 | |
| Broadcast area | Central Ontario |
|---|---|
| Frequency | 105.9MHz (FM) |
| Branding | Pure Country 106 |
| Programming | |
| Format | Country |
| Affiliations | Premiere Networks |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | Bell Media |
| History | |
First air date | 1943 |
Former frequencies | 1450kHz (AM) (1943–1954) 1570 kHz (1954–1993) |
Call sign meaning | sounds like "Kicks" (former branding) |
| Technical information | |
| Class | C1 |
| ERP | 20 kW |
| HAAT | 214 meters (702 ft) |
| Links | |
| Webcast | Listen Live |
| Website | iheartradio.ca/purecountry/central-ontario |
CICX-FM (105.9MHz) is aradio station inOrillia,Ontario. Owned byBell Media, it broadcasts acountryformat branded asPure Country 106. The studio and office is located in Orillia while itstransmitter is located nearThe Horseshoe Valley.
The station was originally launched in 1943, broadcasting at 1450AM inNobel, with the call signCFPS. Following the end ofWorld War II, the station's owner, Gordon Ellesworth Smith, wanted to affiliate the station withCBC Radio'sDominion Network, but without a feed line to get CBC programming to the station, this was not possible in Nobel, so in the summer of 1945, the station was shut down and moved to Orillia, where it relaunched on September 3 as 1450CFOR. The station joined the Dominion Network the following year.
In 1954, the station moved to 1570 AM.
In 1957, a fire destroyed the station's transmitter building, but with help from other broadcasters, the station was back on the air within a day. Later that year, the station increased its signal power to 10,000watts daytime and 5,000 watts nighttime.Bob Hope, who was inToronto performing at theCanadian National Exhibition, visited CFOR on September 4 of that year to officially launch the station's new transmitter.
The Dominion Network dissolved in 1962 and the station's affiliation transferred to the main CBC Radio network. In 1964, the station dropped its CBC affiliation, and was sold to a consortium that includedMaclean-Hunter. In 1967, Maclean-Hunter became the station's sole owner. In 1976, the station was reacquired by local owners, who in turn sold it toTelemedia in 1980.
In 1993, the station moved to 105.9 MHz, adopting its current call sign and acountry format.[1] The former CFOR call letters now belong to an FM radio station inManiwaki,Quebec. Prior to CFOR's move to 105.9 (asCICX) in 1993, the 105.9 frequency was occupied by aCBC Radio transmitter, known asCBCO, which moved to its current frequency.[2]
In 1996, the station switched to anadult contemporary format using the "EZ Rock" brand.
In 2002, when Telemedia was acquired by Standard Broadcasting, CICX was one of the stations Standard immediately resold toRogers Communications. With the transaction, Rogers switched the station's branding to105.9 Lite FM. In August 2003, Rogers switched the station to anadult hits format asJack FM.
On June 4, 2007,Larche Communications announced a deal with Rogers to acquire CICX in exchange for Larche's existingCIKZ-FM inWaterloo. The transaction, which was approved by the CRTC on December 24, 2007, reunited CICX with its onetime sister stationCICZ-FM in nearbyMidland.[3][4]
On March 3, 2008, CICX dropped the Jack FM format and branding, picking up the KICX format from CICZ, and CICZ flipped to arock format. On May 21, 2008, the station was given approval to change its authorized contours by decreasing the average effective radiated power from 43,000 watts to 10,600 watts, by increasing the effective antenna height and by relocating the antenna.[5]
The station now shares its format and branding withCICS-FM inSudbury, a station launched by Larche in August 2008.
On August 9, 2017,Bell Media announced that it would acquire CICX-FM.[6] Bell Media received approval from the CRTC on February 14, 2018.[7]
On May 28, 2019, the station was renamedPure Country 106 as part of a nationwide rebranding.[8]
44°32′03″N79°39′48″W / 44.53417°N 79.66333°W /44.53417; -79.66333