Altered Radio in legal battle over ownership
Altered Radio and its £25,000 worth of assets are at the centre of a legal row over ownership between the University, the Student Union and Rock Student owner Balreick Srai.
Altered Radio's station controllers Tim Partridge, a second year English student at Wadham and Tom Wrathmell a second year geographer at St John's, have signed a binding provisional agreement on behalf of the Altered Radio committee with Oxford Student Services Limited (OSSL), the owner of this newspaper.
The document, seen by The Oxford Student, will result in the: "full integration of Altered Radio into OSSL pending ratification of the relevant motion at OUSU Council."
However Balreick Srai, owner of student club night promoter Rock Student, maintains the station controllers have, "no authorisation" to sign any agreements regarding the station's ownership.
Srai's claim to Altered Radio lies in his ownership of the registered company Altered Radio Ltd, established in December 2003 of which he is the sole director. He told The Oxford Student that Altered Radio Ltd was a "non-profit making organisation" and maintained that it controlled the radio station.
Documents obtained by The Oxford Student from Companies House list Srai as the sole shareholder and director of the company. Altered Radio is however independent from Altered Radio Ltd.
Current co-station controller Tim Partridge said: "From what we have seen, at no point was anything signed giving Rock Student ownership of the station."
Tim Wrathmell, added: "This was not a decision that we came to lightly. We would not have made it if there were any doubts".
Minutes of a meeting of the Altered Radio station committee on May 22nd 2003 confirm that a sponsorship agreement was being negotiated with Rock Student.
Senior members of the station at that time have confirmed that the station's management only discussed dealing with Rock Student in terms of a two term sponsorship agreement and never in terms of ownership of the station.
The terms of this agreement were that Srai would retain ownership of any equipment and CDs purchased for the studio and also provided the funds for the FM licenses which were purchased in 2003.
Minutes of a meeting on May 29th 2003 show that Srai did not state any intention to run the station or control music policy but did claim ownership of any CDs purchased.
The agreement between Altered Radio and Rock Student resulted in the joint advertising campaign of Hilary Term 2004 featuring both organisation's logos on posters and flyers around the University.
Under the terms of the agreement, the radio station promoted Rock Student club nights in its live broadcasts and provided DJs for various Rock Student events.
However the University has confirmed that the £25,000 of transmitting and broadcasting equipment, which is essential to the station's existence, is owned by the University and was purchased with a grant from the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) in 2002.
This grant allowed the enactment of the motion that was passed in 3rd week OUSU Council of Trinity 2002, in which the Student Union resolved to accommodate what was then Oxford Student Radio within the OUSU offices.
It is understood the University's legal services may intervene in any dispute regarding external claims to the ownership of equipment purchased with the HEFCE grant.
OSSL has confirmed that it would return a computer and minidisc player to Srai once the contract was finalised.
Srai has rejected this interpretation of events, telling The Oxford Student: "The issue is between us and the University, it's nothing to do with OUSU or OSSL. I own and run Altered Radio."
OSSL Managing Director Daniel Finley defended the organisation's actions: "Ultimately we want to see a student radio station in Oxford. Altered Radio approached us and asked to be integrated into OUSU and we believe we are in a position to incorporate the station."
3rd Feb 2005