What's New
BY Sarah Patterson June 27, 2026
What's New August 29, 2025
Consultation open on the proposal to convert 3 WA ABC national services from AM to FM
The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) have opened consultation submissions ahead of proposed changes to Perth and Remote WA radio licence area plans. Three ABC national services are to be moved from AM to FM with this and other changes below:
- Enabling the ABC national services 6WF and 6RN to convert from AM to FM.
- Enabling the ABC national service 6PB to broadcast on both AM and FM.
- Making technical changes to the community broadcasting service 6SEN in Perth, the community broadcasting service 6KCR in Kalamunda, and the commercial broadcasting service 6FMS in Lancelin and Leeman to facilitate the conversion of the 6WF service to FM.
- Making technical changes to the high-powered open narrowcasting service broadcasting on 103.3 MHz in Perth to facilitate the conversions of 6RN to FM.
- Making technical changes to the commercial broadcasting service 6SAT in Lancelin and Leeman to facilitate 6PB to broadcast in FM, and
- Making spectrum available for a new community radio broadcasting service to serve the Swan area in Perth.
The 6WF AM service has not the broadcast reach that a new FM service would provide. The ACMA welcomes views and comments on any part of these proposals.
The consultation paper is here: https://www.acma.gov.au/sites/default/files/2025-08/proposal_to_vary_the_perth_and_remote_wa_radio_laps_consultation_paper.pdf
Submissions can be uploaded through this link: https://www.acma.gov.au/sites/default/files/2025-08/proposal_to_vary_the_perth_and_remote_wa_radio_laps_consultation_paper.pdf
You must make your submission no later than 5 pm (AEST) on Friday September 26 2025.
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What's New
BY Sarah Patterson June 26, 2026
Personally l feel all AM stations should move to FM. Many countries, and some vehicle producers are deleting AM services.
The ACMA should be working to get ALL ABC and commercial stations off AM and onto FM. It might mean re-stacking the FM dial in some places and shuffling some community stations onto DAB+ only in major cities, but so be it. That’s their job. AM is dead.
I thought DAB+ was meant to be the great saviour of (especially) AM radio stations, but its spread seems to have come to a dead end. Strangely I can pick up all DAB+ stations from Melbourne on my home hifi at Jan Juc near Torquay on the Victorian Surf Coast. I have difficulty getting any FM on the same unit.
ABC Radio Melbourne keeps promoting itself as being on the AM band, with no reference to DAB+. Don’t know that I agree AM is dead but many young listeners wouldn’t know what it was.