Bauer Media Audio has agreed to buy Cork radio station Red FM, adding to its stable of Irish stations that already includes Newstalk, Today FM and 98FM among others.
The majority shareholder in the station is Vienna Investments, a company owned by Pearse Farrell and Bernadette Keogh. The Irish Times acquired a 17.6 per cent stake in the company behind Red FM in 2018 as part of a deal to buy the Irish Examiner and other assets.
The value of the deal has not been disclosed.
Bauer’s acquisition of the station is subject to regulatory approval from the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission and Minister for Media Catherine Martin.
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Red FM is the station with the biggest share of peak-time listening in Cork. With more than 129,000 daily listeners, its market share is 21 per cent, JNLR figures published on Thursday show.
In a statement, Simon Myciunka, chief executive of Bauer Media Audio Ireland, said: “Cork’s Red FM is a much-loved station, and it’s a fantastic addition to the business. Together, we can ensure that it continues to provide the music, entertainment and great local news and information that listeners value, allowing it to thrive even more in future”.
Diarmuid O’Leary, chief executive of Red FM, said that after two decades in operation, “Red FM is now ready to embark on a new chapter and I’m sure that as a valued part of Bauer Media Audio the station will continue to soar to even greater heights.”
UK-based Bauer Media Audio entered the Irish market in 2021 with the acquisition of Denis O’Brien’s Communicorp radio group in a deal worth in excess of €100 million.
