Stingray won multiple awards at the 2019 Worldwide Radio Summit on Mar. 29 in Burbank, CA, including International Broadcast Group of the Year. Steve Jones, SVP Brands & Content, Radio was named International Radio Programmer of the Year, his second win in the category after previously claiming the honour in 2014. The awards come just six months after Stingray’s entry into the radio market with the acquisition of Newfoundland Capital Corporation Limited (Newcap) in October. “I am deeply honoured and grateful,” said Jones. “Stingray may be new to the radio industry, but it is already setting the standard for quality broadcast on the global stage. Our programming team is a formidable force that produces world-class broadcasts. I am delighted that their excellence has not gone unnoticed. Every day they make me look good; they are the true winners of this award.”
CJVD 100.1, the French-language, commercial music station in Vaudreuil-Soulanges, Quebec is for sale. Yves Sauvé, the station’s founding owner, wants to retire. Before starting CJVD in 2008, Sauvé worked for CKCH Hull; CJRP, CHRC, CFCM-TV (TVA) Quebec City and later TVA, CHRS and CKVL in Montreal.
G98.7FM (CKFG-FM) Toronto has boosted its Mega Friday programming with more interviews, music, and giveaways. Joining hosts Scott Boogie and Nikki Grant (Nikki G) is DJ Ty Munro (Tyra Dorsey), the station’s newest mix DJ, who’ll sit in every Friday from 5 – 6 p.m.
AM 1150 Kelowna has inked an agreement with the Kelowna Rockets to provide broadcast coverage of all Rockets’ regular season and playoff games through 2021/2022. Veteran AM 1150 sportscaster Regan Bartel returns as the voice of the Rockets, marking 20 years of play-by-play game coverage and his 25th year covering the Western Hockey League (WHL). Joining Bartel is commentator Kent Simpson.
LIFE 100.3 (CJLF-FM) Barrie raised nearly one-third of its annual budget in just two days during its Sharathon 2019 fundraiser, Mar. 27-28. The listener-supported, not-for-profit contemporary Christian music station enlisted over 30 phone volunteers, who took 1,700 listener pledges. 2019 marks the station’s 20th anniversary which will be celebrated with a concert celebration on Saturday, Aug. 17 at First Baptist Church in Orillia. LIFE 100.3 has repeater stations in Owen Sound at 90.1FM, Peterborough at 89.3FM and Huntsville at 98.9FM.
99.3 County FM (CJPE-FM) Picton, ON, will kick off its fifth anniversary celebrations with a station Radiothon Apr. 25-28. The Radiothon will raise funds to finish off the startup loan that helped put the not-for-profit community station on-air in Oct. 2014. Over the four days of Radiothon weekend, County FM listeners will be treated to live on-air performances by more than 40 local musical acts. Listeners will also be able to visit the station to watch performances live in studio. Host Mark Campbell has been named the event’s honourary chair.
Techsurvey 2019 from Jacobs Media finds that many listeners are still choosing radio because it’s free and easy. The web survey, conducted in early February in the U.S. and Canada, found seven in 10 (71 per cent) cite ease of listening, while more than six in 10 (62 per cent) say a prime motivator is that it’s free. The number of respondents who agreed that one of radio’s primary advantages is its local feel is up (86 per cent), versus 77 per cent three years ago. Techsurvey found that while 65 per cent of listeners are using traditional radios, 31 per cent of listening is taking place via digital platforms (computer streams, mobile apps, smart speakers), up from 27 per cent in 2018. Four in 10 weekly podcast listeners say they are listening to more podcasts now than one year ago. Weekly podcast listeners who consume six or more podcast episodes in an average week also rose year-over-year, to 24 per cent, up from 17 per cent in 2018.
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