Dublin may have five new commercial radio stations under a plan by the Independent Radio and Television Commission (IRTC). The commission said yesterday it was seeking "expressions of interest" in a general interest station for all of Co Dublin, three special interest stations for the city and an AMonly station for the county.

Dublin's two commercial stations, FM104 and 98FM, said they had no objections to competition but urged the IRTC to be prudent and award licences only to economically viable businesses.

The IRTC's chief executive, Mr Michael O'Keeffe, said the commission had recently completed a planning exercise in conjunction with the Office of the Director of Telecommunications Regulation for frequencies within the Dublin city and county area.

"This plan allows for the potential introduction of one additional county-wide service and three services of lesser power covering the city only. Consideration will also be given to the introduction of an AM service, if interest is forthcoming," he said.

He said the commission was also seeking expressions of interest in services outside the capital, although the plan for these stations was "a little bit further down the road".

In advertisements in today's newspapers, the IRTC says it is open to suggestions on the nature of the county-wide FM service to be licensed.

"However, it shall have regard to the quality, range and type of programmes to be provided and the extent to which these will provide new cultural and informational opportunities, as well as reflecting the interests and needs of a broad cross-section of the people of Dublin," the IRTC says. "In addition to the above, the commission may consider licensing up to three services of a specific special interest nature on FM in the Dublin City area and one additional service of a specific special interest nature on AM in the Dublin city and county area."

The chief executive of FM104, Mr Dermot Hanrahan, said the company had always been an advocate of competition, but warned that his own station's teething problems showed that the radio business could prove less than lucrative.

"I would urge the IRTC to be wise and cautious, to carefully research any claims of future listenership or advertising revenue," he added.

The general manager of 98FM, Mr Ken Hutton, said the proposals would see a total of 10 commercial stations - including the two RTE stations and Today FM - operating out of Dublin.

"That will make for an interesting market!" he added.