I was delighted to wind up the 2025 broadcast year with the brilliant news that 720 ABC Radio Perth will move to the FM band in 2026!
There has been a lot of work behind the scenes for many years to get here, and you will have to wait until January to find out exactly when we will make the switch and where our new home on the FM band will be, but everything will be worthwhile when we are booming out of your radio in crystal clear FM stereo, with no more buzz and static interference.
We plan to have a simulcast on AM and FM for around six weeks to make sure everyone gets a chance to retune and will try to take every opportunity to let our listeners know to make the switch. All our regular ABC Perth programs and presenters will stay the same, and our commitment to Emergency Broadcasting remains unchanged, so it is particularly important that Perth listeners know that they will need to have an FM radio receiver ready to go in case of emergency, because after that six-week period, we will turn off AM.
Our new FM transmitter in Bickley will be the most powerful in WA, so we expect our ABC Perth broadcast will be heard well beyond the metropolitan area into many regional areas, but if you are in the country and can no longer get ABC Perth on AM, you will still be able to get regional ABC radio services as usual which are unaffected by these changes.
For those of you with an internet connection, the full suite of ABC Radio services, as well as podcasts and “listen back” audio options are available on the ABC listen app on your smart phone or computer. Our DAB+ operations in Perth will also continue as usual.
You can find out more about the switch to FM here.
I wish you all the very best for the festive season. All of us at ABC Radio Perth look forward to keeping you company again in 2026.
Meanwhile, I’m just popping out to a car yard to trade the little white ABC van for an enormous new black ute. That’s what we FM people get around in, isn’t it?
Take care!
Danielle
