The CRTC last week approved Akash Broadcasting’s acquisition of Bell Media’s radio station CFRW-AM Winnipeg, which has been off the air since June 2023.
The one-time TSN Radio station had last operated under Bell Media’s “Funny” format before its 2023 shutdown.
In its Oct. 16 decision to approve Akash’s purchase of CFRW-AM, the CRTC said it had determined the value of the transaction is $1,047,250, and thus Akash must pay tangible benefits totalling $62,835 (six per cent of the transaction value) in equal payments over seven consecutive broadcast years.
Akash had stated in its reply to interveners that it did not yet have specific programming plans for CFRW, and indicated it saw the transaction as an opportunity to assess market needs and create a programming format that meets listener demands, filling the gap of the closed station, and aligning with the objectives of the Broadcasting Act.
In its decision, the CRTC said Akash had proposed CFRW would broadcast 126 hours of programming per week, including 42 hours of local programming, but it did not commit to offering news. The commission’s view is CFRW is expected to broadcast local news and is encouraged to include “a reasonable amount of daily local news” in the station’s programming.
In addition, CFRW is expected to devote at least 30 per cent of its popular music selections to Canadian selections in any broadcast week where at least 90 per cent of the selections broadcasted were released before January 1981. Furthermore, at least five per cent of the station’s musical selections should be devoted to selections from Canadian emerging artists, and Indigenous music selections should be included on the station’s playlist, the CRTC said.
The new licence term for CFRW will expire on Aug. 31, 2031.
