The Stage

Closure imminent as Channel 4 follows UBC Media in abandoning Oneword radio

Published Friday 4 January 2008 at 13:05 by Matthew Hemley

Speech-based radio station Oneword, which was launched in 2000 as commercial radio’s answer to BBC Radio 4, looks set to close after majority stakeholder Channel 4 announced it was withdrawing its investment.

The broadcaster has sold back its 51% share in the digital station to its partner UBC Media for a nominal fee of £1. It bought the majority stake from the media group in 2005 for a sum of £1 million.

Last November UBC said it had written off its own 49% investment in the station and was looking for ways to exit the venture. The station, which is dedicated to plays, readings and comedy, and which helped to launch Channel 4’s The Radio Play’s the Thing competition, now looks certain to close.

A message posted on the station’s website reads: “The future of Oneword has been uncertain for some time now. We are carrying out a strategic review which should see a resolution in the New Year.”

A spokeswoman for Channel 4 said: “When UBC Media decided to exit Oneword, 4 Ventures decided it would be impossible to continue as a shareholder because UBC had managed the station for several years. 4 Ventures was effectively left with no choice.”

Channel 4 is preparing to launch a trio of branded radio stations, including one that will be speech-led, after a consortium headed by the broadcaster was last year awarded a licence from Ofcom to launch a number of new digital stations.

At the time of going to press, UBC was unavailable for comment.