2nd pop-up Olympics station for London

A Swiss pop-up digital radio station is to broadcast in the capital for this summer’s Olympic games.

International Radio Festival on the London 2 multiplex will be the second DAB station specifically for the event, joining national station BBC Radio 5 live Olympics Extra which was confirmed yesterday.

The station will air across the city for three weeks from 20th July to 12th August, giving listeners a taste of Swiss and British radio stations and presenters, featuring artists, bands, festivals, and nightlife brands.

Organisers say the festival will present a ‘varied 24/7 on-air listening experience as unique as the 2012 Olympic Games itself’, while also building “an acoustic cultural bridge between the two nations’ long standing friendship”.

Switchdigital Director, Piers Collins, said: “London is the biggest and most dynamic local DAB market in the world with nearly four million radio listeners tuning in via DAB every week. As we enter into the second 12-year term of our licence, we are thrilled to be involved in this exciting project. The new multiplex will offer a wider range of opportunities for broadcasters – from traditional long term services to short pop up services such as IRF, and we will be announcing more new, innovative services coming on to the multiplex in the near future.”

Founders of the IRF, Miguel Alvarez & Darryl von Däniken, said: “We are really excited to be bringing Londoners a taste of Switzerland with special showcases of both Swiss and British music radio shows, festivals, bands, personalities, athletes and celebrities. We welcome the opportunity of being able to broadcast across London on DAB digital radio, allowing the International Radio Festival to carry on fulfilling its goal of celebrating the power of music radio.”