A consortium led by former British MP John Taylor, now known as Lord Kilclooney, has bought three radio stations in Coleraine, Derry and Omagh for an undisclosed sum.
The consortium consists of Lord Kilclooney's Alpha Newspaper group, the Irish News and River Media, which owns shares in two stations in the Republic, KFM and Ocean FM.
The consortium has acquired the Q radio network, based in mid-Ulster and the north-west. The same consortium recently won a radio licence for the Newry and Mourne area. It now describes itself as one of the largest independent media firms in Northern Ireland.
The Q network comprises three stations: Q101.2 based in Omagh/Enniskillen; Q 102.9, based Derry and Q 97.2 based in Coleraine.
Tom Kelly, spokeman for the consortium, said: "It is rare for a single media group to own a cluster of six adjacent stations and we believe this offers significant opportunities. A commitment to quality programming will be the hallmark of each station along with a strong commitment to the local communities in which they operate."
The consortium already owns Six FM in east Tyrone and south Derry and a majority shareholding in Seven FM, based in Ballymena and Antrim. The new station in Newry and Mourne is expected to go on air before the end of 2006.
The Irish News is Northern Ireland's largest circulation daily paper and is owned by the Fitzpatrick family. Unlike the Belfast Telegraph and the Ulster Newsletter, it adopts a broadly nationalist stance.
River Media's Padraig O'Dwyer and Tim Collins are shareholders in Ocean FM and KFM as well as three local newspapers in the Republic of Ireland.
Lord Kilclooney already owns several titles in the Republic which he acquired from the Midland Tribune group. These are the Midland Tribune, the Tullamore Tribune, the Roscommon Champion and the Longford News. He also owns the Athlone Voice.
