.
  24. Global to network Capital, Heart and Smooth breakfast shows, RadioToday, 26 February 2019

Bibliography
  • Middleton, Judy (2003). The Encyclopaedia of Hove & Portslade. Brighton: Brighton & Hove Libraries.

DAB Digital Radio (NOW Sussex Coast)

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