The UK’s Absolute Radio International Ltd has joined forces with Town and Country Broadcasting Ltd to jointly bid for the new Bristol FM radio licence, which will be advertised by industry regulator Ofcom.

The new licence, broadcasting on 106.5 FM, will cover the city of Bristol and the surrounding area, and will be advertised by Ofcom in March with a prospective on-air date of spring 2007.

The relationship between the broadcasters combines the urban and regional expertise of both groups for what they promise will be “a unique new approach to local radio in the west of England’s largest city. Bristol is currently served by local radio stations owned by GCap, UKRD, UBC and Emap, which mainly target the younger end of the market.”

Clive Dickens – Programme Operations Director of ARI says:

”ARI has carried out initial analysis of the Bristol radio market and we have commissioned a full market consumer study to pinpoint the best new format for the market. Existing local commercial services achieve less than 30% of all listening in Bristol, with the BBC more dominant in the city than across similar markets in the UK. Our track record and expertise in competitive markets will serve us well in launching a successful new station for Bristol.”

Absolute Radio International is an independent privately owned company that explores ownership, investment and management projects in Global Radio. Town and Country Broadcasting is the major shareholder in six UK commercial radio stations. It also offers a range of analogue and digital radio consultancy services to clients, including the UK’s leading rock and pop station Virgin Radio.