The CRTC approved twelve new radio licenses across Atlantic Canada. While the stations vary dramatically in format, they will no doubt have a profound impact on radio markets across the Maritimes especially in cities such as Halifax. The market has recently yielded some of the highest profit margins in Canada, and the number of local radio stations is now set to increase by close to 25%.
Global Communications plans to launch a new FM radio station in Halifax, The Breeze, which will have a contemporary easy listening format featuring blues, jazz, Celtic, folk, and world beat that will try to tap into a share of the 335,000 adult contemporary listeners in Atlantic Canada (as per PMB stats). Rogers Media was awarded a quarter of the new licenses and is preparing to launch new FM stations in Halifax, Moncton, and Saint John. Rogers’ trio of stations will focus on regional news with in-depth coverage of local weather, traffic and community events with a heavy emphasis on call-in talk shows and sports programming. Rogers Media hopes to vie for CBC RADIO’s audience structuring their new stations’ programming against that of the CBC’s.
CKMW Radio is launching an English-language youth contemporary station, with 12- to 24-year-olds serving as its target demographic. The station will feature mostly ‘urban’ music, including rock, R&B, hip-hop, dance and Top 40. To tap into the urban social scene, CKMW also plans to feature live DJ hosted dance-club shows at local venues in and around the Halifax area. Outside of Halifax the radio scene is expanding as well. In total, eight new stations will be launched out of New Brunswick serving the communities of Saint John, Fredericton and Moncton. Of particular note is Cooperative Radiophonique-La Brise De La Baie’s new station, which will become Saint John’s first local French-language music station, and Fredericton’s new classic rock rock station headed up by Newfoundland’s own Newcap. All twelve stations are expected to be fully operational by the end of 2005.
