Getting tiresome at this stage LANDMARK legal challenge will commence this week to determine the fate of Dublin's alternative rock radio station. It will be crucial for two of the country's most powerful consortiums of music-media moguls but politicians and senior civil servants will also be watching closely to see what, if any, implications it has for the Broadcasting Commission of Ireland (BCI). The Zed FM consortium headed by Bob Geldof is challenging the manner in which the BCI awarded the licence to the rival Phantom FM consortium involving U2's Paul McGuinness. Last November the High Court, in a judicial review, turned down a challenge by Zed FM and upheld the award of the licence to Phantom FM. While Mr Justice Philip O'Sullivan rejected both suggestions of bias and claims that Phantom gained an unfair advantage from their previous pirate history, he delivered a stern warning to the Commission. The original ground rules specified that bidders could not amend their applications. Despite this, the BCI allowed Phantom make a crucial change in respect of its advertising agency on the day of oral presentations. It was, said Mr Justice O'Sullivan, "a departure from the highest standards of procedural fairness." While the presiding High Court judge allowed some latitude for this, in the context of the overall case, Zed FM will be trying to persuade the Supreme Court that this was more than a departure from best practice and was, in fact, fundamentally unfair. Communications Minister, Noel Dempsey and his officials are preparing new legislation that would make the BCI the most powerful statutory broadcasting authority in the land. The intention is to extend its remit beyond the independent sector to embrace RTE. Rejecting claims that the BCI was biased in granting the licence, the High Court found that Zed FM "do not come anywhere near establishing" the kind of evidence to sustain an allegation of bias. When the appeal to the Supreme Court commences next Wednesday, Zed FM are likely to return to this ground, arguing the BCI was biased in favour of Phantom, as distinct from biased against them. During the High Court case, Zed FM made considerable play of a reference that described the granting by the BCI of two temporary licences to Phantom "to pilot the service in anticipation of a forthcoming licensing round in Dublin". All the players can only await the Supreme Court verdict. In the meantime, the Dublin alternative rock station remains in a legal limbo.