DeFontes Broadcasting Company President Kenny DeFontes has canned three music radio programmes over the last week in an attempt to cut costs in what he said is becoming an increasingly competitive business.

Three Saturday afternoon radio programmes have been cancelled ? the jazz show and the calypso programme run by Larry Thomas and the country classic music programme on 1450 ? due to a lack of financial support, said Mr. DeFontes yesterday.

Country music fans can be assured of hearing their favourite tunes since the station will run its own ?oldie goldie? programme with an internal staff member.

With Hott FM 107.5 and another new jazz station on the air, he said the radio market had shrunk in Bermuda and the next year ahead would be difficult for those in the business.

?There is just not the financial support there to keep the programmes running, we are going to do it ourselves now with automated programmes,? Mr. DeFontes said. ?I would play any kind of music I could if we could get the financial support but we are finding that the advertising base is no longer there.?

Mr. DeFontes would not providewith a cost of the programme, but he said all of the programmes were increasing the costs of running the business.

?We?re cutting costs on everything at the moment, we?re going through each invoice and looking at the bills and questioning whether or now we really need this. The pie is getting smaller in Bermuda, there is a lot of competition in a very small market, and if we don?t have enough revenue to keep our costs going we won?t be able to keep our heads above water.?

Mr. DeFontes said the only way to operate was to be ?lean and mean? and to watch every expense.

?We have no plans to reduce working hours or our staff but we are making sure to adapt to the times to pay our bills. If there was a surge of support and someone came forward to offer a contract for a year we would change our minds, but the programmes are just not paying their way.?

Live music will replace the programmes from 6.30 a.m. until 12.30 p.m. on Saturdays with automated music running for the rest of the day.