We've been following the "progress" (if you can call it that) of this place since it first signed on with a test signal way back in February 2020. It has now been three and a half years, and still, as far as I can tell, there hasn't been a single paid ad on the station. Not one, not ever. 

But that doesn't mean they haven't been completely without sponsorship. Their website, which I'm pretty sure doesn't get a lot of eyeballs, is currently advertising a special on banner ads: $129.95 per month - a 50% off value! They do appear to have a few rotating ads, but I honestly can't tell if they're just place holders or actually paid for. Surely this can't be enough to fund the place. And who the hell sees these anyway?

Not only has there never been a single paid on-air spot to my knowledge, but there's never been a single newscast, a word about the weather or any other voice beyond the Peter Borbely pre-recorded liners. I tune in occasionally and have noticed one apparently big change - they seem to have somewhat contemporized the music mix. 

What used to be almost strictly 60s and 70s has now expanded into later years, with artists like Taylor Dane, Avril Lavigne, Celine Dion, Billy Idol or Survivor getting onto the playlist, something that wouldn't necessarly fit into the definition of a "classic hits" station.  

Then there's this new anomaly. A page that presumes to track the most "popular songs." The top of the list as I post this is "undefined," which is an icon they use when they don't have a pic of the actual artist. "Undefined" has all of 3 votes. The rest have either 2 or 1. There is nothing to indicate how to vote or who is voting. But obviously not many are.

And then there's this cryptic sentence:

"Don’t know what song’s been playing on the radio? Use our service to find it! Our playlist stores a Classic 1220 track list for the past 7 days."

Great, except there's no actual link to this "service" so you can't track anything!

And finally, the contact phone number continues to be in the 416 area code. (Yes, I'm aware the firm that's behind this place is located in the GTA, but what does that say about serving St. Catharines, the actual area of licence?)

As we debate the fate of 1150 and 820 AM, you have to wonder again how in the world this place is staying on the air and where the mnoey to pay for the music licensing and electricity to keep the tower going is coming from. I'm betting it's not from that measly $130 a month banner ad income. (Reduced from the normal rate of $264.42 every 30 days. What a bargain!)

Someday, the truth about this place will come out. It will be fascinating to see what it is.