CKER-FM
| Broadcast area | Edmonton Metropolitan Region |
|---|---|
| Frequency | 101.7 MHz (FM) |
| Branding | Connect FM |
| Programming | |
| Format | Multilingual |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | Akash Broadcasting Inc |
| History | |
First air date | 1980 |
Former frequencies | 1480 AM (1980–1994) 101.9 FM (1994–2006) |
Call sign meaning | CK Edmonton Radio |
| Technical information | |
| Class | C |
| ERP | 100,000 watts horizontal 24,000 watts vertical |
| HAAT | 272 meters (892 ft) |
Transmitter coordinates | 53°31′54.84″N 113°46′51.6″W / 53.5319000°N 113.781000°W |
| Links | |
| Website | edmonton |
CKER-FM is a Canadian radio station, broadcasting at 101.7 FM in Edmonton, Alberta. The station airs a multilingual programming format branded as Connect FM 101.7 and is owned by Akash Broadcasting Inc.
History
[edit]CKER-FM first hit the airwaves on November 1, 1980 on the AM dial as Edmonton's first and only multilingual station. It was owned by O.K. Radio Group which is headed up by Roger Charest and Stu Morton. The station operated at 1480 AM with a broadcasting power of 10,000 watts.
In 1982 O.K. Radio Group spun off CKER into a separate company- CKER Radio Ltd., a company that was headed up by Roger Charest as well as other investors.
In 1994, CKER was granted approval by the CRTC[1] to move to the FM band at 101.9 MHz with an ERP of 64,000 watts, on a frequency previously used by CKO from 1978 to 1989. This would later be increased to 100,000 watts. On January 18, 2006, CKER received approval to move from 101.9 to 101.7 MHz in an effort to alleviate interference that was being caused to other stations.[2]
On November 29, 2006, CKER-FM was sold to Rogers Communications who also purchased other stations owned by O.K. Radio Group.[3] Rogers pledged to keep the station the same, with a multilingual format and the World FM branding.
The station was twice named the best multicultural station in 2009 and 2010 at the Canadian Music and Broadcast Industry Awards.[4][5]
In August 2020, Rogers filed with the CRTC to sell CKER to Akash Broadcasting (owner of CJCN-FM in Surrey, British Columbia).[6] The sale was approved three months later on December 2, with the station being transferred from Rogers to Akash Broadcasting for $6.7 million.[7]
On August 18, 2021, CKER-FM was rebranded from 101.7 World FM to Connect FM 101.7, matching its sister station CJCN-FM in Surrey.[8]
Programming
[edit]CKER airs programming in over 10 languages serving over 12 ethnic groups. It has programming in the following languages: Arabic, Cantonese, Filipino, German, Italian, Mandarin, Polish, Punjabi, Spanish and Ukrainian.[7]
References
[edit]- ^ Decision CRTC 94-618
- ^ Broadcasting Decision CRTC 2006-8
- ^ "Broadcasting Decision CRTC 2006-651". CRTC. Retrieved 21 March 2017.
- ^ "Sonic named rock station of the year". Edmonton Journal. 2010-03-16. p. 28. Retrieved 2021-10-21 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "CMBIA 2009". Edmonton Journal. 2009-03-16. p. 17. Retrieved 2021-10-21 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Government of Canada, Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) (2020-08-13). "Notice of hearing - 13 October 2020 - Gatineau, Quebec". crtc.gc.ca. Retrieved 2020-08-21.
- ^ a b "Broadcasting Decision CRTC 2020-389". CRTC. Retrieved 10 December 2020.
- ^ "Connect FM Canada's Instagram post: "Connect FM 101.7, Asli Radio! After #Surrey, now in the city of #Edmonton as well! Tune in for the all the latest #News, full on…"". Instagram. 2021-08-18. Archived from the original on 2021-12-24. Retrieved 2021-10-21.
External links
[edit]- Official website
- CKER-FM at The History of Canadian Broadcasting by the Canadian Communications Foundation
- CKER-FM in the REC Canadian station database
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