NTS Radio S/D

i do think it seems like an odd match but also feel those who run NTS know what they are doing and aren't into it purely for the £s.

i thought it was interesting that Peter Gabriel was revealed to have been an early big investor too.

I would love to live in a world where grassroots culture organisations are able to thrive independently, and I'm a proud paying supporter of NTS. That said, this feels nothing new in that NTS have been running spon-con for distinctly un-grassroots companies like Nike, Uniqlo, Rockstar for years.

It does also feel different to the Bandcamp situation in that the NTS template is, and has proven, to be infinitely replicable. It does feel like we're living in a golden age of eclectic community radio. If NTS falls I'll be very sad but the question of "well what do we use now?" is quickly and comprehensively answerable, unlike with Bandcamp.

(Tangential thought - maybe the company we should all be on tenterhooks about is Mixcloud, given how central their archives are to so many small radio operations, including NTS. If THEY go...)

Can't say I'm thrilled about this, but the bigger picture is NTS losing their Arts Council funding earlier this year. Whether the Universal investment preceded that or not, it's another example of the increasingly grim situation for publicly funded culture in the UK.

that's a very salient point, I had no idea

Bit of context here: NTS was an National Portfolio Organisation, in that it got funding for 3 years. They may still be getting smaller project grants etc, but it's harder for them to plan ahead.

https://bachtrack.com/news-arts-council-england-contemporary-music-cuts-november-2022

just to add that i don't think it's a good thing they are in bed with UMG but i'm way less concerned about this than the Bandcamp situation.

You can rewind on Mixcloud now?!!