The radio frequency previously held by Narodnoe Radio has been awarded to a new Russian-language station, Radio Maximum, following a decision by the radio licensing commission.

"Duo Media will use all legal avenues to challenge this utterly incomprehensible decision. I believe we will succeed in this as well. We will defend our rights vigorously," said Jüri Pihel, chairman of the board at Duo Media.

Pihel expressed skepticism about the reasons given for not renewing Narodnoe Radio's license, calling them contrived and baseless.

"The wording of the TTJA's decision was quite strange," Pihel noted. "It stated that this new station, which they want to grant the license to, will play rock and pop-rock music, while Narodnoe Radio plays ordinary music. From the perspective of media freedom or even business freedom, the precedent of state officials dictating to a radio station what is considered good or bad music has not been set in the last 30 years," Pihel argued.

"If Narodnoe Radio currently has tens of thousands of loyal listeners who love the station, shutting it down overnight to offer rock music instead is a far-fetched and absurd claim. It's not the business of any official to dictate to a private radio station how to gain popularity among its listeners and how to create a station that people enjoy," Pihel continued.

In the radio licensing competition, Duo Media was granted the right to broadcast seven programs, including widely covered stations such as Kuku and Elmar. Narodnoe Radio was their only Russian-language channel.

Watchdog: Ministry prefers rock over pop

Helen Rohtla, head of the information society department at the Consumer Protection and Technical Regulatory Authority (TTJA), explained that the program offered by Baltic Media Network OÜ, Radio Maximum, was selected by the competition's evaluation committee because it most closely met the special conditions set by the minister of culture for that broadcast area.

"The purpose of setting these special conditions is to ensure a diverse radio landscape – programs in different languages, with varying focuses, such as some emphasizing talk segments while others focus more on music, and some concentrating on life in specific regions of Estonia while others cover more national topics," Rohtla stated.

Rohtla further explained that the minister of culture has specified in the special conditions for the broadcast area that a diverse music program should be offered.

"The description of the program by Baltic Media Network OÜ indicates that it offers a broader selection of music compared to Duo Media Networks OÜ's Narodnoe Radio. Radio Maximum plans to play contemporary and iconic pop, pop-rock and rock hits, whereas Narodnoe Radio focuses on new and old pop songs," Rohtla said.

She also noted that the issuance of special conditions for operational licenses is a practice used in other fields and that setting such conditions for media licenses is common practice in Europe.

New station run by former Narodnoe Radio head

Dmitri Krassilnikov, the head of Radio Maximum, told ERR that he naturally respects the decision of the Consumer Protection and Technical Regulatory Authority and emphasized that several other organizations besides the TTJA were involved in the decision-making process.

"According to the law, a competition is organized every five years. Anyone who can present a program that meets the established requirements can participate in this competition, and the applications submitted are carefully reviewed, compared and evaluated. In our case, the commission's decision was detailed in a six-page document that described in detail how the commission deliberated and the criteria used to assess the applications. There are many of these criteria. The musical format, which has been mentioned in recent comments and interviews by Duo Media representatives, is just one of many parameters," said Krasilnikov.

Krasilnikov emphasized that anyone who receives a broadcasting license must understand that it is not granted indefinitely.

"In five years – now seven – you will have to participate in the competition again. This is the law, and the process of obtaining licenses in our country has always worked this way. I believe this is a democratic approach. It leaves room for healthy competition. Otherwise, we would never hear new radio stations, and radio stations would remain in the hands of the same media holdings for decades without change," added the radio producer.

Commenting on Duo Media's potential legal action, Krassilnikov noted that nothing has been taken away from Duo Media – the license was granted for five years, and Duo Media, having applied for several licenses, should be well aware of how the licensing process works.

Krassilnikov is the former head of Narodnoe Radio, who sold the station years ago to Postimees Group, the predecessor of Duo Media. "I led Narodnoe Radio for almost 13 years. The Narodnoe Radio you know today is my creation. My experience allows me to say that the new Radio Maximum will be even better and more interesting," Krassilnikov stated.

Krassilnikov also mentioned that two years ago, Duo Media decided to continue without him, leading to their paths diverging.

The evaluation committee for the radio licenses included representatives from the Estonian Authors' Society, the Estonian Performers' Union, the Estonian Association of Broadcasters, the University of Tartu, the Ministry of Culture and the TTJA. The competition received 45 applications, from which 32 radio licenses could be issued.

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