NRJ Group
| NRJ Logo | |
| Broadcast area | Europe |
|---|---|
| Frequency | Various based on Country and Region |
| Programming | |
| Format | Trendy |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | NRJ Group |
| History | |
First air date | 1981 |
| Links | |
| Website | www.nrj.com |
NRJ (acronym read as énergie in French, e.nɛʁ.ʒi), is a French multimedia group based in Paris. Since its foundation in 1981 as a French pop music radio station it has grown and evolved to become the NRJ Group.[1] Since 2002, NRJ station has been the top French radio network in terms of listener numbers.
The NRJ Group
The NRJ Group has transformed itself from one radio station to a brand of commercial radio stations in Europe. Currently, it has stations in France, Switzerland, Austria, Belgium, Germany, Denmark, Finland, Russia, Sweden, Ukraine, Norway, Bulgaria, New Caledonia, and Lebanon. NRJ plays current, trendy music for young audiences. Their slogan is "Hit music only". They also operate the NRJ 12, NRJ Hits music television station in France. The majority of NRJ-branded stations are operated by the NRJ Group, however some are licenced, such as the Bulgarian version, which is operated by Communicorp. Within France the NRJ Group operates four separate radio stations: NRJ, Nostalgie, Chérie FM and Rire & Chansons.[2] In 1989 NRJ became listed on the Paris Stock Exchange Secondary Market and has continued to climb, reaching the First Market in 2000 after regrouping all of its assests into the NRJ Group.[3]
In French, the pronunciations of NRJ and Energy (énergie) are identical, and sounds very similar to the English word Energy.
International
With its pan-European NRJ/ENERGY stations, the Paris-based NRJ Group has challenged the European radio market by being significantly different from diversifying market players like the Luxembourg-based RTL Group (Antenne Bayern, RTL Berlin, Yorin FM in portfolio), and SBS Broadcasting (Radio 1 Norway, The Voice in portfolio) or Stockholm-based MTG (P4 Norway, Rix FM, Lugna Favoriter in portfolio). Since June 6 2006 NRJ has been operational in Lebanon further expanding its reach and influence.
All of NRJ's international operations are concentrated on a contemporary hit radio station (with the same slogan, jingles, sound, etc...) while its competitors tend to create local radio brands with various radio formats, thereby taking advantage of their audience's local identity.
