Cincinnati Sports Swap

Clear Channel appears to be on the verge of shifting the network programming of its two all-sports stations in Cincinnati. Currently, “1530 Homer” WCKY airs a mix of local programming and Fox Sports Radio, while “ESPN 1360” WSAI is a 24/7 simulcast of ESPN Radio.

Based on a number of domain registrations made last week, Clear Channel appears to be merging the marketing of the two stations under the “Homer” brand, while moving the ESPN affiliation to the 50kw 1530 signal and Fox Sports to the weaker 5kw 1360 stick. Among the domains registered are CincyHomer.com, Homer247.com, HomerRadio.com, HomerCincinnati.com, ESPN1530.com, and FoxSports1360.com.

Palm Springs Station Shuffle

A pair of station sales triggered by one station’s move to a neighboring market will lead to new formats for 5 stations in the Palm Springs, CA market. Here’s a rundown of what will happen:

On February 2, R&R Radio’s Classic Hits 104.7 KDES will move its programming to its newly acquired 98.5 signal that was previously home to Beautiful Music KWXY-FM. R&R purchased the station for $7.5 Million as part of the sale of 104.7.

KWXY’s format will shift to 1340, displacing Progressive Talk KPTR.

KPTR’s Progressive Talk slides down to the former 1450 KGAM, replacing the Conservative Talk/ESPN Radio format.

In an attempt to capitalize on the confustion caused by those shifts RM Broadcasting’s Variety Hits “95.9 Jack-FM” KAJR has flipped to Soft AC “95.9 The Oasis”.

All of those moves were made in order to allow 104.7 to move west into the neighboring Riverside/San Bernardino market following a sale to LC Media, a group led by longtime KIIS-FM Los Angeles GM Roy Laughlin for $10.5 Million. No format has been disclosed at this time, however we have discovered 1047PirateRadio.com was registered by Laughlin this past October.

690 CINF & 940 CINW Montreal Sign-Off

Corus Radio has announced it has shuttered French All-News “Info 690″ CINF and English Oldies “AM 940″ CINW Montreal. Both stations are airing a looped message from management until they sign-off for good at 7:00pm tonight. Corus has stated that neither station was profitable and it was unable to continue to operate both stations in the current economic climate. 10 employees were let go as part of the closure of both stations, the licenses of which will be turned into the CRTC.

Instant Insight: Rarely do you see a company completely give up on a station to the point where they will turn in their license, especially for two 50kw stations. Even a station sale for pennies on the dollar would net more profit than just giving up on the stations. But this is the world of radio in 2010 and there may be more companies following this trend.

97.5 The Blaze Salt Lake City Goes Rock AC

Millcreek Broadcasting flipped Active Rock “97.5 The Blaze” KZZQ Salt Lake City to Rock AC while keeping the “Blaze” moniker. The new format features Rock Hits of the 1980’s through the present. The first hour consisted of:

Seether – Truth
Def Leppard – Pour Some Sugar On Me
Joan Jett & The Blackhearts – I Love Rock And Roll
Van Halen – Why Can’t This Be Love
Candlebox – Far Behind
Seether – Truth
Poison – Talk Dirty To Me
Nickelback – Rockstar
Whitesnake – Here I Go Again
No Doubt – Spiderwebs

The Fan Blowing Into Pittsburgh?

Update 1/19: CBS has confirmed that WBZW will become Sports “93.7 The Fan” KDKA-FM on Monday, February 15 at 5:30am.

Sister Hot AC “Star 100.7” WZPT will segue to Adult CHR. B94 morning host Bubba will join Star’s J.R. and Shelley in mornings, while his former co-host Melanie Taylor will host middays at Star.

Original Entry 1/14: CBS Radio appears to be adding another city to its network of All-Sports stations. A number of domains have been registered in recent weeks by CBS’ registrar pointing us in that direction. 937TheFan.com, TheFan937.com, and TheFanOfPittsburgh.com were registered on 12/28, followed by 937TheFanPGH.com, TheFanPGH.com, and TheFanOfPGH.com on 1/5. The current occupant of the 93.7 frequency, CHR “B94” WBZW was the first of CBS’ boom in new CHR’s when it launched in October 2007 after an ill-fated run as FM Talk “93.7 The Zone”.

Clear Channel has the Play-By-Play rights to the University of Pittsburgh, NHL Penguins and MLB Pirates locked up, however we are unable to confirm the status of the NFL’s Steelers contract anywhere online since the expiration of their previous deal in 2005. Grabbing the Steelers would be a tremendous coup for CBS Pittsburgh.

We’ve heard that some aspects of B94 will be merged into sister Hot AC “Star 100.7” WZPT, but we’ve been unable to confirm that yet.

Update 1/15: The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette chimes in with a list of potential hosts for the Fan.

Sacramento’s Bomb Getting Hot

Entravision Communications’ Rhythmic CHR “103.5 The Bomb” KBMB Sacramento is in the process of shifting to a more Mainstream presentation. Syndicated morning host Big Boy will be dropped in favor of a “More Music Morning” show. Entravision registered Hot1035Radio.com last week, currently pointing to a splash page for KBMB being “Under Construction”.

A shift to Mainstream will place KBMB in more direct competition with Entercom’s “107.9 The End” KDND as opposed to CBS’ Rhythmic 102.5 KSFM.

KAFE/CHHR Frequency Swap to Take Place 1/14

The long-awaited frequency swap between AC 104.3 KAFE Bellingham, WA and AAA “Shore 104” CHHR Vancouver, BC will occur on Thursday, January 14 at 7:30am with a symbolic transfer at the international border. KAFE will slide down to 104.1 to keep its coverage area of Washington from the fringes of the Seattle market northward, while CHHR retains full market coverage of Vancouver.

The biggest beneficiary of this move will be First Broadcasting’s 104.5 KMCQ Covington, WA will be able to finish its move into the Seattle market by moving its transmitter to Cougar Mountain. KMCQ will also increase its signal from 25kw at 318′ to a directional 7.1kw at 1273 feet above average terrain.

KEDJ Phoenix Rebrands as X103.9

Just five months after dropping its longtime “Edge” moniker for a more generic “FM103.9 The Alternative“, KEDJ Phoenix has rebranded again as “X103.9“.

Our NetGnomes point out that the station’s new website X1039Phoenix.com is registered to Sun City Communications, owner of Spanglish CHR “95.1 Latino Vibe” KVIB, and not bankrupt current owner Riviera Broadcasting. Riviera also owns Rhythmic CHR “Power 98.3” KKFR and two stations in Las Vegas.