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Business News Media
Nation Broadcasting ends licensing deal with Bauer, cutting back Greatest Hits Radio network
By Chris Cooke | Published on Friday 15 July 2022
The ever expanding Greatest Hits Radio network will be contracting a little in September as a brand licensing deal between its owner Bauer Media and rival radio firm Nation Broadcasting comes to an end.
Under its current deal with Bauer, Nation pumps out Greatest Hits Radio programming on a number of the local radio frequencies it controls, including in Hull and East Yorkshire, Ipswich and Suffolk, and on the South coast. But with that deal concluding, Nation will start airing one of its own brands – Nation Radio – on all of those frequencies.
Meanwhile, Nation also currently airs another Bauer service – Hits Radio – on frequencies it controls in Southampton, Portsmouth and Winchester. They will all switch to another Nation owned brand, Breezy Radio. Except at the same time Breezy Radio – which already broadcasts on FM in South Wales and on DAB digital radio in London, Wales and Birmingham – will rebrand as Easy Radio.
Announcing the changes, Nation said of the Breezy Radio rebrand as Easy Radio, “We’ll still be playing relaxing favourites and nothing changes except the name”.
Meanwhile, for GHR listeners who will soon be getting Nation Radio instead, it added: “We know you’ll enjoy our great mix of music and shows from radio legends including Neil ‘Doctor’ Fox, Russ Williams and Greg Burns”. Yeah, maybe.
Actually, GHR listeners in Bournemouth and Poole – currently accessing the South Coast version of the service operated by Nation – will still be able to tune into the station on FM, because Bauer will switch an FM frequency currently used by its Wave 105 station in those towns to GHR. Lucky Bournemouth and Poole.
