PRESS RELEASE 30 December 2010 Garrison Radio keeps troops in touch using iPhones
The Army’s own radio station now has a new way to keep in close contact with their audience. Garrison Radio has just launched a new app for the iPhone which links soldiers with studios serving their own garrisons.
As well as providing high quality streaming audio from any one of the Garrison Radio stations around the UK, the high-tech App links to the Garrison Radio website and is bursting with features such as news updates and easy requests and dedications.
Garrison Radio broadcasts popular radio services tailored specifically to the needs of soldiers, families and MoD civilians from FM and AM transmitters at nine main Army locations around Great Britain. Until now the special radio stations have been dependent on phones, texts, email and the postal system to keep their thousands of listeners in touch with the studios and each other.
The radio industry’s latest research shows a rapid increase in the number of people listening to radio through smartphone apps, with 2.2 million claiming to have downloaded one. “That's up from 1.4 million when a similar survey was done six months ago,” says Garrison Radio founder and Managing director Mark Page.
Listening to the radio via a mobile phone is also growing in popularity, according to RAJAR 12.8 per cent of adults listened to radio via their mobile phone in summer months – an increase of 2.3 per cent on three months previously.
“Although not everyone has a high-tech phone yet, this is certainly the future for forces broadcasting,” says Mark. “Over the same period the proportion of listening to other stations via DAB digital radio actually fell, from 15.8 to 15.3 per cent.”
Mark is excited by the possibilities opened up by the new technology: “To send requests the user can even select a track from their own device, and the artist and title details will be filled in automatically. Plus it’s a great way for us to get essential information out to listeners, we’ve already got Army news headlines available throughout the day, and this is just the beginning!”
For more details contact:
Mark Page, Managing Director Garrison Radio. Tel: 01748 830050.
