Bids for FM country music radio station heat up in New Brunswick

Two competing broadcasters saddled up to compete for a licence to Miramichi’s newest FM country music station at a CRTC hearing in New Brunswick Monday. Radio broadcast company Newcap Inc., and incumbent local broadcaster Maritime Broadcasting System Ltd. (MBS) are competing for a licence to introduce a new country music station on the 95.9 MHz and 102.5 MHz frequencies, respectively. A church broadcaster, the Miramichi Fellowship Group, also made a pitch to use the local 96.5 MHz frequency to extend the reach of its Christian music-oriented Life Radio station CJFY FM in nearby Blackville, N.B. Jackie Rae Greening, operations manager of CFCW in Camrose, Alta., told CRTC commissioners that 14 of Newcap’s country stations are local and that the company is proposing the same format for a new Miramichi-based station. Greening said a four-person news team would generate 80 locally focused newscasts each week. “In total, we will provide three hours 40 minutes of news, of which three hours will be pure news,” she said. Greening said the proposed station’s “greatest community involvement” would come from its talk show hosts during the early morning drive. “Our morning show will include interviews with important local newsmakers, from political leaders those spearheading local charitable activities, local athletes, or just ordinary residents of our community who do extraordinary things,” she said. Greening said the station’s music programming would feature the best of today’s country music performers with a few hits from the past. A strong emphasis would also be placed on acts from Atlantic Canada such as 2011 East Coast Music Association (ECMA) Award nominees, she said. Newcap proposed to devote $15,000 per year to the development of Canadian content, including $2,000 for the Miramichi School Board to purchase musical instruments. “Ten thousand dollars each year will go to Miramichi music festivals,” Greening said. Dan Gallant, general manager and general sales manager of Newcap’s Fredericton-based station, Fred FM, told the CRTC that the new station would not compete with MBS' existing general-interest station in Miramichi, 99.3 The River. “There is virtually no overlap between the two formats,” Gallant said. MBS said its proposed new FM country station in Miramichi would follow the same format as The River. Robert Pace, chairman of MBS, told commissioners that its proposed new country station would target the 25 to 54 year-old demographic by providing country music with “local and regional flavor” as well as more in-depth news and increased coverage of municipal and rural councils. The broadcaster’s “format-finder” research, he said, conducted in August and September last year, found that, of 322 online questionnaire participants, “the overwhelming choice for a new station in Miramichi was country.” With a new country music station, Pace said MBS would commit to a weekly Cancon level of 42 per cent. The company submitted that 30 per cent of its Canadian content musical selections would be local or regional. “Out of 100 songs played, 42 will be Canadian content, and of these 42, 12 or 13 will be local or regional,” Pace said. The proposed MBS station would broadcast a minimum of four per cent content from the new and emerging Canadian artist category, the company said. Pace said it would also give local emerging artists up to $5,000 in complimentary commercial airtime to promote new releases or upcoming performances. MBS also committed to making another $4,000 annual contribution to songwriter circles in the area and pay for local musicians to play in local concerts or performances. Pace noted that MBS is also prepared to contribute $70,000 to Canadian content development over the first licence period and said the proposed new station would offer an annual $4,000 scholarship to a graduating high school student from a local community. MBS’ proposed country station would also feature a minimum of 70 per cent Greater Miramichi area content and 20 per cent provincial news content, he added. In its opening remarks, the Miramichi Fellowship Group asked commissioners for the licence and frequency allocation to extend the reach of its nearby Christian music station, Life Radio. John D. Stewart, a pastor and CEO of Life Radio, said the station reaches many Miramichi listeners in their cars but they cannot access the station in their homes. Stewart said Life Radio is seeking to move its main station to Miramichi and establish a higher power Class A station that would provide a better signal within the area. The hearing continues Tuesday with a presentation from Hector Broadcasting Company Ltd. dgrenier@thewirereport.ca

Bids for FM country music radio station heat up in New Brunswick

Broadcast | January 17, 2012

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