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March 18, 2023 11:03 am  #61


Re: KISS radio Kingston is stunting

This was the last letter from Ben Reid before the flip posted yesterday at 6:29am:


Judging from the response on social media, there's LOTS of people who truly loved 102.7 The Pole and are dissapointed that it turned into The Lake as you can see from these comments on their Facebook page:



From what we are seeing so far, they should seriously consider keeping the Pole, at least during evenings and possibly weekends as well.

I would also come up with a catchier and less common name for the station than "the Lake", pehaps call it "the Mast".

Last edited by PwrSurge (March 18, 2023 11:25 am)

 

March 18, 2023 11:45 am  #62


Re: KISS radio Kingston is stunting

PwrSurge wrote:

Judging from the response on social media, there's LOTS of people who truly loved 102.7 The Pole and are dissapointed that it turned into The Lake as you can see from these comments on their Facebook page:



From what we are seeing so far, they should seriously consider keeping the Pole, at least during evenings and possibly weekends as well.

I would also come up with a catchier and less common name for the station than "the Lake", pehaps call it "the Mast".

So you're telling me people who liked the stunt format don't like the actual format that's the complete opposite? Why I never...
 

 

March 18, 2023 12:52 pm  #63


Re: KISS radio Kingston is stunting

They managed to create a solid group of raving fans in a short period of time.  LOL.   When KISS was flipped no one seemed to care.   Could stripper music be a real format?

It is nice to see people passionate about radio.

 

March 18, 2023 1:33 pm  #64


Re: KISS radio Kingston is stunting

I think Lake FM will do fine and will attract the female 25-54 audience which is always important.  KISS competed with couple of other stations in the market that played a lot of the same music and one top 40 outlet over the border.  Lake FM is filling a niche that wasn't being served.  As fun and popular as The Pole might have been it could have been a problem attracting a lot of more mainstream advertisers. 

The only minor question would be that WLYK actually had a similar format back around 2010-12 and they billed themselves as The Lake.  They flipped between this, CHR, Adult Hits and country music, prior to the arrangement with Rogers and becoming KISS in September 2013.  The station also went silent late in 1993 and didn't come back until 1997 when it adopted The Border image with a top 40/CHR format.   

Not sure if the new ownership has actually been approved by the FCC as yet.  I wasn't aware that Canadians could own a US radio station, or maybe the new owners are dual citizens or still have some American partners?   Anyway I wish them lots of luck and hope Lake FM is a big success. 

 

March 18, 2023 2:05 pm  #65


Re: KISS radio Kingston is stunting

paterson1 wrote:

Not sure if the new ownership has actually been approved by the FCC as yet.  I wasn't aware that Canadians could own a US radio station, or maybe the new owners are dual citizens or still have some American partners?   Anyway I wish them lots of luck and hope Lake FM is a big success. 

My information might be out of date, but it's to my understanding that Canadians can rent an American radio station but not actually own it. 
If this is true, they only need an American partner to declare ownership and collect rent, allowing them to run the station freely as if they own it. 
 


RadioWiz & RadioQuiz are NOT the same person. 
RadioWiz & THE Wiz are NOT the same person.

 
 

March 18, 2023 4:31 pm  #66


Re: KISS radio Kingston is stunting

RadioQuiz wrote:

They managed to create a solid group of raving fans in a short period of time. LOL. When KISS was flipped no one seemed to care. Could stripper music be a real format?

It is nice to see people passionate about radio.

It's a novelty meant to attract attention. It did that. It would burn out quickly as a full-time format.
 

 

March 18, 2023 4:35 pm  #67


Re: KISS radio Kingston is stunting

RadioQuiz wrote:

Looking at the Kingston landscape... seems like an obvious hole.

Playing the hits is never a bad strategy. Playing the hits w/o CanCon is even better.

Listening for about an hour and the imaging is really good. My wife loved every song. She's 47. Center of the demo.

Guess we'll see.

Unless it's another stunt.

Two factors to determine if a new station has found a viable music hole:
1) Does if offer a sustainable library of genuine hits?
2) Will the station own most of those hits in the market?

Lake checks them both off.

By contrast, TODAY Toronto scores a 0% on #2.

 

 

March 19, 2023 1:36 pm  #68


Re: KISS radio Kingston is stunting

The real golden age of Kingston radio...



 

March 19, 2023 2:31 pm  #69


Re: KISS radio Kingston is stunting

CKLC and CKWS were the CHUM and CFTR of Kingston..
 

Last edited by paterson1 (March 19, 2023 2:35 pm)

 

March 21, 2023 12:13 am  #70


Re: KISS radio Kingston is stunting

paterson1 wrote:

I think Lake FM will do fine and will attract the female 25-54 audience which is always important.   

Most of that demo will already be listening to Move or Fresh.  People in that demo feel young.  A huge swath of this playlist is an absolute no go.  The upper end of the demo was born in 1969.  That means the oldest songs they should be playing are from roughly 1985 unless the song is a pop culture benchmark that absolutely everyone loves.  The Bee Gees?  Unless it's Stayin' Alive get rid of it.  With this playlist this station will never get above 5th with women 25 to 54 and 7th with adults 25 to 54.  It should have moderate success with listeners 55+.  If either Fresh or Move flip formats the automatic reaction will be to flip it to MyFM which also wouldn't succeed in a good radio market like Kingston.  Bell and Rogers are Tim Horton's and MyFM is Coffee Time.
 

Last edited by Tomas Barlow (March 21, 2023 12:25 am)

 

March 21, 2023 12:29 am  #71


Re: KISS radio Kingston is stunting

Mr Barlow, what you have just said is one of the most insanely idiotic things I have ever heard. At no point in your rambling, incoherent response were you even close to anything that could be considered a rational thought. Everyone in this room is now dumber for having listened to it.

 

March 21, 2023 1:41 am  #72


Re: KISS radio Kingston is stunting

RadioQuiz wrote:

Mr Barlow, what you have just said is one of the most insanely idiotic things I have ever heard. At no point in your rambling, incoherent response were you even close to anything that could be considered a rational thought. Everyone in this room is now dumber for having listened to it.

Mr. Quiz, old men who think music peaked in 1975 aren't good judges of what a 25 or even a 40 year-old woman is listening to today.  Women in that age range aren't knitting sweaters, checking on the roast in the oven and watching soap operas like they were in the 60's and 70's, and they aren't listening to Grover Washington Junior or Anita Ward.  They don't even know who those people are.  They are hearing Flowers by Miley Cyrus for the 400th time on TikTok.  If you think a John Pole station playing songs from half a century ago three times an hour is going to beat Corus, Rogers and Bell Hot AC and country stations for women 25 to 54 you're out to lunch. Were you listening to music from 1925 in the 70’s? I seriously doubt it.

Last edited by Tomas Barlow (March 21, 2023 2:34 am)

 

March 21, 2023 11:40 am  #73


Re: KISS radio Kingston is stunting

Radiowiz wrote:

paterson1 wrote:

Not sure if the new ownership has actually been approved by the FCC as yet.  I wasn't aware that Canadians could own a US radio station, or maybe the new owners are dual citizens or still have some American partners?   Anyway I wish them lots of luck and hope Lake FM is a big success. 

My information might be out of date, but it's to my understanding that Canadians can rent an American radio station but not actually own it. 
If this is true, they only need an American partner to declare ownership and collect rent, allowing them to run the station freely as if they own it. 
 

I did some digging and it looks like foreigners can in fact own a US radio or TV station or even a small chain.  It hasn't happened often but does happen usually because of extenuating circumstances.  In 2017 the FCC relaxed the rules of foreign ownership which had been at 20% for decades.

All of the articles in the US trades said that Mr. Pole and Dickson bought Border International Broadcasting the owners of WLYK for $325,000.  The new company and owner is 1234567 Corporation which is owned by Pole and Dickson.  However I am not sure the approval has come as yet from the FCC. 

Could be that the US owner of WLYK wanted out and Rogers being a large conglomerate possibly would have been block by the FCC had they tried to buy the station.  Rogers had a 20% share of WLYK and ran the station for Border International for 9 years.  Or maybe Rogers had no interest buying WLYK which has had a history of  hanging on by a thread and even went dark for over 3 years in the 90's.  The station signed on in January 1989 as WKGG.

Here is an article from Womble Bond Dickinson explaining how and when the FCC does now allow 100% foreign ownership. 

https://www.womblebonddickinson.com/us/insights/articles-and-briefings/regulators-open-airwaves-increased-foreign-ownership?utm_source=mondaq&utm_medium=syndication&utm_term=Media-Telecoms-IT-Entertainment&utm_content=articleoriginal&utm_campaign=article
  


 

Last edited by paterson1 (March 21, 2023 5:46 pm)

 

March 21, 2023 1:45 pm  #74


Re: KISS radio Kingston is stunting

This was recently posted on their Facebook page and signed J.P., so obviously Jon Pole:

Last edited by PwrSurge (March 21, 2023 1:47 pm)

 

March 21, 2023 4:54 pm  #75


Re: KISS radio Kingston is stunting

Tomas Barlow wrote:

RadioQuiz wrote:

Mr Barlow, what you have just said is one of the most insanely idiotic things I have ever heard. At no point in your rambling, incoherent response were you even close to anything that could be considered a rational thought. Everyone in this room is now dumber for having listened to it.

Mr. Quiz, old men who think music peaked in 1975 aren't good judges of what a 25 or even a 40 year-old woman is listening to today.  Women in that age range aren't knitting sweaters, checking on the roast in the oven and watching soap operas like they were in the 60's and 70's, and they aren't listening to Grover Washington Junior or Anita Ward.  They don't even know who those people are.  They are hearing Flowers by Miley Cyrus for the 400th time on TikTok.  If you think a John Pole station playing songs from half a century ago three times an hour is going to beat Corus, Rogers and Bell Hot AC and country stations for women 25 to 54 you're out to lunch. Were you listening to music from 1925 in the 70’s? I seriously doubt it.

25-54 isn't a programming demo. Nobody's pretending this station's targeting 25 years olds.

It will absolutely to better than #7 25-54, given that there are only 7 rated stations and Bell's Country station is DOA.

It will drive huge hours tuned F45-54 which with radio's aging demos will juice the 25-54 pretty well, and they can sell locally older than that too.

 

March 22, 2023 11:03 am  #76


Re: KISS radio Kingston is stunting

For the hell of it, I compared two hours of Kingston's #1 25-54 station, 96.3 BIG-FM with the same two hours on LAKE. (10am-12pm yesterday)

BIG's average year was 1983.6.
Lake's was 1983.9.