Galway Bay FM

Last updated

Galway Bay FM
Frequency 95.8 MHz
Programming
Languages
Ownership
Owner Connacht Tribune
History
Founded1989;36 years ago (1989)
Former names
Radio West
Links
Website www.galwaybayfm.ie

Galway Bay FM is an Irish independent local radio station and operates under a licence from the Broadcasting Commission of Ireland. [1] Established in 1989, [2] the station broadcasts from studios in Galway, serving the city and County Galway.

Contents

Programming

The programming format is a mixture of music, news, sport, current affairs and local issues. [3] Programmes are generally in English, although the station features some Irish language programmes. There is an opt-out service with alternative programming for Galway city on weekday evenings using the 95.8 MHz frequency.

History

The station was originally launched as Radio West in 1989 [4] [5] and was the first legal local radio station in Galway. [2] Radio West changed its name to Galway Bay FM in 1993.

In 2006, the Connacht Tribune newspaper bought the station outright, having previously owned 27% of it. [4]

In 2024 Galway Bay FM had the largest market share of listeners in County Galway at 23%, with 115,000 weekly listeners. This was four percentage points ahead of RTE Radio 1 and Today FM. [4]

In June 2025, it was announced that the station had been sold to Bay Broadcasting Limited, owners of Ireland’s Classic Hits Radio in an estimated seven figure deal. [6]

Alumni

References

  1. ↑ "Galway Bay FM Contact details". Broadcasting Commission of Ireland. Archived from the original on 10 March 2009. Retrieved 5 March 2009.
  2. 1 2 "August 20, 1989 THE IRISH EMIGRANT Issue No.133". Emigrant Online. 20 August 1989. Archived from the original on 24 November 2007. Retrieved 5 March 2009.
  3. ↑ "DETERMINATION OF MERGER NOTIFICATION M/06/067 – CONNACHT TRIBUNE/GALWAY BAY FM". Competition Authority. 24 October 2006. Archived from the original on 29 April 2014. Retrieved 5 March 2009.
  4. 1 2 3 Carey, Brian (1 December 2024). "Race on to acquire Galway media businesses". The Times . Retrieved 15 April 2025.
  5. ↑ "Sale of local radio station nets Galway county board a €800,000 windfall". Irish Independent. 28 December 2006. Retrieved 5 March 2009.
  6. ↑ "Galway Bay FM sold to Bay Broadcasting subject to clearance". RadioToday. 5 June 2025. Retrieved 7 June 2025.


Radio svg icon.svg Flag of Ireland.svg

This article about a radio station in Ireland is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

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.