Asian Network has not been prepared to take the bold editorial decisions that would have won it back some listeners.

Even as the axe has been falling, all they have announced is re-shuffles, not radical new ideas.

MixTogether.org campaigned last year- along with high profile charities, MPs and the EHRC- for them to produce some content for mixed couples and people who have been disowned. It would have won the Network new listeners and popular support, but they turned it down.

They haven't kept up with developing trends, so they are failing. It is a real shame.

BBC Asian Network is still an extremely fresh station that promotes cutting-edge debates (see Nihal's show), important in-depth reports (see the 12.30 news report) on the top of first class entertainment (from Sonia Deol to Tommy Sandhu, via Adil Ray). BBC Asian Network promotes a British Pan-Asianism that makes me proud to be in UK. It is the only radio station I listen to, and if it does close it will be a huge loss.

They shouldn't have spent that massive £25m on it. I really dunno why it's lost so many listeners as there is a good variety of stuff on the station.

Yeah there are a good number of commercial stations like Sabras and Sunrise, but it'd be a shame to lose AN cuz ain't it bad enough that Asians can't get their names out there already in the media? Like Sonia Deol is a far better host than that Fern Cotton or something yet we won't hear her on Radio 1.

BBC Asian Network must relaise that the total lost is that the Saturday programming and the Friction Slot is very poor. Notice the MIC CHECK (Fowl Language)

You need to now concentrate to keep all MW Midland Frequencies and expand local station to asian community remove those poor slots bring more new presentors asian language like Shabana Khazmie, and a Language for asians mother tongue aqs previously with debates and more live on air programming.

Look at Amarjit Sidhu, Jay Patel, Mohammed Ayub-as the old days we want it back.

To expand introduce a new Chinese, and Arab Programme- MW Frequencies Midlands.

BBC will close Digital and save midlands.

I also suggest don't spend any wasted time and money on live broadcasts from parks, and nigh clubs.

Later have a BBC Bankguette where people can visit for a meal and see presentors with a live on air competition.

BBC Look at Asian Sound Radio Manchester-their programming is excellent.

Improve Religious programming and try live pray from local religious venues for Eid, Diwalie, Vasakie, at Guru Wara, Mandir, Mosques.

BBC WE NEED YOU

INSHALLAH BBC MIDLANDS STAY.

1458-828-837 MW Frequencies.

I think the AN over spent & didn't know what they needed to get the right audience. Remember its an Asian station, so why try & be something else. They need to cater for Asian people, not English. Its the fault of the management, they don't know how to run it. You need Asians to run an Asian station not English people. Why is there being English music being played on the AN. If I want to listen to English music, i'll go to an English station...they really have no idea what the audience wanted & now it shows. Bollywood is the key to Asian peoples hearts as it simple entertainment, not English songs & certainly not predominantly British Asian Music ...the key to Asians hearts is Bollywood & thats what they couldn't do. Its really a simple formula. Stations like Sabras, Radio XL and especially Sunrise radio work because they keep it plain and simple. The presenters can pronounce the film names & asian peoples names too, unlike the AN. Its a shame it has to close since it could've easily progressed but it has been run by monkeys.

Fantastic News! BBC Asian Network was the biggest pile of rubbish ever conceived.

Rather than a hotbed of nuturing talent and representing the diversity if Asian Britain. It was just an excuse for Asians in Media to aspire to not being Asian. Hey look at me I'm with the BBC!!

I hope now there will be more money for the BBC to spend on shows like Cash in the Desi Attic, Desi Homes Under the Hammer and Young Single Asian and Pregnant.

Crickey, with Eastern Eye on the slide and Asian Network about to close, BizAsia.co.uk is going to be the only desi publication left.
Fair play, i say!

Great news AN has been the most boring and fake radio representation I have ever heard. Alot of the time it appears they have tried to cause outrageous controversies by questioning beliefs and culture in very patronising terms so as to improve ratings. They play weird techno mix sessions pretending to be desi Westwood? It's a shame, that if B4U music or Music India were to beam their sky channels on radio the result would be better ratings than AN because that's the music Asians want to listen to when relaxing, studying etc not copycat English top of the pops. I still hope though the BBC will use the significant Asian licence fee to make better TV programmes for us and not just waste the savings on bigger fat cat salaries or stupid cardboard cutouts in Eastenders.

I don't think its a big loss to the the media industry. There are loads of radio stations out there, doing better than AN, ..AN just has the name behind it hosted by presenters who are totally rubbish and not professional. eg, bobby friction, who cant even speak properly, and Adil ray who is rude, and yes I agree with the other comments that AN is trying to be a non-asian station.

This morning on the Adil Ray show.

ADIL: Hey I didnt know its Holi on Sunday! Is it Holi this weekend? Come on Sonal - you should know!

SONAL: Mmmm I dont know - wasn't it last month? I'm sure it was last month. So what was last month?

ADIL: What do you mean you don't know! Come on! Its Holi THIS weekend!

SONAL: I don't know, do I? I really must get in touch with my religion.

The loss of the BBC AN will actually be a breath of fresh air to the Asian media, and community.

Hopefully it will encourage young Asian media professionals to 'integrate' within the mainstream.

The BBC AN was a hive of bad management, immature programing, nepotism, corruption, one-up manship and incompetency. All at the taxpayers expense.

It was like putting the lunatics in charge of the asylum. The party's over. deal with it.

This shouldnt really come as a surprise, in fact AN should have been closed a long time ago. In the past few years the station has been revamped in to BBC NOT so asian network. The presenters seem to be clueless about their roots and culture. There is a continuous struggle to be something we are not. At the end of the day we are asians and should be proud of our heritage.

If we wanted to listen to english music then there is plenty of stations we can tune in to, so they should have kept it a purely asian station. They should have had presenters who can interact in our own languages. In its last moments AN remains a lost soul...no one at the station knows who they are catering for, who their audience is?

The same problem as Club Asia, a case of clueless management. Asian Network has fat cats trying to run a radio station, having just a few good presenters ie: Ameet Chana, Adil Ray, Nihal and Jas the rest of them are so out of touch with Asian culture.

No sad loss.....too much money and no talent.

I didn't get a job with them either, but will miss the station if it goes. Sonia Deol and Tommy Sandhu have just started very entertaining shows in the last few weeks, so why start them if the are winding down operations?

Yes, I agree with most of the comments here. The BBC Asian Network has been propping up careers of third rate presenters who have actually lost their target audience by trying to be 'less Asian'.
The station is a mess and the lack of support from many Asians shows this. The only people who do care are the people fearing losing their over-paid jobs, namely the presents. We, the 'so called audience' do not care. Get rid of it but make sure that money goes into decent TV programming, and that does not mean promoting coconuts why simply have an Asian name but think like non-Asians; we get sort of work through decent non-Asian mainsteam programming.

I agree with Sunny. The only people who are starting up petitions and campaigns are the over paid presenters, who will have no where to go after it closes down. In a pile of complaints about the decision to axe 2 stations, only 85 complaints were in support of the AN. I guess they are all going to run towards Brit Asia TV now, and if they do the same thing there, they will undoubtedly make that channel a massive failure. So please keep Brit Asia in tact with our roots and heritage. Already on the channel they have started playing complete english tunes. If i wanted to listen to those id watch MTV, or something.