[London Lite]

Global and Bauer to a lesser extent have had to compete with not just other radio stations, but the music streaming services already mentioned.

Global have gone for an ad funded model across the board which isn't surprising as they're an advertising company first who use radio alongside their billboard business as a platform for their clients, while Bauer have gone for a paywall model online to increase revenue from listeners to fill a decreasing ad spend in a cost of living crisis.

Bauer I think have it more tricky than Global. They still have a decent share in Scotland without resorting to using national branding on their FM stations in the central belt and North of Scotland, while the AM stations and two FM stations in the South of Scotland are using an adapted version of the Greatest Hits Radio brand that suits the Scottish market, while a group of FM stations in the north of England, the Midlands and South Wales have kept their local branding, but take Hits Radio programming outside Breakfast with everything else is now Greatest Hits Radio.

Global have gone in by stealth, replaced all the local and regional stations with one of three brands and on the whole integrated them well making them into quasi-national stations.