WATERFORD radio station WLR won three awards at the Phonographic Performance Ireland awards in Dublin last night. Awards were made in 11 categories and were split almost equally between agencies and the radio stations.

WLR's three awards were for mobile phone advertisements for Sherwards and for Jimmy O'Donnell's shoe shop, both in Waterford. McCann Ericsson and Midland Radio 3 were joint winners in the entertainment category for their Cablelink and D'Unbelievables theatre production advertisements respectively.

Mr Dick Doyle, chief executive of PPI, said Irish radio advertising was worth about £40 million a year and represented 15 per cent of the total spend on advertising in Ireland. The total spend was about £265 million. "This spend on advertising ensures that the radio industry is commercially viable," he said. PPI said it sponsored the awards to recognise the creativity of both agency and radio station copywriters and producers.