Xfm
Broadcast area	UK
Slogan	Music That Matters
Frequency	97.7 (Manchester), 104.9 (London) MHz, DAB (Various), Sky & Freesat (National)
First air date	1997
Format	Alternative music
Owner	Global Radio
Website	Xfm - Home

Xfm is a brand of commercial radio stations focused on alternative music, primarily indie pop, and owned by Global Radio in the United Kingdom. Xfm was created in London in 1992 by Sammy Jacob (who later co-founded NME Radio in 2008. Xfm subsequently expanded to a network of four stations; there are currently two main Xfm services. XFM is now also available across most of the country via DAB digital radio.

The station has previously employed a number of DJs that have since gone on to even greater fame including Ricky Gervais, Karl Pilkington, Stephen Merchant, Simon Pegg, Christian O'Connell, Russell Brand, Justin Lee Collins, Adam and Joe, Zane Lowe and Dermot O'Leary

On 11 February 2008 GCap Media announced that they would be selling the analogue licences for the Manchester, Scotland and South Wales stations^[1], retaining only XFM London. This was decided in an attempt to shore-up profits and concentrate on 'winning brands'. However, although the sale of the South Wales station went ahead, the sale of the Scotland and Manchester stations was suspended when Global Radio entered into discussions to purchase GCap.

The station became the first ever to release a band's album for free via their website. The album was You Cross My Path by The Charlatans. The station has since entered into arrangements with various other bands to offer free promotional downloads and offers.

The current stations in the Xfm network are:

• Xfm London, which has been broadcasting on 104.9 FM in the Greater London area officially since 1997 (and unofficially since 1992).
• Xfm Manchester, which was launched on 97.7 FM on 15 March 2006.

These two stations now network the vast majority of content, though separate local daily breakfast shows and weekday drivetime shows remain.

Former stations in the network included:

• Xfm Scotland, formerly Beat 106, which was launched on 4 January 2006. It was then renamed again, to Galaxy Scotland on 8 November 2008.
• Xfm South Wales which broadcast to Cardiff & South Wales between 29 November 2007 and 30 May 2008, was sold to Town and Country Broadcasting who launched Nation Radio on its frequency.

In 2005, Xfm was among the bidders for the regional North East franchise on 97.5 FM,^[2] but this licence was ultimately awarded to Smooth Radio by Ofcom.

The London variation is also broadcast on numerous Digital Radio multiplexes across the country, allowing Xfm to reach near-national coverage.^[3]

Mi Xfm, a 'personalised radio player' with no commercials or DJs, was launched online in February 2007.

[edit] References

• Xfm Beyond Manchester

[edit] External links

• Xfm.co.uk
• Mi-Xfm.co.uk

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