Ирландиядағы радионың тарихы мен дамуы

Overview of radio in the Republic of Ireland

Licensed radio broadcasting in Ireland is one element of the wider media of Ireland, with 85% of the population listening to a licensed radio broadcasting service on any given day.

Guglielmo Marconi, the Italian inventor and the father of long distance radio transmission, had a significant connection to Ireland as a descendent of the influential Jameson family, and the country played a crucial role in his early radio experiments. The earliest known radio broadcast in Ireland took place on 6 July 1898, when Marconi set up a wireless telegraphy link between Rathlin Island and Ballycastle. This communication system was established on behalf of Lloyd's. In 1907 Marconi International Marine Communication Company the world's first transatlantic wireless telegraphy service in the world in Clifden. The station conducted the first successful transmission of the first commercial wireless messages across the Atlantic Ocean between Clifden and Glace Bay, Nova Scotia, Canada. The station remained in operation until the late 1920s, when it was closed due to advancements in more powerful transatlantic wireless stations.

A Morse code transmission on 24 April 1916 from the General Post Office in Dublin by the rebels during the Easter Rising is considered the first broadcast in Ireland. Regular radio broadcasting in Ireland began with 2RN's test transmissions in 1925. 2RN has since become RTÉ Radio 1, which celebrated 90 years of uninterrupted broadcasting in January 2016, making it amongst the oldest continuously operating (if not the actual oldest), continuously public service radio station in Europe. RTÉ Raidió na Gaeltachta launched in 1972, and RTÉ Radio 2, now RTÉ 2FM, launched in 1979. Commercial radio was outlawed in Ireland until 1989, leading to the development of Irish pirate radio. Upon legalisation, licences were advertised and awarded on a franchise system explained in the article for a national service and a network of regional services covering the country. These all took to the air during 1989 and 1990, and although the national service (Century) eventually failed, all the local services lasted until their licence was revoked, or still exist. Additional licences have been added on an erratic basis since the late 1990s. An "international" service, Atlantic 252, also operated on 252kHz long wave between 1989 and 2002, although it was aimed solely at the United Kingdom and Ireland. It was never subject to the authority of the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland (BAI) and was operated under RTÉ's remit as a joint venture between RTÉ and CLT UFA. After a short period as a sports station (TeamTalk), the frequencies reverted to sole RTÉ control and were used as an additional frequency for RTÉ Radio 1 until transmissions ceased in April 2023, with running costs cited as the reason. In Ireland, Community Radio has been active since the late 1970s. However, it took until 1994 before the Independent Radio and Television Commission established an 18 month community radio pilot project to explore and evaluate the potential offered by community broadcasting in an Irish context. This project went operational in 1995, when licenses were issued to eleven community and community of interest groups across the country. 2004 saw the establishment of CRAOL the Community Radio Forum of Ireland.

Aside from the stations operated by Raidió Teilifís Éireann (RTÉ), radio stations in Ireland operate under sound broadcasting contracts issued by the Coimisiún na Meán. This body replaced the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland (BAI) in 2023 and supervises and regulates RTÉ, commercial Independent National, Regional, and Local Radio stations, as well as the non profit Community Radio stations, Institutional Services and Temporary Services.

All stations broadcast on FM, and RTÉ Radio 1 also broadcast on 252 kHz long wave until April 2023, which was mainly intended for reception outside Ireland. RTÉ radio services are also available free to air on digital satellite, as is Newstalk, and a number of recently licensed services or applicants have used satellite transmission to homes as part of the licence applications. Medium wave (AM) licences were issued for new commercial stations for Limerick and Galway in 2002, although these services never reached the air and were later withdrawn. A medium wave licence was awarded for quasi national religious service Spirit Radio. During 2006, a group, Choice FM, applied for and received permission to broadcasting on MW in the Dublin area over a period of thirty days. The "easy listening" radio station relayed its FM programming on 1278 kHz MW and operated opt out programming at various times. The group is said to be interested in obtaining one of the four MW channels that are allocated to the Dublin area, however the future schedule for licensing does not indicate that any MW licences will be offered on a permanent basis. During 2007, a radio station called The Rock obtained a temporary classic rock music service. The station broadcast on 94.9 FM and also on 1278 kHz MW. The Rock was operated by the same group that operated Choice FM during 2005 and 2006, although different MW facilities were used by the group during 2007.

Beat 102 103 Counties Carlow, Kilkenny, Waterford, Wexford and South Tipperary. Spin South West Counties Kerry, Clare, Limerick, North Tipperary, and south west Laois. iRadio (NW) Counties Galway, Mayo, Longford, Roscommon, Sligo, Leitrim and Donegal. iRadio (NE and Midlands) Counties Kildare, Meath, North Laois, Carlow, Louth, Westmeath, Offaly, Cavan and Monaghan. All services are licensed for "youth" content, no franchises area geographically overlap, and the entire country is served apart from County Wicklow and the cities and counties of Cork and Dublin, both of which have "youth" licensed services (Red FM and SPIN 1038 respectively). Beat 102 103 was the first to air, and was a pilot for the rest of the system. In 2011, i102 104 and i105 107 merged to become one iRadio entity.

There are 25 commercial stations (Independent Local Radio ILR) licensed on a regional franchise basis. Often several counties of Ireland are covered by one station only, but Dublin and Cork have several. The majority of the ILR stations collectively own the sales house, Independent Radio Sales.

96FM and C103 (dual franchise) C103 is aimed at older listeners, also sports and rural interest programmes. Red FM Corks Number 1 Radio Station Hot A/C format.

Special interest services resemble ILRs in most ways, but must be of specialist interest — e. g. heavier local interest content, or specialist music. Only one such station is licensed, Dublin City FM, which brand themselves as 103.2 Dublin City FM on air, and DUB CITY on RDS. Dublin City FM are essentially a community station with specialist traffic reports around rush hour periods.

The BAI may also issue licenses to institutions, such as hospitals and colleges, for the provision of low powered FM services. At present, there are five such stations in operation; all of them are hospital radio stations, with the existing student radio stations operating under community radio or temporary licenses. CUH FM Hospital Radio (102.0FM) Cork University Hospital, Cork, County Cork. Mater Hospital Radio Mater Hospital, Dublin, County Dublin. Dreamtime 92.6FM S. O. S. Kilkenny Ltd, Callan Road, Kilkenny, Co. Kilkenny. South Tipperary General Hospital Radio 93.7FM South Tipperary General and Maternity Hospital, Clonmel, County Tipperary. St. Ita's Hospital Radio St. Ita's Hospital, Portrane, County Dublin.

Stations may also be licensed to operate for shorter periods, with temporary licenses allowing stations to operate for up to thirty days in a given twelve month period. These licenses may be used by stations providing a service to coincide with local, cultural and sporting events or festivals. Another group of stations to avail of this type of license are those that are being run as pilot projects; successful stations may later be established as Community Radio stations, or run for a permanent license. One such temporary licence station was Sunrise Radio, which broadcast poly lingual programming in the Dublin area for several months from March 2006. While its licence was renewed for the following year, it was not made permanent, and the broadcast frequency later allocated to another station.

Atlantic 252 a joint venture with RTL, eventually failed financially. RTÉ FM3 Classical music/arts service, had existed prior to the launch of Lyric FM. FM3 time shared the same national FM network as RnaG, resulting in limited broadcasting hours. RTÉ Radio Cork (was originally 'RTÉ Cork Local Radio', changed name in 1989 to 'Cork 89FM', and relaunched again in 1994 as 'RTÉ Radio Cork') an opt out of Radio 1 for the Cork area on medium wave and secondary FM transmitters, closed in 1999 due to declining interest. RTÉ mobile Community Radio station existed during the late 1970s and 1980s, this mobile station provided temporary community radio services to towns and cities around the country. Millennium 88FM temporary local radio service for Dublin during 1988 and part of 1989 to mark 1988 at the year of the Dublin Millennium. RTÉ Digital Radio Sport a rolling service in the early days of DAB. RTÉ Choice international and national speech service with drama, documentary, arts, world news. Merged in 2013 with RTÉ Radio 1 Extra.

Century Radio failed financially, closed in 1991.

Limerick 95 FM (Radio Limerick One) (95 MHz FM); lost franchise mid term for stated misbehaviour subsequently operated on a pirate basis. CKR FM and Radio Kilkenny franchises redrawn at end of contract, Kildare area awarded to KFM, Carlow and Kilkenny to KCLR. Gentrification of Kildare by Dublin commuters led Carlow to be closer aligned with Kilkenny in the eyes of the BAI, hence the changing of the franchise areas
Tipperary Mid West Radio held a very small franchise for South West Tipperary. Its franchise was merged with the rest of Tipperary franchise (held by Tipp FM). The station continues, being re licensed as a Community Radio station. North West Radio subsidiary of Mid West Radio; replaced by Ocean FM at end of contract. Easy 103 held a licence for part of Wicklow and Horizon Radio held a licence for north Wicklow. These two stations merged to become East Coast FM. Fresh 95.5 short lived North Dublin targeted station from LMFM; was licensed to Meath only, relying on signal overspill. TXFM (formerly Phantom 105.2) alternative rock music station for the Dublin area.

Cashel Community Radio Cashel, County Tipperary was a splinter group from Tipperary Mid West Radio. Tallaght FM Tallaght, Dublin. Closed 2008. 9 7 11 FM Dublin North West's community radio, (named after the area's postal districts) existed in the mid 1990s. Dublin Weekend Radio station that broadcast from Dublin City University in the 1990s, it time shared transmission with Raidio na Life. Facilities are now used by DCU. Inishowen Community Radio (ICR FM) based in north Co. Donegal, ceased broadcasts in October 2012. Ballyhoura Community Radio (BCR) based in Charleville near the Cork/Limerick border. Went on air in May 2011, closed in March 2013. Frequency was 92.6 FM. East Limerick Community Radio FM Frequencies were 96.8 (main) and 97.3.

Beaumont Hospital Radio Beaumont Hospital, Beamount, Dublin. Closed in 2007. Vibe 107.4FM was a student service in Waterford I. T.
Regional Hospital Radio 94.2 Mid Western Regional Hospital, Limerick, County Limerick. Closed in 2018

Radio Oglaigh na h Éireann was established in 1962 to provide a short wave service to Irish Defence Forces serving in United Nations peacekeeping missions in Congo. Daily broadcasts were made on 17.544 MHz at 17:30 UTC, using a transmitter located at the Curragh Camp. Programmes, which were provided by Radio Éireann, included news, sports results, music and drama, including The Kennedys of Castleross. The service was discontinued after several years, when the Irish peacekeeping mission in Congo terminated.