News and information are, in this context, an important competitive tool. For operators of broadcasting franchises, the primary interest is to make money - some are disarmingly open about it. Local FM station owners are not averse to profits, either, but there is generally a commitment to serving the wider community. Quality local news programming is regarded both as sound commercial practice and as part of their obligation to the city that is their home. The music, too, particularly to managers who listened to western rock on foreign broadcasts, has a wider social significance.
Some owners speak of a mission to educate the local public.
In purely commercial terms, their taste for foreign music is a disadvantage, judging by the overwhelming success of Russkoe Radio . To retain its market leadership in a very tough market, Radio Passazh in Kazan switched to an all Russian music format. The strategy worked. Most local independents present a mix of western and Russian music. The more successful of them long ago put criteria such as personal taste, whether of managers or of DJs, behind them.