The Wave is an
Independent Local Radio
Independent Local Radio is the collective name given to commercial radio stations in the United Kingdom. As a result of the buyouts and mergers permitted by the Broadcasting Act 1990, and deregulation resulting from the Communications Act 2003, ...
station based in
Swansea, Wales, owned and operated by
Bauer as part of the
Hits Radio
Hits Radio is a network of 25 contemporary hit radio stations in the United Kingdom, owned and operated by Bauer Media Audio UK.
As of October 2022, the network has a combined reach of 6.6 million weekly listeners according to RAJAR.
Overv ...
network. It broadcasts to
Swansea,
Neath Port Talbot
Neath Port Talbot ( cy, Castell-nedd Port Talbot) is a county borough in the south-west of Wales. Its principal towns are Neath, Port Talbot, Briton Ferry and Pontardawe. The county borough borders Bridgend County Borough and Rhondda Cynon Taf ...
, East
Carmarthenshire
Carmarthenshire ( cy, Sir Gaerfyrddin; or informally ') is a county in the south-west of Wales. The three largest towns are Llanelli, Carmarthen and Ammanford. Carmarthen is the county town and administrative centre. The county is known as ...
and
South West Wales
South West Wales is one of the regions of Wales consisting of the unitary authorities of Swansea, Neath Port Talbot, Carmarthenshire and Pembrokeshire.
This definition is used by a number of government agencies and private organisations includin ...
.
[Public File](_blank)
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As of September 2022, the station has a weekly audience of 93,000 listeners according to RAJAR
Radio Joint Audience Research Limited (RAJAR) was established in 1992 to operate a single audience measurement system for the radio industry in the United Kingdom. RAJAR is jointly owned by the BBC and RadioCentre. RAJAR's predecessor was call ...
.
History
Early years
Initially broadcasting as 257 Swansea Sound on 1169 AM and 95.1 FM on 30 September 1974, the AM frequency was later adjusted to 1170 and FM changed to 96.4. The station split into two separate services on 30 September 1995, creating a new music-led station called 96.4 Sound Wave, while Swansea Sound continued to broadcast on 1170 AM.
The separate stations are based at studios in Gowerton, from where Swansea Sound began broadcasting. In 1998, the FM station changed its name to 96.4 The Wave.
2000s
The Wave continued providing a local service to the Swansea area. In 2002, The Radio Authority announced plans for a Swansea DAB multiplex to form, allowing The Wave to broadcast on a digital platform under the format of contemporary hit radio.
2003 saw the station adding the ''South Wales' Hit Music'' tagline as their slogan as well as a highly popular competition called ''A Week on Wheels'', which returned the following year as a promotion.
In January 2004, The Wave was officially launched on the new DAB multiplex. The Wave came under management of UTV Radio in 2005, when the company acquired ''The Wireless Group'', the owner of the station in the early 2000s. The station also ran ''Party in the Park
Party in the Park is the generic name given to music concerts organised by various radio stations and local authorities and groups in the United Kingdom, typically in large parks during the summer, however it is also used to refer to a family ori ...
'' concerts in Singleton Park
Singleton Park ( cy, Parc Singleton) is the largest urban park in the city of Swansea. It is located in Sketty.
The park comprises 250 acres of land. An ornamental garden is located to the south, near the entrance to Swansea University, and a w ...
, Swansea for many years, but due to the financial cost, the event ended in 2006.
Instead, The Wave began a partnership with '' Escape into the Park'', a similar music event involving mostly contemporary dance music. In 2008, The Wave began using the marketing brand ''You Love It, We Play It'', which was processed by then-owners UTV Radio
Wireless Group Limited is a radio and digital broadcasting network with headquarters in Belfast, Northern Ireland and with radio operations in the Republic of Ireland and the United Kingdom. It currently operates five stations in Ireland and ...
. The following year, the station switched to the ''Today's Best Mix'' strapline.
2010s
The Wave and Swansea Sound were involved in UTV Media's '' Wales Live'' scheme, an aborted attempt to provide a service designed to support local news through radio, television and online services. The project was set to launch by October 2010, but ultimately failed.
The Wave received an updated logo design which was made into a car sticker, with the inclusion of "DAB and Online" displayed alongside "96.4 FM" on the bottom of the logo. The Wave, along with other local commercial radio stations within the UK, became a part of the Radioplayer UK project, an internet service formed by the BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
that supplies a listen live feed of UK radio stations across the world. The Wave's owner, UTV, was renamed the
in 2016.
On 8 February 2019, The Wave was sold alongside Swansea Sound and the Wireless Group's network of local radio stations to
network, while retaining its localised on-air branding.
The Wave began carrying most of the network's off-peak programming from Manchester from 15 June 2020.