Alternative rock music radio station Phantom FM went live today more than a year later than planned.
Phantom has signed a 10-year broadcasting contract with the Broadcasting Commission of Ireland (BCI) to provide a 24-hour alternative music to the Dublin region.
It began broadcasting at midday today on 105.2 FM by DJs Sinister Pete and Simon Maher.
The station is backed by a wide range of individuals and companies, including U2 manager Paul McGuinness's Principle Management and promoter Denis Desmond's Gaiety Investments.
The station was awarded an FM licence in November 2004 but was forced to delay its start-up date after legal proceedings challenging that decision were brought by Zed FM, which also competed for the licence.
Zed FM challenged the granting of the licence to Phantom FM on a number of grounds, including a claim that the BCI was unfairly biased towards Phantom FM and that members of the consortium had wrongly benefited from illegal broadcasting in the past as a pirate station.