The 44 public local stations of Radio France officially changed their name this Monday morning at 5 a.m.
According to the antenna director, Céline Pigalle, “It changes everything and it changes nothing.” Since this Monday, January 6 at 5 a.m., the France Bleu local radio network has officially become “Ici”. This change to a new name is taking place as part of a long-standing merger with France 3. Thus, instead of France Bleu Alsace, France Bleu Breizh Izel or France Bleu Pays de Savoie, we will now speak of Ici Alsace , Here Breizh Izel and Here Pays de Savoie. On the public TV channel, the “Ici” logo has already been present on the screen since November 5, during regional programs.
According to Céline Pigalle the change should be painless and without consequences for listeners. “They will continue to hear their hosts, their journalists, their games, their meetings,” she assures, while hoping that this “new identity” brand too “a new impetus” for the network of 44 stations. During a press conference at the end of November, the director specified that Ici will focus on “local news, music and good humor”, with emphasis on “proximity” et “the service”.
This name change comes as France Bleu has grown in audience, with 2.59 million daily listeners (+87,000 in one year), according to the latest figures from Médiamétrie, published in mid-November. The name change to Ici is accompanied by a press, digital and TV campaign, as well as a wave of posters.
The president of France Télévisions, Delphine Ernotte Cunci, and her counterpart at Radio France, Sibyle Veil, announced in October 2023 the eventual union of France 3 and France Bleu under the Ici brand, in order to strengthen the cooperation illustrated by the morning shows communes launched in 2019. But the installation of the Ici label sparked union opposition at Radio France as at France Télévisions, with its adversaries seeing it as the beginnings of a pure and simple.
Especially since it comes while a reform of public broadcasting is pending. Pushed by the Minister of Culture, Rachida Dati, the project of joint holding and then merger of public audiovisual companies was suspended by the dissolution of the National Assembly this summer.
France
