Ace Radio

Last updated

Ace Radio
Type Private
Industry
PredecessorAssociated Communication Enterprises
Founded1984
Headquarters South Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Areas served
Key people
Mark Taylor (CEO)
Owners
  • Rowly Paterson
  • Judy Paterson
Number of employees
200+ (2022)
Website www.aceradio.com.au

Ace Radio Broadcasters is an Australian media company. Formed in 1984, it operates 21 commercial radio stations in Victoria and southern New South Wales, as well as the digital marketing agency Ace Digital and The Weekly Advertiser, a free newspaper distributed across the Wimmera region. [1]

Contents

History

Ace Radio Broadcasters was founded in 1984, following the acquisition of radio station 3HA in Hamilton, Victoria by Associated Communication Enterprises, owners of the Melbourne newspaper Truth. [2] The group acquired 3CS Colac in 1985 and, by 1986, had control of 3SH Swan Hill and 3WM Horsham. [3] As of 1994, the company was in the joint control of Geoff and Helen Handbury and Rowly and Judy Paterson, and had additional interests in radio stations in Wollongong, Shepparton and Geelong. [1]

The company continued to expand in the late 1990s and into the 2000s. Divesting itself of 3SR and Sun FM Shepparton and Bay FM Geelong, in 1995 the company acquired 3TR Traralgon and 3YB Warrnambool. In 1996, Ace Radio commenced the roll-out of FM radio in its markets, launching Mixx FM branded stations in Horsham, Swan Hill and Colac, with Mixx FM Hamilton and Coast FM Warrnambool launching in 2002. Also in 2002, 3TR converted to the FM band as TRFM, with 3GV launched on the former AM frequency. [1]

In September 2005, Ace Radio purchased 2AY from Macquarie Regional RadioWorks, which the latter was forced to divest following its acquisition of DMG Regional Radio. [4]

In June 2016, Ace Radio's stations were added to the iHeartRadio platform in Australia, with the iHeartRadio Thumbs Up Countdown launched across the network's six 'Hit Music' FM stations. [5]

In August 2017, it was announced that Ace Radio would acquire 2QN and Edge FM Deniliquin, New South Wales from Rich Rivers Radio, and 3NE and Edge FM Wangaratta from North East Broadcasters. [6]

In June 2018, Ace Radio ceased operation of the Radio Training Institute. Launched in 1984 as the Melbourne Radio School, the institute had been operated by Ace in South Melbourne since 2003. [7]

From 14 January 2022, Ace Radio took over the operations of three metropolitan stations from Nine Entertainment, under a lease arrangement. [8]

From 16 January 2023, Ace Radio will supply Southern Cross Austereo's Hit Network programs, including the Carrie & Tommy Drive show, 2Day FM's Hughesy, Ed & Erin catch up show, Hot Nights with Abbie Chatfield and Jimmy & Nath to over six radio stations.

Radio stations

As of 2022, Ace Radio Broadcasters operates 21 radio stations.

Nine of these stations form their 'Heritage' network, featuring local news, music and syndicated talkback programming targeted at a 40+ audience: [1]

Eight stations form the 'Hit Music' network, targeting an 18-39 audience with hot adult contemporary music and syndicated programming: [1]

Two stations form the 'Easy Music' network, targeting a 55+ audience: [9]


Two stations are positioned as 'Classic Hits', targeting a 55+ audience: [10]

Programming

While programming varies in each market, both AM and FM stations broadcast a variety of locally produced, as well as nationally networked, programmes.

AM stations

FM stations

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Colac, Victoria</span> Town in Victoria, Australia

Colac is a small city in the Western District of Victoria, Australia, approximately 150 kilometres south-west of Melbourne on the southern shore of Lake Colac.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Magic 1278</span> Radio station in Melbourne, Australia

Magic 1278 is a commercial radio station in Melbourne, Australia owned by Nine Entertainment Co, and run under a lease agreement by Ace Radio.

2QN is a radio station based in Deniliquin, New South Wales, Australia. It broadcasts on the medium wave radio band, at a frequency of 1521 kHz.

3NE is an Australian Classic hits-formatted AM radio station, broadcasting from Wangaratta, Victoria to the surrounding areas of North East Victoria. 3NE was Opened on 27 March 1954. As of 1 November 2017 the station is owned and operated by Ace Radio, which acquired it and sister station Edge FM 102.1 from North East Broadcasters.

Nine News is a radio news service providing the half-hourly radio news bulletins to radio stations across Australia.

TRFM is a commercial radio station broadcasting from Traralgon, Victoria, Australia. It is currently owned by Ace Radio & broadcasts A Contemporary Hits Radio (CHR) format. It features both locally produced content & nationally syndicated content from both NOVA Entertainment & Grant Broadcasters. They have a repeater on Mount Taylor, near Bairnsdale, to better cover East Gippsland.

Edge FM 102.5 is a commercial radio station broadcasting from Deniliquin, New South Wales, Australia. It is currently owned by ACE Radio & broadcasts an Adult Contemporary (AC) format. It features both locally produced content & network content from ACE Radio. There are repeaters in Cobram (88.5FM) and Echuca (103.9FM). In 2017, Edge FM 102.5 came under the ownership of ACE Radio as its parent company North East Broadcasters was acquired by ACE.

Sports Entertainment Network (SEN), formerly Crocmedia, is an Australian radio and television distribution company established in 2006 by journalists James Swanwick and Craig Hutchison. SEN's parent company is Sports Entertainment Group (SEG), formerly Pacific Star Network.

3GG is an Australian commercial radio station based in Warragul, Victoria. Founded in 1937 as 3UL, it has been owned by the Capital Radio Network since February 2015.

3WM is a radio station based in Horsham in the Wimmera Mallee region of Victoria, Australia. It broadcasts on the AM band, at a frequency of 1089 kHz, and on the FM band around Ararat at a frequency of 96.1 MHz and Nhill on 92.9 MHz.

Edge FM 102.1 is a commercial radio station broadcasting from Wangaratta, Victoria, Australia. It is currently owned by Ace Radio & broadcasts an Adult Contemporary (AC) format. It features both locally produced content & nationally syndicated content from both NOVA Entertainment & Grant Broadcasters. There is a repeater at Mount Beauty (93.3FM). In 2017 Edge FM 102.1 came under the ownership of Ace Radio as its parent company North East Broadcasters was acquired by Ace.

Vision Australia Radio is a network of eight radio stations in Victoria, amongst some other states in Australia. It is owned by Vision Australia. The stations broadcast a range of programs, generally consisting of readings of newspapers and magazines for people unable to read print media. All the stations are operated by a volunteer staff and a small group of employees.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">3RPH Warrnambool</span> Radio station

3RPH Warrnambool is a radio station based in Warrnambool, Victoria. It is part of the Vision Australia Radio network, a reading and information service for those persons unable to read or easily access information in print. The station is run and operated by volunteers.

3YB FM is a radio broadcaster based in Warrnambool, Victoria, Australia. It transmits on the frequency modulation radio band, at a frequency of 94.5 MHz. The station is part of the Ace Radio FM network. It has an adult contemporary music format mixed with talk such as Mornings with Neil Mitchell syndicated from 3AW.

Mixx FM 106.3 is a commercial radio station broadcasting from Colac, Victoria (Australia). It is currently owned by Ace Radio and broadcasts contemporary hits. The station features both locally produced and nationally syndicated content from NOVA Entertainment and from Grant Broadcasters. It has two repeaters: one at Lorne and another at Apollo Bay.

Mixx FM 107.7 is a commercial radio station broadcasting from Swan Hill, Victoria, Australia. It is currently owned by Ace Radio & broadcasts A Contemporary Hits Radio (CHR) format. It features both locally produced content & nationally syndicated content from both NOVA Entertainment & Grant Broadcasters. They have a repeater in Kerang on 98.7FM.

Mixx FM 101.3 is a commercial radio station broadcasting from Horsham, Victoria, Australia. It is currently owned by Ace Radio & broadcasts A Contemporary Hits Radio (CHR) format. It features both locally produced content & nationally syndicated content from both NOVA Entertainment & Grant Broadcasters. They have two repeaters, one at Nhill (94.5FM), & Ararat (98.5FM).

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "About ACE". Ace Radio. Archived from the original on 13 March 2019. Retrieved 14 April 2019.
  2. ↑ "3HA gets new owners". The Age . 22 June 1984. p. 6. Retrieved 3 December 2021– via Newspapers.com.
  3. ↑ "Bell's bid brings bulls back". Canberra Times . Vol. 60, no. 18, 488. Australian Capital Territory, Australia. 15 May 1986. p. 18. Retrieved 3 December 2021– via National Library of Australia.
  4. ↑ "Ace Radio announces acquisition of 2AY from MRRWorks". Radioinfo.com.au. 1 September 2005. Retrieved 14 April 2019.
  5. ↑ "ACE Network now on iHeartRadio Australia". Radio Today. 21 June 2016. Retrieved 14 April 2019.
  6. ↑ Samios, Zoe (4 August 2017). "ACE Radio Broadcasters acquires EdgeFM, 3NE and 2QN". Mumbrella . Retrieved 14 April 2019.
  7. ↑ Gunn, Nikole (14 February 2018). "Melbourne's Radio Training Institute to close for good". Radio Today. Retrieved 14 April 2019.
  8. ↑ Easy Music: Ace Radio quietly launches Australia’s newest metro radio network Mediaweek 17 January 2022
  9. ↑ "Advertising Enquiry - 1377 3MP". 3MP .
  10. ↑ "Advertising Enquiry - Magic 1278". Magic 1278 .
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.