Talent could defect to net, says Whale

James Whale

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Veteran broadcaster James Whale has predicted that commercial radio stations risk losing their major talent to self-produced shows on the internet.

Whale, who now hosts a show on internet broadcaster Play Radio, told Broadcast the major commercial stations relied on their talent to attract listeners and they would suffer if presenters opt to go solo on the internet.

"At the end of the day, people are not listening to the station but to personalities," he said. "The likes of Wogan, Moyles, Tarrant and hopefully James Whale will eventually say: 'Why can't I broadcast my own show from home and clean up on the advertising?' After all, you just need a PC and a microphone."

Whale was sacked from Talk Sport in May for breaching impartiality rules when he urged listeners to vote for Boris Johnson as London mayor. He joined Play Radio UK on 25 May, initially presenting a show on Play Two UK every Tuesday. His new schedule will be 8pm to midnight, Tuesdays and Thursdays, as of 22 July.  

He said he saw the importance of internet broadcasting on his guest appearances in the US. "Only then did I realise so many broadcasters were doing shows from their own premises or even their own bedrooms," he said.

Whale said the introduction of wi-fi radios and the fact the internet can be picked up from "pretty much anywhere these days" make it a better long-term proposition than DAB.

However, he recognised that Ofcom would be unhappy if the internet became the dominant player. "It's the government that has pushed DAB," he said. "How do you regulate someone broadcasting from his bedroom?"

He added radio as a whole should invest more in an online presence because it is too late for DAB to gain the traction it once promised.
"Everyone thought [ex GCap Media chief executive] Fru Hazlitt was wrong to say DAB was not viable for her business - myself included - but I have to say she was right," he said. "DAB has already been superseded."

Last week, Broadcastnow.co.uk revealed Chris Tarrant is to host a new show on GMG Radio, based on a radical US business model, in which he will be paid £1m a year by Nissan.