What you need to know

You must get an Approved Radio Engineer (ARE) to apply for a licence on your behalf.

When someone applies for a Māori reserved broadcasting frequency, the licence application is sent to Te Puni Kōkiri (TPK). They are responsible for developing the policies for reserving and allocating radio and television broadcasting frequencies. TPK will check your licence application meets the criteria for Māori broadcasting before approving it.

Having a licence doesn’t automatically give you preferential rights to broadcast from a certain site. You'll need to talk to the site owner or landlord to get approval to broadcast from your preferred location.

Fees

$150.00 per year

You may be eligible for a funding grant. Contact TPK to apply.

Additional costs:

Reserved frequencies

There are a number of frequencies around New Zealand that are reserved for Māori broadcasting. Some are in use, but there are other reservations available. Te Puni Kōkiri (TPK) has a complete list of reserved licences.

Māori broadcasting services are well established in most areas, but further licences can be granted if there is no established service and an Iwi wants to broadcast within its traditional Rohe. This means that adjacent Iwi/Rohe coverage areas could overlap.

RSM grants and registers Māori broadcasting licences for reserved frequencies, following agreement from TPK.

See Te Māngai Pāho (Māori Broadcasting Funding Agency)(external link) for more information about Māori broadcasting initiatives.

With this licence you must:

Follow the technical parameters of the licence, which include operating:

  • on a specific frequency
  • up to a set power
  • from a defined transmitting location.

Pay an annual fee to keep your licence current. All Māori sound broadcasting licences are valid until April 2031.

Operate under the relevant Te Puni Kōkiri licence agreement.

Not operate in a way that causes interference to other radio services.

Process

  2. If your application meets the TPK criteria, the ARE will engineer the licence based on a reserved frequency.

  3. Once your licence is certified you’ll get an email:

    • Follow the instructions in the email to confirm your licence.
    • Make payment if requested.

  4. You’ll receive a further email, confirming that your licence has been granted.

    This will contain the conditions of your licence, and the date you can start broadcasting.

  5. Set up your equipment in line with your licence conditions.

  6. Start broadcasting within 21 months from the date your licence is registered.