Ksrf 103.1 the transition

Hey Guys:

Would anybody know when in 1984 KSRF 103.1 K-SURF went from Beautiful Music to AC?

Thanks

Tommy C.

Best guess. August 8-18 in 1992.

You might check David Eduardo's American Radio History website for Broadcasting Yearbook editions. I just checked the 1990 edition, which says KSRF is already Adult Contemporary at that time.

http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Broadcasting_Yearbook_Summary_of_Editions_Page.htm

I would say once you've figured the edition where KSRF Santa Monica went from Beautiful/Easy Listening to AC, you can figure the switch likely happened at least a year earlier, since there is lag time between the station notifying Broadcasting and the yearbook getting printed. In some cases, when the transition is gradual, it make take several years for Broadcasting Yearbook to note the change.

Most easy listening stations made the switch gradually so as not to alarm its listeners or advertisers. In the 1980s, they started adding a few more vocals per hour. Then they started to remove the more traditional instrumentals, Percy Faith, 1001 Strings, Henry Mancini, replaced with more contemporary sounding instrumentals, often from the genres of Smooth Jazz or New Age. Over time, these stations moved from 2 or 3 vocals per hour to about 50% vocals. And then finally, the instrumentals were eliminated. For that reason, it may be hard to say a given station made the switch on a given day.

And we can also say KSRF and KOCM Newport Beach went from Easy Listening to Soft Adult Contemporary, in contrast to AC. Since the transition was gradual, very few easy stations went directly from Easy Listening to a full AC presentation, where DJs talk up the intros and play uptempo jingles. KBIG and KOST made similar transitions.

K6JHU said:

Best guess. August 8-18 in 1992.

Click to expand...

Off by about a decade?

Easily by the early mid 80's, Steve Day was PD. KOCM 103.1 and KSRF 103.1 merged around 1989, first Shadowcasting then Simulcasting

Don't forget 103.1 MARS-FM electronica/rock/dance in 1992-1993(?)

So it seems K-Surf merged programming with K-Ocean in late 88 yet owners were different. Had no idea a new Miami broadcasting company bought KOCM in 86? Even Wiki has the first reported format wrong as it was still A/C...

>The first format on the synchronized signal was rave inspired MARS-FM, using the call letters KSRF/KOCM, from late 1991 through late 1992.<

Now its clearer, KOCM Sale must not have gone through in 86, much higher price for the combo.
___________________________________________
Dec 7th 1990
Kenneth J Roberts said Thursday that he has agreed to purchase KOCM-FM in Newport Beach and its sister station, KSRF-FM in Santa Monica, for $17.7 million.

The two stations, both broadcasting at the same frequency--103.1 megahertz--now are owned by companies controlled by businessman Steven Udvar-Hazy, broadcast executive Jack Siegal and attorney Leonard Weinberg, all of Los Angeles.
__________________________________________________________________________________

"KOCM-FM Is Sold for $2.95 Million
December 09, 1986|KEN CHAVEZ | Times Staff Writer





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Newport Beach-based radio station KOCM-FM has been sold to Financial Capital Broadcasting Co., a Miami-based firm, for $2.95 million in cash.

The purchase of the 3,000-watt, soft hits station comes after 24-year-old KOCM failed to qualify for the latest Arbitron listenership ratings for Orange County published in July. KOCM last appeared in the Arbitron survey in January with a .4% rating, roughly equal to 13,000 listeners.

KOCM's owners, Donrey of Nevada Inc., said the sale is part of an effort to sell off all of its six radio stations to concentrate on its newspaper operations. Donrey, a media conglomerate, owns more than 100 daily and weekly newspapers.

The station is the first to be acquired by the four-month-old Financial Broadcasting. Company founder Sam Rosenblatt said he plans to launch a "big and aggressive promotional campaign" to increase the station's ratings, but will not change the station's management or programming."

Hot Hits said:

Newport Beach-based radio station KOCM-FM has been sold to Financial Capital Broadcasting Co., a Miami-based firm, for $2.95 million in cash.

The purchase of the 3,000-watt, soft hits station comes after 24-year-old KOCM failed to qualify for the latest Arbitron listenership ratings for Orange County published in July. KOCM last appeared in the Arbitron survey in January with a .4% rating, roughly equal to 13,000 listeners.

KOCM's owners, Donrey of Nevada Inc., said the sale is part of an effort to sell off all of its six radio stations to concentrate on its newspaper operations. Donrey, a media conglomerate, owns more than 100 daily and weekly newspapers.

The station is the first to be acquired by the four-month-old Financial Broadcasting. Company founder Sam Rosenblatt said he plans to launch a "big and aggressive promotional campaign" to increase the station's ratings, but will not change the station's management or programming."

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I had forgotten Donrey owned KOCM.

I worked for Donrey from 1977-81 at KOLO-AM in Reno....and thought "Hey, we've got an FM station in Southern California!" Didn't take me long to learn that it wasn't anything I'd want to transfer to.

Donrey was a newspaper/outdoor company first, and a broadcast company second. Corporate headquarters were in Fort Smith, Arkansas, where they owned an AM/FM/TV/Newspaper combo. Apart from that, it was Las Vegas, where they owned KORK-AM/FM/TV and the Las Vegas Review-Journal, Reno, where they had KOLO AM and TV (no FM) and several small cities in Arkansas, Iowa, Oklahoma, Texas and Tennessee that were newspaper-only.

They lost the TV in Las Vegas after being caught covering the national spots with local ads during the Tonight Show.

DavidEduardo said:

MARS FM was officially on the air from May 24, 1991 to August 14, 1992.

http://www.memorypain.com/

Click to expand...

Yes launched about the same time KBLA, all Business Radio 1580 signed on. Here are hundreds of hours of unscoped MARS FM broadcasts!

http://www.freddysnakeskin.com/marsfm/

I had listened to a lot of those a while back when they were first posted. One broadcast of note was made during the LA riots in late April-early May 1992. THAT was an interesting broadcast. (Still have my MAR-FM tank top hanging in my closet haha)

I wanted to find out more about the K-Ocean Ownership change in 86 and who Sam Rosenblatt and Miami based Financial Capital Broadcasting Co was? Also how Jack Segal got his hands on it around late 88 to merge operations with K-Surf then selling it to Ken Roberts in 1990

Gregg. said:

You might check David Eduardo's American Radio History website for Broadcasting Yearbook editions. I just checked the 1990 edition, which says KSRF is already Adult Contemporary at that time.

http://www.americanradiohistory.com/Broadcasting_Yearbook_Summary_of_Editions_Page.htm

I would say once you've figured the edition where KSRF Santa Monica went from Beautiful/Easy Listening to AC, you can figure the switch likely happened at least a year earlier, since there is lag time between the station notifying Broadcasting and the yearbook getting printed. In some cases, when the transition is gradual, it make take several years for Broadcasting Yearbook to note the change.

Most easy listening stations made the switch gradually so as not to alarm its listeners or advertisers. In the 1980s, they started adding a few more vocals per hour. Then they started to remove the more traditional instrumentals, Percy Faith, 1001 Strings, Henry Mancini, replaced with more contemporary sounding instrumentals, often from the genres of Smooth Jazz or New Age. Over time, these stations moved from 2 or 3 vocals per hour to about 50% vocals. And then finally, the instrumentals were eliminated. For that reason, it may be hard to say a given station made the switch on a given day.

And we can also say KSRF and KOCM Newport Beach went from Easy Listening to Soft Adult Contemporary, in contrast to AC. Since the transition was gradual, very few easy stations went directly from Easy Listening to a full AC presentation, where DJs talk up the intros and play uptempo jingles. KBIG and KOST made similar transitions.

Click to expand...

Does anybody know when did KOST go from Soft AC to AC?

Thanks

Tommy C.