Bonneville Variety Hits “98.7 The Peak” KPXK Phoenix flipped to a simulcast of Sports “Arizona Sports 620” KTAR at 10am today.
The move brings the play-by-play rights to all four Phoenix professional sports teams and Arizona State University to FM. In the December PPM’s KTAR registered a 2.0 share on 620, while the Peak had a 3.5 share. The move in a way brings KTAR full circle as 98.7 was the original KTAR-FM. Those calls are now on sister News/Talk 92.3 KTAR-FM.
Monday marks a first for the state of Arizona. Sports fans are now able to hear sports talk on FM — specifically 98.7 FM.
In a significant move to expand its audience reach and community impact, Arizona Sports 620 (KTAR-AM) began simulcasting on 98.7 FM at 10 a.m., strengthening its multi-platform distribution.
Now the lineup of Doug and Wolf (6-10 a.m.), Colin Cowherd (10 a.m.-noon), Dan Bickley with Vince Marotta (noon-2 p.m.) and Burns and Gambo (2-6 p.m.) can be heard on 98.7 FM, as well as on 620 AM.
“Putting Arizona Sports on FM is an opportunity too big to ignore,” Scott Sutherland, vice president and market manager for station owner Bonneville Phoenix said. “Our live, local and exclusive sports content has never been better. We have world-class local talk personalities who deliver powerful opinions and insights that engage and entertain. We also have amazing team partners. And all of this attracts a passionate and loyal audience, which in turn, attracts a lot of marketing interest from small and medium business owners, major brands and C-Suite decision makers.”
Arizona Sports is the flagship broadcaster of the Arizona Cardinals, Arizona Diamondbacks, Phoenix Coyotes, Phoenix Suns and Arizona State football and basketball. Games of those teams will be heard on both stations, too.
Besides a stronger signal and better statewide broadcasting reach, Sutherland said more than 85 percent of radio listeners utilize the FM dial.
Distributed on FM and AM radio, on desktop, tablet and mobile devices via ArizonaSports.com, and through Apple and Android apps, Arizona Sports is the leading sports media brand in the Southwest.