Why did Times of India buy Virgin Radio? Because of the internet, A.P. Parigi, CEO of its TIML unit, suggested to FT. “‘Now is the time, Parigi,’ (group CEO Vineet Jain) told me. ‘Pick an asset and an appropriate price.’ He sees this market as one of untapped potential because of the convergence of audio and the internet. We could have just gone for serving the Asian diaspora, but Vineet said also look at the mainstream, so we did. He sees this market as one of untapped potential because of the convergence of audio and the internet.”

Virgin, which has a FM license in London and a national one for AM, was bought by SMG for £225m in 2000 and has now been sold for less than a quarter of that. FT reports TIML intends to spend £15m marketing both the radio station as well as radio as a medium.

One way British Radio has sideloaded to the internet has been through podcasts. Subscription based content has been well adopted by British radio to reach out to audiences on the web. BBC’s Radio 1 and 2 have specifically done very well with repurposing on-air content from comedians such as Russell Brand and Chris Moyles and adding deep content and off takes for web versions. Virgin in comparison has fewer shows that have taken off on the web compared to Aunty. Virgin UK currently simulcasts its broadcast on the internet and (glory) doesn’t geo block the stream either.

• Virgin Radio Sold To Times of India Publisher For $106 Million