Bell Media Radio, G.P.

Trade name	iHeartRadio Canada
Formerly	CHUM Radio (1945–2011)
Company type	Subsidiary
Industry	Radio broadcasting
Predecessor	CHUM Limited
Founded	1945; 80 years ago (1945) (as CHUM Limited) 2011; 14 years ago (2011) (Bell Media Radio) 2016; 9 years ago (2016) (iHeartRadio Canada)
Headquarters	250 Richmond Street West, Toronto,Ontario , Canada
Key people	Randy Lennox (president of broadcasting)[1]
Parent	Bell Media
Divisions	Orbyt Media (formerly CHUM Radio Network)
Website	bellmedia.ca

Bell Media Radio, G.P. (formerlyCHUM Radio), operating asiHeartRadio Canada, is theradio broadcasting and music eventssubsidiary of Canadian media conglomerateBell Media, a division ofBCE Inc.. The company owns stations across the country, including in most of Canada's largest radio markets. The company's programming is distributed to other stations across Canada via its syndication division, Orbyt Media, and it is also the local licensee of theVirgin Radio brand.

iHeartRadio Canada's originated in 1945 as CHUM Radio which was then acquired by CTVglobemedia in 2007 and expanded upon the acquisition ofAstral Media in 2013. The company operated over 71 radio stations across the country until 2023. Today, it operates 55 stations after a series of sales and closures.

The company has its origins inCHUM Limited, which was acquired by CTVglobemedia in 2006. Through subsequent acquisitions, it also subsumed the radio properties ofAstral Media in 2013; many of these were formerStandard Radio stations that were acquired by Astral in 2007.

In 2016, Bell Media reached a licensing agreement with U.S. radio conglomerateiHeartMedia to operate a localized version of itsinternet radio platformiHeartRadio, and organize Canadian versions of its event franchises (such as the Jingle Ball). Since this agreement, Bell has primarily promoted its audio content, including radio stations and podcasts, under the public-facing brand iHeartRadio Canada.

In 2023, Bell Media laid off 6% of its workforce and closed nine of its radio stations and sold three as part of a restructuring plan and consolidated newsrooms across its platforms, resulting in its news/talk stations laying off most of their news staff and relying instead on the local and national newsrooms ofCTV News. Stations closed included Winnipeg'sCFRW, Calgary'sCKMX, Edmonton'sCFRN, Vancouver'sCFTE andCKST and London'sCJBK while Hamilton'sCKOC andCHAM and Windsor'sCKWW were sold^[2] toCINA Radio Group for $455,000.^[3]

On February 8, 2024, parent company BCE announced a total of cuts across the company, including 4,800 layoffs—with approximately 10% of those jobs being at Bell Media specifically, and the sale of 45 of its 103 radio stations toVista Radio,Whiteoaks Communications Group,Durham Radio,My Broadcasting Corporation,ZoomerMedia,Arsenal Media andMaritime Broadcasting, pending approval by theCRTC.^[4] Bell executive Robert Malcolmson toldCanadian Press that the "significant divestiture" of Bell's radio assets occurred "because it's not a viable business anymore".^[5]

Its head office is currently located at250 Richmond Street West inToronto, where the studios of its Torontoflagship stationsCHUM-FM,CKFM-FM,CFRB andCHUM-AM are located. CHUM-AM and CHUM-FM moved from their historic location, 1331 Yonge Street, after the property was sold to Aspen Ridge Homes for $21.5 million.^[6][7] FormerStandard Radio stations CFRB and CKFM were previously located at the intersection of Yonge Street and St. Clair Avenue West until 2013.^[8]

CHUM Radio also previously operated CHUM Satellite Services, a multimedia division which provided programming and production services for corporate clients. This operation was acquired in 2009 byStingray Digital,^[9] which eventually renamed itStingray360.

On January 6, 2016,iHeartMedia announced that Bell Media would enter into a licensing deal to launch a Canadian version of its radio streaming serviceiHeartRadio. Bell will handle Canadian licensing, marketing, and distribution of the service, contribute its content to the venture, and also gain rights to produce iHeartRadio-branded events. The service launched in October 2016.^[10]

Since then, Bell has downplayed the branding "Bell Media Radio" in reference to its stations, and has referred to the collective platform, including the terrestrial stations, online outlets (which were all consolidated under iHeartRadio.ca) andpodcasts from Bell Media properties that are distributed under the platform, under the nameiHeartRadio Canada. TheMuchMusic Video Awards were also re-branded as theiHeartRadio MMVAs.

Bell's stations broadcast under variousformats, although hot adult contemporary andadult hits are particularly common. The stations typically air locally produced or voice-tracked programming for the majority of their schedules, although some national network programming also airs. In 2007 and part of 2008, the hot adult contemporary radio stations also aired the national evening programThe Sound Lounge.^[11]

As of 2021, the majority of Bell Media's music radio stations operate under standard,networked formats with a mix of local and/or common national programming.^[12][13] These brands include:

• Bounce:Adult hits stations. 25 stations adopted the branding upon its launch on May 18, 2021, with the largest being Winnipeg'sCFWM-FM and Hamilton'sCKLH-FM (which dropped the format when it was sold in 2025); the majority of the stations that flipped included adult contemporary, hot adult contemporary,active rock, adult hits, andclassic hits stations, including all remainingBob FM andEZ Rock-branded stations operated by the company.^[13]
• Move:Adult contemporary stations. 10 stations adopted the branding upon its launch on December 27, 2020. The format is currently used byCHQM-FM,CJMJ-FM,CIBX-FM, andCIOO-FM.^[14]
• Pure Country:Country stations. 13 stations adopted the branding upon its launch on May 28, 2019, including 12 existing stations and newly flippedCKLC-FM inKingston (which dropped the branding in 2025 following it being sold). All stations carry a midday show hosted by Shannon Ella, andThe Bobby Bones Show.^[15][16]
• Virgin Radio:CHR/Top 40 stations, using branding licensed from theVirgin Group. The brand was first introduced by Astral Media'sCKFM-FM in 2008.

Bell's French-language radio stations in Quebec, inherited from Astral Media, have similarly operated using networked formats:

• Énergie:Mainstream rock stations.
• Rouge FM:Adult contemporary stations.

Bell inherited Astral'sBoom FM (classic hits) andEZ Rock (adult contemporary) brands during the acquisition as well: presently,Boom FM is formerly used only by two Bell-owned stations, both in Quebec, and the majority of English-language stations using the brand are owned by Stingray Radio (who had acquired the flagship outlet in Toronto,CHBM-FM, as part of divestments during the acquisition), the French stations were later sold toArsenal Media as part of their restructuring. The last remaining EZ Rock-branded stations in Canada were phased out with the launch of the Bounce and Move brands.

Until 2024, Bell also operated three networked brands featuringtalk and spoken word programming. Except for TSN Radio (which features a mix of local programming and other acquired sports talk programs and event broadcasts, often syndicated fromESPN Radio andWestwood One), the majority of this programming was automated with little local content:

• BNN Bloomberg Radio (until 2024): Business news stations, which featured programming fromBloomberg Radio and audio simulcasts of programs from theBNN Bloomberg television channel.^{[17][18][19][20]}
• Funny (until 2024): Carried stand-up comedy. Was initially a Canadian licensee of the U.S. radio network24/7 Comedy.^[20][17][21]
• TSN Radio:Sports talk stations, co-branded with Bell'sTSN sports channel. Three of the TSN Radio stations were formerly part of a larger but short-lived national sports radio network known asThe Team, which was launched by CHUM Limited in 2001 on virtually all of the company's AM radio stations across Canada, but was dissolved in 2002 due to poor ratings. The stations that did not remain AMsports radio stations are eitheroldies ornews/talk formats.^[22]

Following the sale or closure of numerous Bell stations in 2023 and 2024, the BNN Bloomberg and Funny radio brands were no longer in use. Aside from three TSN Radio stations, Bell's remaining news/talk stations carry local programming with some regionally or nationally syndicated shows, and audio simulcasts ofCTV News programs, under theiHeartRadio Talk Network^[23] branding.

Bell distributesThe Breakfast Club,The Bobby Bones Show,Brooke & Jeffrey,On Air with Ryan Seacrest, and theAmerican Top 40 in Canada via the syndication arm Orbyt Media.^[24] Bell began to introduce in-house evening programming for its news/talk stations in 2017 withThe Evan Solomon Show (until Solomon's departure in 2023).^[25] In 2020, Bell droppedCoast to Coast AM from its stations and replaced it withThe Late Shift withJason Agnew,^[26] later replaced in 2021 by the new overnight showThe Late Showgram withJim Richards; he would later move to an evening show,Newstalk Tonight, in 2022.^[26][27] As of 2024, other Bell Media Radio-syndicated shows includeTheVassy Kapelos Show,TheRichard Crouse Show,TheJerry Agar Show, and theCTV National News.

In November 2024, Bell Media announced new programming in collaboration with Canadian musicianBryan Adams (in commemoration of the 40th anniversary of his albumReckless), including a "Bryan Adams Radio" channel on iHeartRadio, and a new syndicated radio show presented by Adams that will launch in January 2025.^[28]

• List of assets owned by Bell Media
• Virgin Radio

• Official website

• Bell Media
• Radio broadcasting companies of Canada

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