RTL (French radio)
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| City | Paris |
|---|---|
| Broadcast area |
France Luxembourg Belgium |
| Slogan | RTL, toujours avec vous |
| Frequency |
FM: 103.9 MHz (Paris) 101.4 MHz (Marseille) 105.0 MHz (Lyon) Full list of frequencies on FM in other areas AM: 234 kHz (Beidweiler) |
| First air date | June 8, 1931 |
| Format | News, Talk |
| Language(s) | French |
| Former callsigns | Radio Luxembourg (1931-1966) |
| Owner | RTL Group |
| Sister stations |
Fun Radio RTL2 RTL-L'Équipe |
| Website | rtl |
RTL, formerly Radio Luxembourg, is a French commercial radio network owned by the RTL Group. Founded in 1933 as Radio Luxembourg, the station's name was changed to RTL in 1966. It broadcast from outside France until 1981, because only public stations had been allowed until then.
It is a general-interest, news, talk and music station, broadcasting nationally ("category E" as classified by the CSA).
On 19 December 1929 the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg established a state monopoly on broadcasting, but the law provided for possible concessions to private companies who wanted to use radio bandwidth, with the state charging a fixed amount for private use of radio.
The Société Luxembourgeoise d'Études Radiophoniques (SLER) was founded on 11 May 1929 with the aim of obtaining an eventual broadcasting contract from the Luxembourg government. This company was run by Luxembourger François Anen, French publisher Henry Etienne, and French engineer Jean le Duc representing the Compagnie des Compteurs de Montrouge, which possessed 84% of the project's capital and which had signed a secret agreement to work with the group CSF, the main stockholder in Radio Paris. Radio Paris wanted to set up a powerful peripheral radio station in Luxembourg, outside of the strict French regulations, which only allowed public stations. An agreement between the SLER and the Luxembourg government signed on 29 September 1930 with a duration of 25 years ensured the Luxembourg government a fee of 30% on future profits of the station. The agreement also set up a committee for programming and a technical committee which allowed the government to regulate the private station.
The Compagnie Luxembourgeoise de Radiodiffusion (CLR) was founded on 30 May 1931, officially replacing the SLER.
On 14 January 1933 experimental broadcasts by Radio Luxembourg began, at 1191 mètres (200 kW), an unauthorized wavelength, from the longwave transmitter at Junglinster. The official opening of broadcast was on 15 March 1933 at 19:00 with a pre-recorded concert of light music. Radio Luxembourg broadcast each evening from 19:00 to 23:00, in German, French and Dutch and was therefore the only French-language private broadcaster available in France and Belgium. Programmes in English débuted on 3 December 1933 under the editorial guidance of Stephen Williams.
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