About Unser Radio Passau

Unser Radio Passau

Unser Radio Passau has been the local commercial radio station for Passau and the surrounding districts of southeastern Bavaria since 1 July 1987, making it one of the veteran voices of Bavarian private radio. Broadcasting from the Funkhaus Passau, the station serves the three-rivers city and its hinterland — from the Bavarian Forest to the Austrian border — with a programme shaped by the same philosophy as its Deggendorf sister station: "unsere Region - unsere Heimat - unser Radio." Its FM frequencies 98.3, 93.9, 89.7, 101.5, 97.2 and 89.3, together with DAB+ digital radio, carry a mainstream adult-contemporary format built on regional news, traffic, weather and service journalism. Under managing director Walter Berndl, the station reaches a substantial regional audience in a broadcast area of around 370,000 people. For nearly four decades, Unser Radio Passau has been the soundtrack of daily life in the Passau region.

Overview

Unser Radio Passau is a private local radio station based in Passau, Bavaria, serving the city and the surrounding districts of the southeastern Bavarian border region. The station broadcasts on multiple FM frequencies — 98.3, 93.9, 89.7, 101.5, 97.2 and 89.3 MHz — covering Passau and its hinterland toward the Bavarian Forest and the Austrian border, complemented by DAB+ digital radio and an internet livestream. Its format is mainstream adult contemporary, combining current pop hits and familiar favourites with a strong regional-information component. The station's identity is expressed in the UnserRadio slogan "unsere Region - unsere Heimat - unser Radio," positioning it as the broadcast voice of local belonging. Regional news, traffic and weather, event tips and service journalism form the core of the spoken-word programme. The station operates from the Funkhaus Passau and is licensed by the Bayerische Landeszentrale für neue Medien (BLM).

History

Unser Radio Passau launched on 1 July 1987, in the pioneering phase of Bavarian private radio. The mid-1980s saw the Free State of Bavaria open its airwaves to commercial broadcasters, and 1987 was a landmark year in which local stations went on air across the state. Passau — the "Dreiflüssestadt" where the Danube, Inn and Ilz meet, a university city and the centre of a large rural hinterland — gained its own local station, and Unser Radio Passau has been broadcasting ever since. The early years established the patterns that still define the station: a locally produced programme, a newsroom covering the districts of Passau, Freyung-Grafenau and Rottal-Inn, and a close relationship with the region's businesses, associations and cultural life.

Over nearly four decades, the station grew into a mature regional media brand. The Funkhaus Passau developed into the operational centre of the UnserRadio family, housing the Passau station's studios alongside shared functions for the group that includes Unser Radio Deggendorf. Under the management of Geschäftsführer Walter Berndl, the station consolidated its market position in a broadcast area covering some 370,000 people — a substantial regional audience by Bavarian local-radio standards. The programme evolved with the industry's professionalisation: polished daypart structures, a strengthened newsroom and the integration of digital platforms. The expansion onto DAB+ added a digital-terrestrial layer to the multiple FM frequencies, and the internet stream made the station available worldwide. As of the mid-2020s, Unser Radio Passau continues as one of Bavaria's longest-running local stations, approaching its fortieth year on air.

Programming

The programme of Unser Radio Passau follows the established architecture of Bavarian local radio, executed with the experience of nearly four decades. The music is adult-contemporary pop — current hits, recurrent favourites and evergreens — programmed for broad daytime appeal to the region's adult audience. The morning show leads the day: several hours of moderated programming combining regional news, traffic and weather for the morning commute, service topics and listener interaction. News bulletins throughout the day cover Passau city politics, the surrounding districts, the border region's cross-border dynamics with Austria and the Czech Republic, the regional economy and community stories.

Traffic information is essential in a region of commuters and cross-border flows: the A3 motorway, the routes through the Bavarian Forest, the Danube crossings and the approaches to the Austrian border all feature in regular updates. Weather forecasts address the microclimates of the Danube valley, the Bavarian Forest highlands and the Inn valley. Service journalism covers the topics of everyday life — consumer advice, health, jobs, education — while the event calendar reflects the region's rich cultural life, from the Passau European Weeks festival to the village festivals of the hinterland. The university adds a youthful note to the city's profile, and the station's programming acknowledges the student audience alongside its core adult listenership. Weekends bring a relaxed mix with extended music and event previews. Throughout, the "unsere Region - unsere Heimat - unser Radio" identity shapes the presentation: a station that belongs to its broadcast area and speaks its language.

Organization and Ownership

Unser Radio Passau is operated from the Funkhaus Passau, which serves as the headquarters of the UnserRadio broadcasting family encompassing the Passau and Deggendorf stations. Managing director Walter Berndl leads the operation, which combines the Passau station's local editorial, moderation and sales teams with shared technical and administrative infrastructure. The shareholder structure includes regional media interests — among them Passauer Neue Medien, the publishing group behind the Passauer Neue Presse — reflecting the typical Bavarian pattern of local radio ownership rooted in the region's established media houses. This ownership structure gives the station both commercial stability and deep connections to the region's institutional life.

The station is licensed by the Bayerische Landeszentrale für neue Medien (BLM). Its business model is advertising-financed: the Passau region's businesses — retail, automotive, tourism, crafts and services — form the local advertising base, supplemented by national campaigns sold through radio marketing networks. The broadcast area's population of around 370,000 gives the station a substantial regional reach, making it an attractive advertising medium for the southeastern Bavarian market. The editorial team produces the region's news and presents the programme from within the broadcast area, maintaining the local authenticity that is the station's core asset. Publicly confirmed details of the exact shareholding proportions are limited, but the station's uninterrupted operation since 1987 under stable management demonstrates a durable corporate foundation.

Digital Presence

The station's online home is unserradio.de, the shared platform of the UnserRadio family, which carries the Passau livestream, regional news articles, event tips and programme information. The website extends the on-air brand into text and images: readers find the day's regional headlines, background on the topics covered on air and practical service content for the Passau region. The livestream makes the station available far beyond the FM and DAB+ footprint — to former Passau residents, the university's alumni and anyone interested in the three-rivers city — while aggregator apps and smart-speaker integration cover connected listening.

Social media channels provide the station's interactive layer: breaking regional news, traffic alerts, programme highlights and community formats such as polls, competitions and listener photos. For a station serving a region defined by strong local identity — from the Altstadt's Italianate lanes to the villages of the Bavarian Forest — these platforms enable the direct audience contact that sustains local radio: eyewitness reports, event tips and conversations with presenters. DAB+ alongside the six FM frequencies secures the station's terrestrial distribution, while the stream, apps and social channels ensure its digital presence. Together, they form a multi-platform regional brand with nearly forty years of history: Unser Radio Passau, on every device its audience uses.