GCapped Digital Broadcast

Radio group GCap will stream its FM stations live on the Apple iTouch and iPhone devices, but will scrap its digital-only stations as part of its new strategy announced today.

The plans, unveiled to the City today by chief executive Fru Hazlitt, revealed the group would will focus on FM and broadband radio rather than DAB digital radio.

GCap will close digital-only stations TheJazz and Planet Rock and attempt to sell the licences. If the licences are not sold GCap plans to hand them to Ofcom on 28 March and integrate the online content within its existing sites, such as Classic FM.

It will focus on new revenue streams, like the Apple deal, which will enable listeners to stream content from GCap stations via the musicradio.com URL.

The deal will also enable listeners to click to buy music through iTunes and Amazon following a deal between the two companies in December (NMA 20.12.07).

GCap will receive a share of the retail revenues.

Hazlitt said GCap would continue to transmit Classic FM on national DAB and other FM stations on the equivalent regional DAB multiplexes in accordance with Ofcom regulation.

Other changes include the closure of Xfm Manchester, Xfm Scotland and Xfm Wales, along with plans to ditch the "no more than two ads in a row" policy on Capital radio