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ENGLISHoSPE KI NC

RADIO IN GENEVA

Interview with Mark Butcher, Director of World Radio Switzerland

Since September 2013, there
have been changes in English-
speaking radio in the Geneva
area. Radio Frontier took over
World Radio Switzerland (WRS),
but decided to keep the old name
WRS. Furthermore, in preparation
for the move to Digital Audio
Broadcasting (DAB), the Swiss
Federal Government decided to
close the FM wavelength used by
WRS. Mark Butcher explains.

Q: Can you tell us how you came mission, there is only one English- interested in seeing a massive return
to be doing what you are doing? speaking radio station in the region on their money. We are at present
-- WRS. With all due respect for the in a situation where the profits from
I have always been in radio ever people at Radio 74, its mission is not broadcasting will be fed back into the
since I left school. At first I worked in intended to be of value to the commu- station. Over the next few years we
London for some years, but in 1992 I nity. The mission of WRS is to be of want to increase the number of people
saw a job advertised with Swiss Radio value to the community. we employ.
International in Berne. After I arrived,
they were in the process of setting up When it comes down to English-spea- I have been asked by people how they
an English-speaking FM radio station king radio, we have implemented a can help; they have even offered mo-
in Geneva, which became World Radio deliberate policy to make it "local" ney. We do not actually want to go
Geneva (WRG). So in 1996 I moved radio for the Lake Geneva region. We down that road; we want to be a com-
to Geneva to work for WRG -- it was think that this is important and appre- mercially funded radio station. We
the same management team. Apart ciated by the listeners. Since we are a have had offers from corporate entities
from a short break, I have always been commercial station, it is also of more who have asked how they can help us
involved in English-speaking radio in value to the advertisers who wish to since they perceive our radio station
Geneva. reach the community in this region. At as of value to their employees. We are
each level it makes good programming talking to some corporations about
I believed that I was coming to sense, good advertising sense and receiving money from them, to which
Switzerland for a couple of years, but, therefore good business sense. we have replied that we will invest it
like a lot of people, I ended up staying in people and programming. You will
here. Twenty years later I find myself Q: How is your radio station see an instant difference in what we
settled -- I got married and bought a financed? are doing.
house. That is a very common story
for many people. I have enjoyed being Purely on advertising. We have not Q: The vast majority of people
here, since English-language radio in asked the Swiss Government for any listen to radio on the FM wave-
Geneva is an interesting niche. I have subsidies and we receive no other length. Is DAB an advantage or a
very much enjoyed being part of the subsidies. Although we have not been disadvantage?
international community and it has given a public-service mandate, we
been a fantastic opportunity to meet feel that we should be of public ser- Most people know what digital audio
people in Geneva. vice because it is good business to do broadcasting (DAB) is. It has been
so. We need listeners in order to sell around for quite some time -- at least
Q: What is the structure of En- ourselves to our advertisers. We are fifteen years in the United Kingdom.
glish-language radio in Geneva? a business and need to make a profit. FM is still the dominant radio plat-
We have great backing from our in- form -- especially for cars -- but this is
This is the big issue. With the excep- vestors. While no-one wants to throw obviously an important issue in many
tion of Radio 74 which has got its own money away, at this stage they are not ways.

30 The Geneva region
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