98FM Re-brand?

lampydoo · 08-06-2008 2:13pm #1

I've heard that 98FM are to rebrand over the coming weeks, new logo being launched this week coming and rumor has it a name change?

DMC · 08-06-2008 2:41pm

lampydoo wrote: »

I've heard that 98FM are to rebrand over the coming weeks, new logo being launched this week coming and rumor has it a name change?

News to me, but if a name change is planned, its a good idea. "98FM" as a station name doesn't work if we are (very slowly) moving to DAB Digital Radio, considering the station name is an analogue frequency!

lampydoo · 08-06-2008 3:47pm

Also just heard that they were changing their Optimod setting during the week, a new signature sound?

Radio Mad. · 08-06-2008 3:53pm

From the end of this week coming, 98FM will be known simply as 98.

Captain Ginger · 08-06-2008 4:02pm

Radio Mad. wrote: »

From the end of this week coming, 98FM will be known simply as 98.

Wow, hope they didn't break the bank paying the brain who came up with that one.

lampydoo · 08-06-2008 4:07pm

A possible interim period for something else?

Badabing · 08-06-2008 4:41pm

Hopefully a re think for their breakfast show drop siobhan for a start all she does is laugh at your mans lame jokes or anything he says.

Manimal · 08-06-2008 9:00pm

Its not going to be a major new relaunch - tv and bus-sides with a new logo (98). Don't know about an audio change but wouldn't surprise me; their new PD was responsible for the distorted mess that passes for FM104s on air sound (grunge city)

Fuzzy Clam · 08-06-2008 9:45pm

Manimal wrote: »

Its not going to be a major new relaunch - tv and bus-sides with a new logo (98). Don't know about an audio change but wouldn't surprise me; their new PD was responsible for the distorted mess that passes for FM104s on air sound (grunge city)

Was listening for a bit this afternoon and could hear distortion in the bass frequencies.Before passing judgement I will want to hear it on a few different radios but it sounds to me like they've messed with (the once good) audio already.

Kensington · 08-06-2008 10:45pm

Fuzzy Clam wrote: »

Was listening for a bit this afternoon and could hear distortion in the bass frequencies.Before passing judgement I will want to hear it on a few different radios but it sounds to me like they've messed with (the once good) audio already.

Their sound has been the way it is currently for quite some time now - sounds like the bass is being heavily clipped. Are 98 still using the Optimod 8200 or have they moved on?

lampydoo · 09-06-2008 2:04am

Yeah its still an 8200 with a modified 222a spatial enhancer.

gordon_gekko · 09-06-2008 1:22pm

a nicer change would be if they played music for at least half of each hour , every time i turn that station on , its adds, way more than say fm 104 and far more than today fm , plus they dont finish there news broadcasts till about 10 past each hr

FlutterinBantam · 09-06-2008 2:52pm

ads lads, ads.

Can't figure out why people put in the second "D"

Bard · 09-06-2008 4:12pm

I really don't get how they can market themselves as just "98" - seems like a bit of a silly change to me, especially, as DMC said, digital broadcasting is on its way in and the analogue frequency is becoming less and less relevant. I'd have thought they'd go for a more intelligent, non-frequency-based name like Red FM or the likes.

tbh · 09-06-2008 4:23pm

no more comments about spelling, or comments about comments about spelling please

MaltEagle · 10-06-2008 9:29pm

Are 98 changing their schedule?

bbability · 10-06-2008 10:34pm

MaltEagle wrote: »

Are 98 changing their schedule?

Wouldn't do any harm. The new improvements to the sound are great. now its sounds like a station that breathes life...

BTW was that former PD doing a line with one of the lads on the Brekkie show???

MaltHouse Mouse · 11-06-2008 12:03pm

Are 98 changing their schedule?

Well, they have already taken on Darragh o Dee and Mike Hogan, both former presenters on fm104 so wonder who they will approach next? Heard Darragh on the over night and Mike sounded great on air last week. Wonder if these are regular fixtures to the schedule.

Hopefully a re think for their breakfast show drop siobhan for a start all she does is laugh at your mans lame jokes or anything he says.

Totally agree with this, I find her to be annoying and to be honest, I personally think she brings nothing to the show so why have her on??

lampydoo · 11-06-2008 12:32pm

I think for 98 to work they will have to do a schedule change. Remember that the current PD has been looking in from the outside while at 104 for many years, he knows whats good and whats not.

They really just need to define who they are within the market place, for years it has been samey and dull. In order for this to work, some current main talent should be shown the door and fresh blood brought in.

monkeyfudge · 11-06-2008 12:37pm

I know the BCI aren't trilled about stations naming themselves after their frequency. You'll notice it doesn't happen any more.

Bondvillain · 11-06-2008 2:03pm

monkeyfudge wrote: »

I know the BCI aren't trilled about stations naming themselves after their frequency. You'll notice it doesn't happen any more.

If thats true, the proposers of Classic Rock 100.3 and Radio Nova 100 for the upcoming BCI Rock licence, and the New Regional licencee i105 must be sh*tting themselves...Iradio, for example, (in their previous sucessful submissions to the BCI) have boldly claimed : in the event of us winning this license we will use the frequency number as opposed to FM to brand the station

Phantom 105.2 could get a kick in the teeth if they backdate this non-thrilledness to 2006

monkeyfudge · 11-06-2008 2:22pm

No. I mean when there is just the frequency as the title.

Classic Rock 100.3 could just as easily be changed to Classic Rock 106.3 if the frequency is changed.

Bondvillain · 11-06-2008 5:01pm

i105 would have a long oul wait down the stationers if they were changed to 101.9 though....

Bum Boy · 11-06-2008 11:34pm

MaltHouse Mouse wrote: »

Are 98 changing their schedule?

Well, they have already taken on Darragh o Dee and Mike Hogan

Missed them. When exactly were they on and what shift?

Bard · 12-06-2008 1:19am

I would doubt that i105-107 are 'sh!tting themselves', considering they've already gotten their license and it will last for - what? - the next 10 years?

In that time, they'll be broadcasting on FM between 105 and 107 Mhz - so the name is fine and perfectly accurate, but - of course - they've plenty of time to rebrand if they want to, when digital radio becomes the norm - but in Ireland, that won't really be for a while yet.

I still can't understand why 98FM would re-brand to just "98" though.

MaltHouse Mouse · 12-06-2008 9:02am

Bum Boy wrote: »

Missed them. When exactly were they on and what shift

Darragh was on the overnight last weekend I believe.

Mike was covering the Inbox. Mike sounds great on air, flows easily with the listeners so I would see this as a very good move on 98's part.

Bondvillain · 12-06-2008 12:03pm

Bard wrote: »

I would doubt that i105-107 are 'sh!tting themselves', considering they've already gotten their license and it will last for - what? - the next 10 years?

In that time, they'll be broadcasting on FM between 105 and 107 Mhz - so the name is fine and perfectly accurate, but - of course - they've plenty of time to rebrand if they want to, when digital radio becomes the norm - but in Ireland, that won't really be for a while yet.

Firstly, I understand that i105 have already gotten their licence, and acknowledged this by referring to them as

Bondvillain wrote:

the New Regional licensee i105

Secondly, the post was facetious, and I fully appreciated that no soiling of pantaloons would be occurring anywhere within the radio industry. I acknowledged this by saying

Bondvillian wrote:

To avoid any further confusion over the integrity and reliability of any comments I may make, I will ensure to liberally pepper any facetious posts on similar topics with references such as "Ah, yore ma is changing her frequency" in the future.

Happy Vote day,

Yours,

B.Villain,
Dept of Propaganda,

Www.bci.ie

(:D)

theitking · 12-06-2008 8:12pm

http://www.dublins98.ie/

MaltHouse Mouse · 13-06-2008 7:47am

theitking wrote: »

http://www.dublins98.ie/

Looks more or less the same apart from the logo. Oh... And new thunder jeeps. What's it the saying is... Fools and their money are easily parted??!

Can't see that dropping the 'fm' part is going to make much of a difference to listeners opinions of the station.

MaltHouse Mouse · 13-06-2008 7:52am

theitking wrote: »

http://www.dublins98.ie/

The website looks more or less the same apart from the logo. Oh... And new thunder jeeps. Why not just get a respray? What's it the saying is... Fools and their money are easily parted??!:rolleyes:

Can't see how dropping the 'fm' part and trying to look up to date with a new logo is suddenly going to make much of a difference to the listeners opinions of the station. Granted, the logo was well out of date, but by changing it, it is hardly going to bring the station as a whole up to scratch. I would have thought in house would need to be organised before any kind of rebranding was done.

ironictoaster · 13-06-2008 8:02am

Why did they change out of curiosity? Sorry, I'm all new to this

Bard · 13-06-2008 10:09am

Alright Bondvillain alright... no need to be like that!

I didn't guess you were taking the p!ss - particularly as Monkeyfudge's comment about the BCI not liking stations using frequencies in their names was perfectly true.

Bard · 13-06-2008 10:18am

Yeah, I'd love to know why as well - the new logo and new look does nothing to strengthen their brand. I don't get it.

[EDIT]: Oh and is it just me or is their live stream not working?

Indie18 · 13-06-2008 10:20am

personally i have always hated 98fm they never really have all the latest songs from latest artists. and when and artist has a new song that they decide to play they over play the song ..............coldplay (98fm made me hate this band) they are also overkill with the ammount of u2 they play. i also notice that when a band does have a new song and 98 fm don't play that song they will instead play old songs from that band. 98fmzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz.

lampydoo · 13-06-2008 12:59pm

I have been listening to the "new" 98 for the past few hours and apart from the cheesy "smile" thing they are going for and god awful jingles... whats changed?!

It's still as bland and boring as ever!

Bum Boy · 13-06-2008 1:04pm

Indie18 wrote: »

coldplay (98fm made me hate this band)

Wow-wee are you really that easily influenced? You're certainly entitled to your opinion but have you anything constructive to offer boss? Can you name one thing that would entice you to listen to 98 again? And what do you listen to now and why...I am interested. You've obviously listen to 98 at some stage because they now have you over a barrel with Coldplay....

Don't you just love hot and sticky weekends?

tSubh Dearg · 13-06-2008 5:27pm

98FM threads merged.

Bum Boy · 13-06-2008 5:50pm

Bard wrote: »

Oh and is it just me or is their live stream not working?

Phew, thought it was just me too but was afraid to say.....

Will somebody slap me ? ? ?

macdee_ie · 13-06-2008 6:17pm

Big party last night to celebrate nearly 20 years on Air (nov 1989) in Fitzwilliam Square. Denis & Lucy were there and a host of past 98FM'ers.

The new logo hasn't reached Communicorp's website yet, though. It still refers to 98FM.

I agree with the above posts, 98FM hasn't really moved with the times.

z-100 jingles and a new logo won't make much of a difference.

Needs an internal overhaul.

MaltHouse Mouse · 15-06-2008 9:25pm

Just saw the tv ad.... Sweet jesus.... Talk about a waste of cash! Nothing about radio, music or anything like it... Just that you got to smile! All the constent telling us to smile... It should be an ad for toothpaste or something. Nothing about it is going to make me smile. It makes me cringe.

And after hearing some of their cheesy jingles (sponsored by easi singles I'm sure), I some how don't see how listening to that tripe on a daily basis is going to make me want to smile! I think it is more likely to make me want to throw the radio out of the car window. :mad:

In relation to the new jingle package, I will admit that I am very surprised at the cheesy-ness, especially when you consider that the new PD was head of production in fm104 for how many years??

Would it not be best to tidy up on air and inhouse before re-launching yourself? To me, a relaunch party, new jingles, new logo and dropping the 'fm' is not going to cut it, especially if on air is not up to scratch. Why shout about a job that is only half done?

Some very bad moves already made IMHO, which is a pity as I think alot more was expected from the new PD.

_Kaiser_ · 15-06-2008 9:44pm

I can't say I've really noticed any difference in content since the "rebrand" but I think the name "Dublin's 98" just sounds stupid - 98 what? chickens?

It's a radio station and regardless of whether or not DAB is taking off in numbers (and then probably only in the enthusiast market or because it came with the new stereo/car etc), most people still think of radio in terms of FM and surely, that's the market they want to be gaining share in as the aforementioned enthusiast sector probably wouldn't listen to "98" in the first place! :rolleyes:

Indie18 · 16-06-2008 8:56am

Bum Boy wrote: »

Wow-wee are you really that easily influenced? You're certainly entitled to your opinion but have you anything constructive to offer boss? Can you name one thing that would entice you to listen to 98 again? And what do you listen to now and why...I am interested. You've obviously listen to 98 at some stage because they now have you over a barrel with Coldplay....

Don't you just love hot and sticky weekends?

its the only station the boss will put on in work and its not about influence when it comes to cold play ( i used to like them ) or any other music its just that they play everything to death........ i would rather stick a pen in my ear and make myself deaf rather than listen to this station.....instead i opted to bring my mp3 player to work. 98 problem sorted.:D

lampydoo · 16-06-2008 6:37pm

The music output has gone alot older since the change so they are obviously trying to position the station towards 104's older demographic and have Spin take on the younger demographic thus attacking 104 from both sides which I don't think is going to work given the strength of 104's JNLR figures through-out the 15-34's.

It will take a year to see the full effect of the changes in any book, so time will tell!

Oh by the way, if there is somebody from 98 reading this... please god stop scheduling the Supernatural's Smile... ITS ON EVERYTHING!!!!!!!!! Earlier on coming out of news, it was the bed for their "smile" competition then whats the first song of the hour?! You guessed it :rolleyes:

TRSJ · 16-06-2008 7:32pm

Indie,

while I don't work for 98 or even listen to the station myself I must defend them on 1 thing you say about playing new music etc. That is not their job. They are an adult contemporary focused radio station and are a commercial business not a public service radio station. There are plenty of stations that play new music out there to listen to so why would you want 98 to do the same and have all stations do the same thing? I take it from your nick you are not their target market anyway. Their core target market is mainly 25-35 females taking in of course others in the wider 20-44 age group and men to a lesser degree. So I am guessing you are not a 25-34 year old female and therefore of course it would not appeal to you in the same way you probably don't read cosmo magazine. Dublin's Country 106.8FM certainly does not play my kind of music but I will never ask them or expect them to start playing greart credible new cutting edge music either!

TRSJ

Fuzzy Clam · 16-06-2008 10:58pm

Got a chance to listen to 98 for about 45 mins today and oh my god!!! The rebranding as just 98 is not that bad,I don't think its going to make any difference as you still know its 98 FM and the jingles are no better or worse than then ones they had in the past BUT the whole Smile thing is vomit inducing.Having it crammed down your throat every single link is OTT. That along with the dire selection of music will NOT have me tuning in again. For the record,I'm in their demographic range so its not surprising that their ratings have dropped over the years. 98 seriously have to drop the blandness if they're going to make this rebranding work otherwise its just the same old same old.To be honest,listening to the burd that was on this afternoon(sorry I dont know her name)I almost thought it was pre-recorded as it was that unspontaneous.As much as I find Fenton a pain in the ass sometimes,its more exciting(?) than 98.

teresasaunt · 17-06-2008 12:17am

macdee_ie wrote: »

z-100 jingles and a new logo won't make much of a difference.

The new jingles are a far cry from Z100's jingles. The current 98 jingles are from Music 4 (http://www.music4.com). A bit too rocky for the station I think. They're resings of the various Virgin Radio cutoms.

Bard · 18-06-2008 11:27am

lampydoo wrote:

Oh by the way, if there is somebody from 98 reading this... please god stop scheduling the Supernatural's Smile... ITS ON EVERYTHING!!!!!!!!! Earlier on coming out of news, it was the bed for their "smile" competition then whats the first song of the hour?! You guessed it :rolleyes;

Expect to hear more of it - it's the theme tune of their rebrand!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IbpMbwdANTs

You'd better smile!

... Yeah.

captain caveman · 22-06-2008 2:51am

i have to laugh when i see the ad in fairness, the two kids in the car about 16 secs in certainly aren't smiling.

Maybe that sums it up, anyone under 40 wont smile when they listen.

Big Balls · 22-06-2008 12:45pm

All I can say is the lads in 104 (what's left of them anyway!) must be jumping up and down - 98 have handed them more market share on a plate, not to mention every male in Dublin.

22-06-2008 1:01pm

Bard wrote: »

Expect to hear more of it - it's the theme tune of their rebrand!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IbpMbwdANTs

You'd better smile!

... Yeah.

Ouch... Nowhere in that ad does it say anything that it's a radio station. It might be assumed that it is a given since they're turning on a radio but given how the last picture shows 'Dublin 98 smiles' the first thing that came to my head was '98 miles? Must be about a huge marathon' or something.

Plus the kids being mortified in the car, wtf?!

MaltHouse Mouse · 23-06-2008 12:56pm

Big Balls wrote: »

All I can say is the lads in 104 (what's left of them anyway!) must be jumping up and down - 98 have handed them more market share on a plate, not to mention every male in Dublin.

Couldn't have said it better myself and it will be very interesting to see the JNLR's after 12 months or so.

I see from their website that Declan Pierce will be doing weekdays 9pm until 1am. Wonder if he will stay as music director too? And their overnight jock does not start until 3am? Why bother putting somebody on for half a show. WTF??

I never thought it was possible, but I personally think that the music has gotten worse since they tried to rebrand. But what I don't get is why rebrand and keep the old strap line? Makes no sense to me.

Half a job done. :mad:

Some very odd moves going on there lately.

98FM Re-brand?

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