FEBRUARY 15, 2002

Radio rights are all the rage

THE ranks of the famed French radio reporters will be slashed in Formula 1 this year with the announcement that Radio Monte Carlo has bought the exclusive French rights to the World Championship from Formula One Administration. This means that rival radio stations can no longer report on the races. The voluble gang of radio men who have kept the Media Centers of the world bubbling over the years will disappear although there is controversy in France because RMC cannot be heard everywhere in the country. The boss of RMC Alain Weill said that this problem would be sorted out as soon as possible.

The company has also bought the rights to the next soccer World Cup competition from the struggling Kirch empire.

The government-owned radio stations refused to pay for the rights.