Since the 1970’s, Australia has had a thriving independent radio sector with youth-oriented community radio stations, licensed in most capitals. 3RRR in Melbourne, 2SER in Sydney, 4ZZZ in Brisbane, 5DDD in Adelaide and 6RTR in Perth have grown from wild child to icon in the 20+ years of their existence.

Back then it was all about the music and community youth radio provided a significant counterpoint to the “Middle of the Road” FM format of the day.

Today, a new group of youth stations have emerged – Sydney’s FBi, Melbourne’s SynFM, Adelaide’s Fresh FM, Hobart’s Edge, Brisbane’s 4Bi, Radio Metro and others, continue to break new ground in broadcasting.

More than ever, community youth radio resonates with an audience hungry for diversity in music and disenchanted with the sameness of commercial radio. Emerging technology is enabling access to the radio in new ways. Podcasts, sophisticated websites, radio streaming and e-newsletters for members are all tools that new radio stations have easily adapted to traditional broadcasting.

But it’s still all about the music.

For advertisers, youth radio represents a chance to target a savvy audience of opinion leaders, and cool hunters. To get close to these consumers via a highly credible channel, and in a way that has the potential to generate both goodwill and brand loyalty.