| FAQs
Got a question about 3MBS? You'll
probably find the answer here.
1.
How can I contact 3MBS?
3MBS is located St Euphrasia,
1 St Heliers St,
Abbotsford, VIC 3067
Telephone: (03) 9416 1035
Facsimile: (03) 9416 1036
Email: info@3mbs.org.au
Website: http://www.3mbs.org.au
To contact individual staff members, see our Staff page
for contact details.
2. How can I support 3MBS?
3MBS does not depend on government funding; rather it relies
on listeners to support the station's operations and activities.
You can help 3MBS in the following ways:
3. When did 3MBS
first appear on the airwaves?
3MBS was Victoria's first community radio station and has
grown substantially since its first broadcast on 1 July
1975. The station now has 150 volunteers and broadcasts
24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year to over 110,000
listeners every week.
4. Who runs the station?
There is a Board of Directors half of which is elected by
members each year for a 2 year term. There is a small annual
fee to be a member of 3MBS. Membership enables people to
vote at AGMs and to stand for the Board. The Board of Directors
is responsible for the direction of the station. It develops
policies and employs staff to undertake duties that will
achieve the policies. There are a number of volunteer committees
established to co-ordinate activities such as programming
and training.
The Board policies guide the work of all volunteers and
staff at the station. The Board has developed since the
early days of the station when all Directors had programs
at the station. The current Board has members recruited
for their expertise in finance, marketing and law. Many
Board members are not involved in broadcasting, but rather
are interested in the station's overall development.
5. Who decides what music is
played?
Broad policy is established by the Board. The volunteer
Programming committee then establishes guidelines for each
program. Within these broad guidelines, volunteer broadcasters
choose the music. The station has a library of well over
12,000 CDs. Broadcasters also utilise sources of music outside
the station.
6. Who can volunteer at 3MBS?
Anyone who is interested in the station's objectives and
the music that is played at the station. There are a range
of jobs for volunteers at 3MBS from administration and data
entry to broadcasting and maintenance tasks. There are forms
and information that can be mailed or emailed to you and
the station administrator will work with you to find the
best fit for your skills and interest. Training is offered
in all areas at the station.
7. How many volunteers and staff
are at the station?
There are more than 150 volunteers at the station. They
range in age from early twenties to late eighties! And everyone
contributes to the station's operation. There are 10 administrative
staff employed full and part-time to support the work of
the volunteers and a handful of contractors who take care
of technology and magazine layout.
8. Do you ever run out of music
to play?
Once in 1978 - no, only joking. There are more than 12,000
CDs in the library and over 1000 LPs. People lend recordings
to the station and volunteers go to extraordinary lengths
to find those "hard to find" recordings. All the
record companies are keen for 3MBS to play their new releases
and we receive up to 50 new CDs every week.
9. Who is the most popular composer?
Check out the Top 30 section of our website to find out.
10. Does the government fund
the station?
No. Less than 2% of our funding comes from the government.
Our main source of revenue is from subscribers (30%). Then
the sale of airtime or sponsorship is the next biggest (25%).
The station then operates a range of fundraising and associated
activities to raise the rest of the money required to run
the station.
11. What do you need money if
everyone is a volunteer?
There are many costs associated with a radio station. We
pay copyright for all the recordings we broadcast. The total
annual payments to the three copyright agencies is close
to $20,000. The station's equipment requires ongoing maintenance
and we pay operating costs such as electricity and insurance
at our studio premises as well as the transmission site
at Mt Dandenong.
12. Why should I subscribe when
I can hear 3MBS for free?
If people don't subscribe to the station, it will cease
to exist. It is the only classical music station based in
Melbourne. It supports the work of over 100 local music
and arts groups in Melbourne. 3MBS records and broadcasts
concerts of local musicians. The station promotes the best
of local , visiting and young musicians.
None of this will happen if Melbourne people don't subscribe
to the station. Yet, only 4,000 of the station's 100,000
regular listeners do subscribe. While the station greatly
values those subscribers, it would develop more quickly
if more people subscribed.
There are considerable benefits afforded to station subscribers.
The station magazine, Libretto, is mailed out 6 times a
year, there are many businesses that offer discounts to
subscribers and the station has daily subscriber-only prizes
such as restaurant vouchers, bottles of wine and CDs.
13. What does 3MBS do other
than play music?
The continuing support of our listeners, subscribers, sponsors
and donors has allowed 3MBS to expand its role as a major
supporter of music and contributor to the vibrant cultural
community in Victoria.
Recent initiatives include:
- The annual 3MBS National Composer Awards
- The 3MBS Young Performer Award and MBS National Composer
Award
- The 3MBS Musicians-in-Residence
- The annual Classically Melbourne Free Concert, in partnership
with Orchestra Victoria, Betty Amsden OAM, APRA, the Arts
Centre and the Robert Salzer Foundation
- Special annual subscription rate to cultural organisations,
which provides promotion for their events on-air in the
Daily Arts Diary, as well as listings on our website.
- 3MBS Box Office which provides a complete ticketing
service for performances Australia wide.
- 3MBS regularly records and broadcasts Victoria's finest
musicians.
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