Sadly, WOXY 97X, a truly excellent online radio station, will be no more as of Friday the 15th September. Attempts to raise sufficient funds through sponsorship and private donations have failed and, after two years broadcasting solely as an internet radio station, WOXY will come to an end.

WOXY 97X (catchphrase: Bam! The Future of Rock N Roll) has actually existed in various forms for 23 years, operating out of Cincinnati, Ohio (US). While initially operating as a local FM Radio station and then dually in online and offline formats, in 2004 WOXY sold the broadcast license and became a web-based radio station. In May of that year, the station again went off-air only to be saved at the last minute by investors.

It is heartbreaking to see this flagship online radio station (arguably one of the first entirely-online broadcasters), which has had so much energy invested in it, come to an end because of financial imperatives.

As well as supporting many independent and unsigned acts, WOXY has also accumulated an impressive line up of live recordings, their “lounge acts”, samples of which are still available via the website at www.woxy.com .

Fingers crossed that WOXY can once again rise from the ashes with the help of outside financial support but at this stage, it seems unlikely. This sad occurrence again raises the issue of the need for new and radical funding structures so innovative web-based projects are not so susceptible to the limitations of traditional funding methods.

Their farewell statement and archived song-lists are available at www.woxy.com. 97X, whose late-night shows got me through many a UK working day, will be sorely missed.