Toronto-HQ’d CHUM Limited launched a new FM radio station in Calgary on Wednesday. Energy 101.5 FM hit the air at 1:01pm MT, but the on-air personalities won’t begin broadcasting – from interactive street-level studios in the downtown core – until April 10, in time for the station’s official launch on April 12.
The station’s overall target demo is adults 25-54, but special attention will be paid to attracting females 25-44. Its owners plan to invest $640,000 annually to develop and promote Canadian talent, including supporting the CHUM Emerging Indie Artist Initiative. Online the new station can be heard at www.energy1015.com.
On April 9, Toronto-based radio syndication firm Canada’s Business Network will debut what it’s touting as Canada’s first all-business-news radio station: CFBN (Canadian Financial and Business News) at 1280 AM. The new entity morphed from the station’s previous role broadcasting flight updates and weather info from Pearson International Airport for the past six years.
Canada’s Business Network has been providing business-oriented content to 30 Canadian radio stations through Standard Radio since 1998. Its new station will broadcast from a studio in Terminal One with a signal that will reach the Greater Toronto Area and as far south as Buffalo, NY. Programming will also be streamed online.
Bryan Woodruff, president of Newsroom Productions, a new division that will operate CFBN, says it’s aimed at an affluent but underserved niche of business flyers. The station will feature a mix of network and original programming, including shows already produced and syndicated by Canada’s Business Network. These include The Fred Ketchen Report, which also runs on CFRB in Toronto, and market reports on India and China.
