Smooth Radio

Smooth Radio is an independent, commercial, national radio station in the United Kingdom owned by Global Radio. Aimed at the over-40 demographic, the station competes for its audience with BBC Radio 2. It is broadcast on the DAB Digital Radio Digital 1 national multiplex, Sky, Freesat, Freeview, Virgin Media, online and on regional FM and DAB frequencies in the North West, London, North East, West Midlands, Scotland and East Midlands. Nationally the station attracts a weekly average audience of 3 million.

The station opened in 1990 as 102.2 Jazz FM in London, and a second Jazz FM branded station was launched four years later in Manchester. The Manchester station became Smooth FM 100.4 in 2004, and was the first in the network of independent local radio stations to use the Smooth brand. The London station followed suit a year later. The network's parent company, GMG Radio – a subsidiary of the Guardian Media Group – acquired the Saga Radio Group in the mid-2000s, and all Saga stations were given the Smooth name. After the publication of John Myers' recommendations of a regulatory overhaul in commercial radio, and the passing of the 2010 Digital Economy Act allowing stations to co-locate or discontinue local shows and broadcasts, Smooth Radio merged its five English stations into a single, quasi-national station in October 2010; local news feeds were produced at GMG Radio's headquarters in Salford Quays. 105.2 Smooth Radio in Scotland produces its own breakfast and drivetime shows, but carries networked programming at other times. As part of their licence agreement, the London and Manchester stations were required to continue their commitment to jazz music after dropping the Jazz FM name, and the UK's broadcasting industry regulator Office of Communications (Ofcom) stipulated they must broadcast 45 hours of jazz programming per week, but this requirement was ended shortly before the merger took place.

Smooth has recruited many well-known British radio personalities to its line-up. Current and former presenters on the network include Emma B, Simon Bates, Tony Blackburn, Kevin Greening, Mark Goodier, David Jensen, Andy Peebles, Lynn Parsons and Graham Torrington. The station's flagship breakfast show is presented by Simon Bates, who left Classic FM after more than a decade. It broadcasts occasional documentaries on subjects relating to music, news and media events; some of these have won the station radio industry awards. In November 2011 Smooth launched a second station on the Digital One platform dedicated to Christmas music, and later replaced this with "Smooth 70s", which plays music from the 1970s. The Christmas station returned in 2012. Along with its sister station, Real Radio, Smooth has been an official host of the Blackpool Illuminations switch-on ceremony since 2010, and stages regular, free live music events. The station has signed a number of sponsorship deals with companies such as Tetley Tea and ATS Euromaster, and holds annual fundraising events in aid of the charities Help for Heroes and Macmillan Cancer Support.

Smooth's parent company GMG Radio was taken over by rival Global Radio in June 2012. Global's purchase of the company was referred to Ofcom, the Office of Fair Trading and the Competition Commission amid concerns that Global's market share may be disproportionately large as a result of the deal, and consequently not in the public interest. GMG Radio subsequently changed its name to Real and Smooth Radio Ltd. Although the takeover could ultimately lead to the disappearance of the Smooth brand, Real and Smooth Radio Ltd and Global continue to operate as separate companies while the takeover is investigated.