WICR, 88.7 FM

What WICR, 88.7 FM does

WICR, 88.7 FM is a non-commercial public radio station owned by the Board of Trustees of the University of Indianapolis and operated by university students, faculty, and staff. Founded in 1962 with ten watts of power and now broadcasting at 5,000 watts effective radiated power (equivalent coverage to a 30,000-watt commercial station) from a 1,000-foot antenna, the station serves central Indiana with locally-produced programming spanning jazz, classical music, rock, folk, blues, news, talk, and University of Indianapolis athletics coverage. The station operates three HD Radio multicast channels (HD1/The Diamond, HD2/The Mirror Image, HD3/UIndy Radio), distributes content through the Amperwave web streaming platform, dedicated iOS/Android mobile applications, and integrations with TuneIn, iHeartRadio, and NextRadio.

WICR's programming is sourced through a combination of locally produced shows (Hoosier History Live!, Talking Jazz, The Free Zone, Folk Alley segments, Have You Heard?, Latin Perspective, and others) and longstanding content partnerships with Classical Music Indy (since the late 1970s), American Public Media (Performance Today), All Classical Public Media (The Score), and the FreshGrass Foundation (Folk Alley). The station maintains a specialized editorial focus on jazz and classical music genres underserved by commercial broadcasters in central Indiana. Facilities are housed in Esch Hall on the UIndy campus, featuring an air studio, talk and news studios, and five production studios, which have supported the station since a 2005 relocation.

WICR operates as a donation-funded non-profit entity with no commercial underwriting, pricing tiers, or product sales. Revenue is generated through semi-annual on-air fund drives with tiered thank-you gifts, direct mail contributions, online donations via the UIndy giving portal, car donation programs, and employer matching gift programs. The station's community-facing programs include the WICR Arts Organization of the Month in partnership with the Indy Arts Council and live play-by-play coverage of UIndy Athletics. There is no disclosed revenue figure, and the station does not publish financial statements independently of the parent university.

Name

WICR, 88.7 FM

Legal name

WICR, 88.7 FM

Website

https://wicronline.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1962

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

WICR, 88.7 FM is a non-commercial public radio station owned by the University of Indianapolis, broadcasting jazz, classical, rock, folk, and UIndy athletics coverage across three HD channels, online streaming, and mobile apps to central Indiana listeners, funded primarily by listener donations.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Public Radio Broadcasting

NAICS

Radio Broadcasting Stations (516110)

SIC

Radio Broadcasting Stations (4832)

akta.pro primary industry

Public/Noncommercial Radio Broadcasting (NPR, Community, Campus) (MPAIAEAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Talk/News/Sports Radio Networks & Syndication (MPAIAEAG), Radio Content Production & Studios (On-air Production, Imaging, Jingles) (MPAIAEAL)

Keywords

• Public radio broadcasting
• FM radio station
• Classical music programming
• Jazz music radio
• HD radio multicast

Headquarters

HQ city

Indianapolis

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Listener Donations and Membership: Public radio station funded primarily through listener contributions, including semi-annual on-air fund drives with thank-you gifts at various pledge levels and matching gift programs through employers.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

WICR, 88.7 FM is a non-commercial public radio station that broadcasts three HD Radio channels of locally-produced and syndicated programming — including jazz, classical music, rock, folk, news, and UIndy athletics — over the air via FM/HD1 (The Diamond), HD2 (The Mirror Image), and HD3 (UIndy Radio). The station distributes content through web streaming (Amperwave) and native iOS/Android mobile apps, and is funded by listener donations, on-air pledge drives, and employer matching gift programs.

Product overview

WICR, 88.7 FM is a public radio station owned by the University of Indianapolis, operating three HD broadcast channels (FM/HD1 – The Diamond, HD2 – The Mirror Image, HD3 – UIndy Radio) with programming spanning jazz, classical music, rock, folk, Latin jazz, blues, news/talk, and live sports. The station distributes its audio content through FM broadcast, HD Radio multicast channels, web-based streaming via Amperwave player, dedicated mobile apps for iOS and Android, and integration with third-party streaming platforms including TuneIn, iHeartRadio, and NextRadio. WICR also produces and syndicates a wide portfolio of named programs (e.g., Hoosier History Live!, The Score, Classical Guitar Alive, Performance Today, Have You Heard?, and many others) alongside content from Classical Music Indy, American Public Media, and independent producers. The station supplements its broadcast operations with community engagement programs such as the WICR Arts Organization of the Month and semi-annual on-air fund drives.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• WICR FM/HD1 – The Diamond WICR's primary FM broadcast on 88.7 FM (HD1), branded as 'The Diamond,' carrying the station's main programming mix including jazz, rock, classical music, news, sports, and specialty shows for central Indiana listeners.
• WICR HD2 – The Mirror Image WICR's secondary HD channel featuring classical music programming, including Classical Music Indy, Sunday Baroque, Performance Today, and Classical Guitar Alive, available via FM multicast and Amperwave web streaming.
• WICR HD3 – UIndy Radio WICR's tertiary HD channel branded as UIndy Radio, serving as an additional programming stream originating from the University of Indianapolis campus, accessible via FM multicast and Amperwave web streaming.
• WICR Mobile App Dedicated mobile application for iOS (iTunes/App Store) and Android (Google Play Store) enabling listeners to stream HD1 (The Diamond), HD2 (The Mirror Image), and HD3 (UIndy Radio) from mobile devices.
• WICR Online Audio Streaming Web-based audio streaming of WICR FM/HD1, HD2, and HD3 via the Amperwave player in the browser, accessible globally at wicronline.org for listeners outside the central Indiana broadcast footprint.

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration5 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Indy Arts CouncilcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerWICR Arts Organization of the Month partnership with Indy Arts Council to promote diversity of central Indiana arts and culture. Each month features a small-to mid-sized arts organization with radio spots highlighting their mission and impact.
• Classical Music IndycoreTechnology or IntegrationLongstanding programming partnership established in the late 1970s providing classical music content. Classical Music Indy provides local classical programming on WICR's primary signal and HD2 channel, including morning programming and local classical music broadcasts.
• American Public MediacoreTechnology or IntegrationProgramming provider supplying national classical music programming including Performance Today hosted by Fred Child, America's most popular classical music radio program.
• University of IndianapoliscoreOthersWICR is owned by the Board of Trustees of the University of Indianapolis and operated by university students, faculty, and staff. The university provides institutional support, facilities (Esch Hall), and student workforce.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• NPR (National Public Radio): National public radio network and content distributor. Comparable as the dominant non-commercial radio ecosystem in which WICR participates as a local broadcaster reliant on national content and listener-donation culture.
• WGBH 89.7 FM (Boston): Major-market public radio station producing nationally distributed programming (including classical and jazz content). Comparable as a larger non-commercial broadcaster with syndication capabilities that intersect with WICR's programming partnerships.

Direct peers

• WUCF 89.9 FM (Orlando): University-affiliated public radio station broadcasting jazz, classical, and news programming. Comparable as a student-staffed, university-owned non-commercial broadcaster with multi-format HD channels.
• WBGO Jazz 88.3 FM (Newark): Non-commercial jazz-formatted public radio station. Comparable as a niche-format public radio peer carrying jazz programming and operating a similar listener-supported model.
• WBOI 89.1 FM (Northeast Indiana Public Radio): Indiana-based public radio station carrying NPR, classical, and jazz formats. Comparable as a state-level public radio peer with similar donation-funded non-commercial operating model.
• KUSC Classical Radio (Los Angeles): Non-commercial classical music public radio station operated by USC. Comparable as a university-affiliated public radio station with classical-heavy HD multicast programming and listener-donation revenue model.
• WFYI Public Radio (Indianapolis): Indianapolis-based NPR affiliate public radio station. Directly comparable as a non-commercial public broadcaster serving the same central Indiana market with news, talk, and classical programming.
• WTJU 91.1 FM (University of Virginia): University-owned community radio station broadcasting eclectic music programming. Comparable as a student-run, university-affiliated non-commercial radio station with volunteer/student workforce model.

Emerging players

• Classical Music Indy: Indianapolis-based classical music content producer and programming partner. Comparable as a local classical programming organization with overlapping audience and content production mission in the central Indiana market.

Others

• American Public Media: National public radio programming distributor and syndicator. Comparable as a content supplier/infrastructure provider whose programming (Performance Today) is broadcast on WICR HD channels.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/wicronline
• Facebookfacebook.com/WICRonline
• Instagraminstagram.com/wicronline
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/wicr-88.7-fm

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles12 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about WICR, 88.7 FM