The station broadcasts to Oxfordshire from studios outside its broadcast area, in Segensworth in Fareham. It shares a local three hour weekday programme presented by Jono Holmes with Hits Radio Dorset and the DAB only Hits Radio South Coast.
As Jack 2 Hits, it was available in Surrey and Hampshire on DAB and online until April 2020. It also broadcast on FM in Oxfordshire on 107.9FM until it was switched to Jack 3 Chill in 2020 which it remained until it was closed and replaced by Hits Radio.[1]
Previously known under a variety of names and formats since its inception in 1997 (see history), most recently Jack 3 Chill, the station launched in its current incarnation on 29 October 2023.[2]
Before moving to Eynsham, Oxfordshire in March 2019, the station was based at 270 Woodstock Road in north Oxford – formerly the site of Six TV – The Oxford Channel.
As of March 2024, the station broadcasts to a weekly audience of 40,000, according to RAJAR.[3] Jack 2 Hits DAB feed closed on 30 October 2023.
History
The origins of the station lie in a student radio station, Oxygen 107.9 which was trialled in November 1995 and launched at 1.07pm on Valentine's Day 1997.[4] It was acquired in late 2000 by Fusion Radio Holdings, which rebranded the station as Fusion 107.9.[5] Fusion merged with the Milestone Group in 2003[6] and the station was relaunched again as Passion 107.9, but was sold to ARI Consultancy (previously known as Absolute Radio International)[7] in 2006, leading to another rebrand as Oxford's FM 107.9.
In February 2010, the station's owners lodged a request with Ofcom to change the station's format to one that would target listeners over 45 years old.[8] The station argued the "transient" nature of students makes it commercially difficult to market a radio station to an audience that leaves the city each year.[9] Several fans of late night "specialist" shows responded to Ofcom's public consultation as well as local business owners. Ofcom considered this, but the Radio Licensing Committee rejected this proposal.[10] The station responded by saying that changes it had made meant the format change had become less necessary.[11]
On 18 August 2010, after a publicity stunt where it briefly branded as Glee FM (airing only music from the American musical comedy-drama series Glee), the station relaunched as Glide FM. The new format would be positioned towards women.[12]
The station relaunched again as Jack 2 on 20 August 2013.[13]
As JACK 2 Hits, it was a music-heavy station with only limited speech, instead allowing listeners to control the music and submit recordings of themselves to be played (through WhatsApp or the Jack 2 Hits app). The station was aimed at a young adult-contemporary audience and plays seven hours per week of specialist music as required by Ofcom.
In July 2023 it was announced that JACK Media Oxfordshire licences serving Oxfordshire, including JACK 2 Hits, would be acquired by Bauer subject to regulatory approval. The owners of JACK Media Oxfordshire will retain the ownership of the UK rights to the JACK FM brand,[14] with the Oxfordshire services to be rebranded following the acquisition as Greatest Hits Radio and Hits Radio.[15]
JACK 2 Hits ceased transmission in the early hours of 30 October 2023. The final song played was “Rather Be” by Clean Bandit.