 | |
| Broadcast area | Eastern Ontario |
|---|---|
| Frequency | 96.3MHz |
| Branding | 96.3 Big FM |
| Programming | |
| Format | Classic hits |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | Corus Entertainment |
| CKWS-FM,CKWS-DT | |
| History | |
First air date | May 14,1947 |
Former call signs | CKWR-FM (May–October 1947) CKWS-FM (October 1947-1976) |
Call sign meaning | CanadaFM radio forKingston |
| Technical information | |
Licensing authority | CRTC |
| Class | C1 |
| ERP | 14,000watts (28,000 watts peak) |
| HAAT | 247.9 meters (813 ft) |
| Links | |
| Website | 963bigfm.com |
CFMK-FM (96.3MHz) is a Canadianradio station inKingston, Ontario owned byCorus Entertainment. The station airs aclassic hitsformat, leaning towardclassic rock, and branded as96.3 Big FM.
The station was launched on May 14, 1947, asCKWR-FM, an FM simulcast ofCKWS. Both stations were owned by Allied Broadcasting, in which theKingston Whig-Standard was the primary partner. The station's call sign was changed toCKWS-FM in October of the same year, and Allied changed its name to Frontenac Broadcasting in 1954. The station adopted its current call sign in 1976.[1]
In 1977,Paul Desmarais and Claude Pratte purchased Frontenac Broadcasting. In 1987, ownership was transferred directly to Desmarais'Power Corporation, and in 1989, Frontenac and another Power subsidiary, Kawartha Broadcasting, were merged to form Power Broadcasting.
In 1998, both the AM and FM stations were knocked off the air for a week by theIce Storm of 1998.
The stations were purchased by Corus Entertainment in 2000. Acountry station for nearly three decades beginning in the late 1970s, CFMK adopted anadult hits format branded asJoe FM in 2004, and switched to aclassic rock format branded asFM96 in 2007. On February 13, 2015, CFMK switched to amainstream rock format and changed its slogan to "Kingston's Best Rock", but retained its "FM96" branding and featuredrock music from the late 1960s to today. The "Kingston's Best Rock" slogan is also being used onCIKR-FM. CFMK's sister station,CKWS-FM rebranded its station on the same day.[2]
On August 27, 2015, CFMK's website was replaced with a timer counting down to the following day at Noon, promoting "something exciting is coming soon". At that time, after playing "Can't Get Enough" byBad Company, FM96 relaunched as96.3 Big FM with aclassic hits format, launching with a commercial free "Big 500 From A to Zed" countdown, playing 500 songs alphabetically and without interruption throughout the weekend before resuming its on-air programming on August 31, 2015.[3] The change comes as CFMK registered a 2.3 share in the Spring 2015 Numeris ratings, placing it well behindCIKR-FM's 9.0 share andCKLC-FM's 6.6 share.[4]
Due to budget cuts, all of the station's on-air personalities were laid off in July 2024. Corus announced that "BIG 96.3 and Fresh 104.3 will remain in Kingston, and the stations will utilizevoice tracking to continue to produce local content made for and reflecting Kingston."[5] After Corus' budget cuts,Queen's University radio station,CFRC-FM claims to be the last local radio outlet in Kingston.[6]
| Kingston | |
|---|---|
| Brockville |
|
| Central Frontenac |
|
| Prescott | |
| Kemptville | |
| Loyalist | |
| Napanee | |
| Bancroft | |
| Cape Vincent, New York | |
| |
44°10′02″N76°25′39″W / 44.16722°N 76.42750°W /44.16722; -76.42750
