Bendigo Entrepreneur Launches Online Radio Station to Capture Growing Digital Audience

On 10 July 2026 Alex Rivera opened Bendigo Stream FM in a converted warehouse on Mitchell Street, giving the station its first permanent studio and signal hub inside the city centre.

The launch arrives as national data shows online radio listenership in Victoria climbing sharply, with advertisers seeking cheaper alternatives to traditional broadcast fees that have risen 18 percent since 2024.

Local Roots and Partnerships

Rivera secured a three-year lease on the Mitchell Street site after earlier pop-up broadcasts from the Bendigo Marketplace food court drew steady weekend crowds. The station now partners with the Bendigo Chamber of Commerce to stream live coverage of the monthly traders market held on Pall Mall, allowing sponsors to reach listeners who cannot attend in person.

Equipment upgrades completed last week include a new mixing desk and fibre link that routes directly through the NBN node at the rear of the Marketplace complex, cutting latency for live music segments recorded at Rosalind Park bandstand.

Listener Growth and Revenue Figures

Internal logs released by the station record 12,400 unique listeners in the first week, up from 3,200 during the Marketplace test period. Average session length sits at 47 minutes, according to the platform dashboard, with peak traffic between 7 am and 9 am on weekdays when commuters tune in for local traffic updates.

Early advertising packages priced at $180 per week have already sold out for August, covering the cost of the fibre installation completed on 8 July.

Listeners can download the station app or visit the website to request tracks and submit business event listings. Rivera plans to add a second studio slot by December, targeting schools along View Street for student-produced segments that will run on Friday afternoons.