After almost a year off the air, far south radio station Zone Radio is set to return to the airwaves after the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (Icasa) finally renewed its broadcasting license.
In July last year, the Pretoria High Court dealt the station a blow when it denied it an urgent interdict preventing Icasa from pulling it off the air following Icasa’s refusal to renew its broadcasting license, despite several attempts.
Instead, the judge ruled against the station, with costs, on an issue that Icasa had not even contested saying the station had not proved that it would suffer harm if taken off the air (“Zone Radio off air after losing legal battle,” Echo, July 2024).
Zone Radio founder Richard Griggs, said the station did not appeal the court’s ruling and focused on raising money to cover their legal costs that was more than R100 000.
The station is yet to receive the cost order from the court.
He said one of Icasa’s reasons for rejecting the station’s licence renewal was the requirement that its broadcasting studio be located in a mall.
“Even if we had appealed it would not change the fact that we were not broadcasting from a mall,” he said.
After negotiations with Longbeach Mall, it agreed to house the station’s new studio and Icasa approved the station's broadcasting and radio frequency spectrum licenses after four applications
An artist's impression of Zone Radio's studio in Longbeach mall.
Image: Supplied
“It was a major relief for us as internet radio is not what it should be. The convenience of FM is vital to our audience,” he said.
Mr Griggs said a new broadcasting frequency of 93.3FM has been granted for the station instead of its usual 88.5FM as it had been allocated to another broadcaster.
He said Icasa had never provided the station with a valid radio frequency spectrum license before, which had contributed to its inability to continue broadcasting on its previous frequency.
Mr Griggs said the station was grateful for the unwavering support from the local community throughout its battle to get back onto the air.
“The team at Zone Radio viewed this fight as the fight for the right of community,” he said, adding that 80% of the R100 000 legal fees had been raised through donations from the community.
“The community kept us going. We felt we owed it to the community to get back onto the air.”
He said the station also wanted to acknowledge the invaluable contributions of Mr Griggs’s partner Judy Roberson, its legal support, John McKnight, and Longbeach Mall.
Longbeach Mall marketing manager Minnin Du Preez said the mall was thrilled that Zone Radio’s license had been granted and that it will soon be part of the Longbeach Mall family.
“Our centre management is eager to support them by providing the necessary space to meet Icasa’s requirements, “ she said, adding that the partnership is set to bring “fantastic benefits”, including more promotional opportunities for the mall’s shops, stronger community connections, and increased excitement in the mall with a live studio presence.
“Longbeach Mall has always been about community, and this collaboration perfectly reflects our values. We're excited to be supporting Zone Radio and looking forward to their presence in our mall”.
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