Accra Welcomes Asomdwe Fm

A couple of weeks ago a new radio station hit the Accra airwaves to test its equipment. Asomdwe 100.9 FM is the name and its entrance is creating unusual bouts of speculation in radio circles in the capital.

The speculation has been fuelled by the fact that the new station is being financed by Despite Group of Companies, which are known to be considerably resourced and therefore can generally poach any radio presenter they fancy.

The newly established Asomdwe FM joins the Despite Group of Companies that operates Peace 104.3 FM, Okay 101.7 FM, Hello FM and United Television (UTV).

The rumour mill has been bandying a few names around and plus or minus one month most listeners in Accra might hear their favourite presenters shifting to Asomdwe FM operating from the Ship House located at Abeka Junction in Accra.

The Despite Group of Companies has over the years been noted for poaching some of the best talents from media houses all over the country and the establishment of Asomdwe 100.9 FM is reported to have sent owners and managers of radio stations shaking.

BEATWAVES gathered that Asomdwe 100.9 FM would be a predominantly Akan-speaking station and that behind-the-scenes negotiations for poaching some industry big names started a couple of weeks back.

Already, test transmission is underway but not many people who tune in to 100.9 FM know the name of the station because no jingle is played and the station’s name is also not mentioned. All it does for now is to play music with absolutely no talk.

It is still not very clear which presenters are going to form the nucleus of Asomdwe FM.

What is rather clear is that, a few big names from Akan-speaking radio stations are said to have been contacted and ‘crossover’ negotiations are underway.

Though the private radio industry is heavily saturated, the fact that Asomdwe 100.9 FM would be operating from the stables of the Despite Group of Companies, positions it in a good place for competition, considering the fact the company’s two other stations, Peace and Okay, have consistently remained the two most listened radio stations in Accra, according to a Synovate survey report of radio and television consumption in Ghana.

Daily Guide