The Governing Council definitively awards the Inca radio station to Radio Publi

The Governing Council definitively awarded on October 2, 2026, to the entity Radio Publi, SL the sound broadcasting license for metric waves with frequency modulation in the town of Inca, at the frequency 102.8 MHz. The agreement, which closes a dispute initiated in 2007 before the High Court of Justice of the Balearic Islands, is published in the Official Gazette of the Balearic Islands (BOIB) no. 126, of October 6, 2026, Section III, pp. 54147-54148, with official reference 9990.

The license is granted for a period of fifteen years and with retroactive effect from July 31, 2017, the date of the resolution that authorized the commissioning of the station, under article 39.3 of Law 39/2015, of October 1, on the common administrative procedure of public administrations. The fifteen-year term is established by article 28 of Law 7/2010, of March 31, general on audiovisual communication, and article 29 of the current Law 13/2022, of July 7, as well as article 20.3 of Law 5/2013, of October 1, audiovisual of the Balearic Islands.

What the agreement orders

The agreement of the Governing Council, adopted upon the proposal of the Minister of Economy, Finance and Innovation, contains four mandates:

• Definitively award to Radio Publi, SL (NIF B59144121) the FM sound broadcasting license in Inca, 102.8 MHz, for fifteen years and with retroactive effect from July 31, 2017.
• Order the Balearic Agency for Digitization, Cybersecurity and Telecommunications to update the data of the Registry of enabling titles for sound broadcasting in the Balearic Islands.
• Publish the agreement in the BOIB.
• Notify the interested entity and the State Secretariat for Telecommunications and Digital Infrastructure of the Ministry for Digital Transformation and the Civil Service.

A dispute of nearly two decades

On June 7, 2007, the Agreement of the Governing Council of May 25, 2007, regarding the provisional award of the procurement file for the public sound broadcasting service in metric waves with frequency modulation in the Balearic Islands was published in BOIB no. 85. In the second point, lot 4D —102.8 MHz-Inca— was provisionally awarded to Radio Popular, SA (COPE), with NIF A28281368.

A contentious-administrative appeal was filed against that agreement before the High Court of Justice of the Balearic Islands (ordinary procedure 533/2007) and, subsequently, a cassation appeal before the Supreme Court (no. 2077/2011). The Judgment of November 12, 2014, by the Third Chamber of the Supreme Court led to the publication in BOIB no. 56 on April 18, 2015, of the Agreement of the Governing Council of April 17, 2015, which provisionally awarded two radio audiovisual communication licenses to Radio Publi, SL, including the one corresponding to lot 4D.

The technical project and commissioning

On June 16, 2016, under entry registration number 6195, the Secretary of State for Telecommunications and the Information Society informed the Director General of Innovation and Technological Development that on June 2, 2016, the technical project to install the frequency modulated sound broadcasting station 102.8 MHz in Inca, with reference DGPM-1500231, had been approved.

It was not until July 2026 that the Telecommunications Service of the Balearic Agency for Digitization, Cybersecurity and Telecommunications became aware that the authorization for the commissioning of the station had occurred. On August 17, 2026, the Provincial Prefecture of Telecommunications Inspection of the Balearic Islands forwarded the Resolution of July 31, 2017, from the Secretary of State for the Information Society and the Digital Agenda, which authorized the commissioning (file DGPM-1500231). On September 21, 2026, the Telecommunications Service issued a favorable report and the Director General of the Agency submitted the proposal to the First Vice President and Councilor for Economy, Finance and Innovation.

Applied legal regime

• Decree 9/2019, of February 15: the sole transitional provision distinguishes between concessions or licenses existing upon the entry into force of the Decree with an approved technical project and without the installation completed, and those granted subsequently.
• Decree 86/1995, of September 7: regulations in force at the time the award procedure began; Article 14 regulates the final award and Article 16.1 the councilor’s proposal to the Governing Council.
• Law 39/2015, of October 1: Article 39.3 allows for retroactive effectiveness to be granted to acts that produce favorable effects for the interested party.

Appeals and impact

Against the agreement, which exhausts the administrative route, an optional appeal for reversal may be filed before the Governing Council within one month, or directly a contentious-administrative appeal before the Contentious-Administrative Chamber of the High Court of Justice of the Balearic Islands within two months, counting from the day after notification. The agreement is signed by the secretary of the Governing Council, Antònia Maria Estarellas Torrens, and the president, Margarita Prohens Rigo.

The decision closes a dispute of nearly twenty years and provides legal certainty to the station occupying 102.8 MHz in Inca, a reference dial in the region. Furthermore, it establishes a criterion for the remaining licenses from the 2007 competition that still have pending procedures and confirms that the Registry of enabling titles must reflect the definitive ownership of Radio Publi, SL.

Source: Official Gazette of the Balearic Islands (BOIB), no. 126, October 6, 2026, Section III. Other provisions and administrative acts, pp. 54147-54148 (official reference: 9990).