Well, its been a while but the Lombardis got their wish. They'll be able to use what was originally designed as a re-transmitter of their AM signal as part of what will effectively be a new station at 91.9.

CHIN originally got the precious frequency as a repeater, arguing their signal on AM 1540 didn't propagate well at night and many listeners couldn't hear them after sundown. The new licence agreement states that because the station will continue to simulcast (amouting to 42 hours weekly, leaving another 84 hours for brand new programming) its nighttime AM output, they can put new programming on their FM repeater. That effectively gives them all but a brand new station, since they also have one at 100.7. 

A number of CHIN's competitors not surprisingly opposed the change, saying it was unfair competition. But the CRTC, in its infinite wisdom, decided the format appeals to a different audience. (How you come to that conclusion for a station that broadcasts in more than 30 languages is beyond me.) 

This decision, originally highlighted in a November thread, really annoys me, not because I have anything against the House That Johnny Lombardi built. But as I argued here last November, just because they've agreed to continue the late night simulcast doesn't mean this isn't really a brand new station, which will allow them to sell more air time and more commercial time as a result. If that's the case, then they should have opened it up to others to bid on and may the best proposal win. 

As it is, CHIN gets a de facto brand new channel without having to do anything to earn it. (The CRTC noted that since they were already on 91.9, it wasn't considered a new station.) Hmmm, I wonder what they'd say if, for example, CKDO in Oshawa suddenly decided to program a completely separate format on 107.7 FM, instead of just repeating their 1580 AM signal. There would be howls of protest and I'm guessing the Commission would say no.

But as I've pointed out here before, CHIN seems to get special treatment time and time again. This really won't affect me at all, since I'm not one of the outlet's target demos. But it's the principle of the thing that bugs me.

CRTC decision