The North East England licence, which covers an adult population of over 2 million in Tyne & Wear and Teeside, is one of the last major licences to be issued by Ofcom, ahead of Manchester and Liverpool.
As with all Saga stations, Saga 97.5 FM will provide melodic, easy listening music from the past six decades with lifestyle-oriented speech and regional news and information. It will target listeners aged 50 and over.
Of the 13 applications for the North East licence, 10 were specifically aimed at older audiences.
The decision marks Saga's fourth licence win in five years, after launching stations in the West Midlands, the East Midlands and Glasgow.
Although advertising briefs received by agencies are often for the 15 to 44 year old market, making the 50 plus market challenging economically, Saga is able to generate revenues from its stations by cross-promoting the Saga Group's products, including insurance and holidays.
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