TNL Radio became Sri Lanka’s first private radio station when it broke the monopoly of public broadcaster SLBC on July 23 1993.
Today, TNL Network runs three stations – TNL Tadio and Lite FM in English and the Sinhala language Rhythm FM along with a flagship annual music event TNL Onstage.
Its Chairman and CEO, Niraj Wickremesinghe speaks to Asia Radio Today on the station’s 21st anniverary.
1. When you think back to 1993, did you imagine that TNL would be as successful as it has been?
Frankly, we didn’t start off with big business plans or with the official visions, missions and objectives that you see in the corporate world today. We were just completely into radio, both from a pioneering aspect as it was the first private radio station in our country, and also just because it was loads of fun. We were very definite about our concept and who we wanted to target, and we have remained very single minded about it over the years.
2. Sri Lanka was a different country in those days, in the middle of a civil war. How difficult was it to get on air then? How did you do it?
Well, it was difficult both because of the situation in the country as well as the fact that only public radio existed at the time. As such, we encountered rules and regulations that posed many constraints.
From a regulatory point of view, we were not allowed to broadcast local news at that time; there were very few trained personnel available, and they too came from a very different background (public radio); import laws for equipment was very cumbersome, and even listener expectations were very different.
I was very lucky to come across some like minded individuals who were very passionate about radio. We were just eight people at the station when we started off and each time a newbie joined they got caught up in this passion. So, overcoming the problems we encountered was easy.
3. What would you say are TNL’s biggest achievements over the past 21 years?
Winning the NAB International Radio Excellence Award in 1997 was definitely one of the big ones. We were the first station in the Asian region to do so. We have also won many awards locally, and then last year, we won Asia’s Most Fashionable Contest Award at the Fashion Asia Awards held in China, for our flagship event, TNL Onstage.
However, on a more personal level, since you used the word ‘achievements’ I’d have a much bigger list… all the revolutionary, pioneering work TNL has done over the years- we were the first to broadcast online in Asia and only the second to have an online presence;
TNL Onstage, now in its 14th year has single-handedly changed the music industry in our country by providing amateur musicians a platform and opportunity; and many innovative broadcast concepts that we have introduced, among other things.
From another perspective, today the company has expanded into a network of three radio stations and we’ve had the opportunity to work with some amazingly talented people and to see how successful they have become is truly an achievement that is equal to the awards that I have mentioned.
4. What are your favorite memories?
My favorite moments would be the bloopers, most of which I wouldn’t want to mention here for fear of getting my licence cancelled. One other would be all the different people and opportunities that have come our way during these years.
Just to mention one, a few years ago, I had two Maldivian gentlemen walk into the office unannounced and say, “we have just received a license to start the first private radio station in our country, and we want you to give us a TNL in the Maldives”.
That was the beginning of a year of exciting collaboration, and we took it on as a turnkey project. We planned and built studios, interviewed and hired people in the Maldives, training them at our facility here. Doing the production work, sourcing other programming material etc was a lot of fun, and now they are doing quite well over there!
5. Sri Lankan radio has changed so much. Scores of players and even a dozen English stations. So what’s TNL’s strategy going forward?
Well, first of all, radio itself keeps changing and reinventing itself… How people perceive radio and their expectations today are very different to what they were 10 years ago. For example, today people no longer depend on radio for breaking news, that’s the domain of your phone company or the internet.
The significance of radio for music is also less due to competition from other mobile devices such as iPods etc., so I think radio has to find ways and means of providing even better companionship to the listener than ever before. The tools for that, you find in the opportunities that social media platforms and mobile phones bring to radio. Our company is somewhat different from the standard TV/radio combination that you find in most media networks. We combine radio with new media, and we see this as an excellent position to be in, in this fast changing world.