Melbourne: 3FOX

Melbourne’s second commercial FM station, 3FOX, made its debut on 1 August 1980 on the frequency 101.9 MHz.

The first song played on 3FOX was Breezin’ by George Benson, though it was initially played at 45rpm before being slowed down to 33 1/3 rpm.

The station was initially branded on-air with the initials F-O-X (e.g. “3-F-O-X-F-M”) before it was streamlined to the snappier “Fox FM” or sometimes “The Fox”.

Broadcasting from studios co-located with television station ATV10 in the suburb of Nunawading, 3FOX initially had a very easy listening sound and, in an unusual move, had also come to an arrangement to simulcast the ABC radio news each weekday morning at 7.45am.

The station’s first ratings survey late in 1980 returned an audience share of 3.4 per cent for 3FOX, making it the lowest rating commercial station in Melbourne.

By the mid-1980s the music playlist was broadened to include more contemporary hits with some older favourites thrown in, and the station logo had been altered to include the fox motif.

The station had also adopted the slogan that “FM is Fox Music”.

In 1984, the station launched Australia’s first national Top 40 countdown, Take 40 Australia, hosted by Barry Bissell and produced by MCM Entertainment.  The weekly show was syndicated to radio stations around Australia and continues to broadcast today on 85 stations nationwide.

In 1986, 3FOX was bought by Austereo, the licensee of Adelaide’s SAFM, in the first step to the company establishing a national FM network.  The station’s playlist took on a more modern emphasis and with that came a more stylised logo:

In Survey 2, 1987, Fox won the ratings for the first time – with an audience share of 14.8 per cent – and continued to top the ratings in Melbourne until the first survey in 1990 when it was overtaken by FM newcomer KZFM.

Although Fox’s music format would continue to change over the next few years – including a brief dalliance into ‘Classic Rock’ in the early-‘90s – the  new logo would serve Fox in various forms right through until the re-branding of the entire network, including 2DAY, SAFM and B105, in the mid-2000s.

In the mid-90s, Fox was one of the first commercial radio stations in Australia to set up a presence on the World Wide Web.

In 1996, the Austereo network merged with the rival Triple M network which would bring 3FOX under the same roof as rival 3MMM.  Both stations now broadcast from studios in the suburb of South Melbourne.

Website: Fox 101.9

Melbourne: 3KZ, 3KKZ

3KZ was Melbourne’s third commercial radio station when it launched on 8 December 1930.  The significance of the call-sign ‘KZ’ is unknown, although the station did have ties to the Labor Party which had ‘K’ in all of its radio station call-signs.

The station’s original broadcast frequency was 1350 kHz, moving to 1180 kHz in 1935 and then to 1179 kHz in 1978.

By the 1980s, 3KZ had settled into a popular ‘hits and memories’ format with a playlist focused on the hits of the ‘60s, ‘70s and ‘80s.  The station also ran one of the most successful sticker promotions ever to be conducted in Melbourne, with the familiar heart-shaped 3KZ logo plastered all over Melbourne:

By the end of the ‘80s, a decade where FM radio was becoming the dominant radio medium, 3KZ more than held its own with strong ratings figures, usually sitting around the top 3 radio stations in Melbourne.  But, despite its popularity, it could not fight against the FM band forever and when the opportunity came to bid for an FM conversion licence in 1989, 3KZ bid $32 million for the privilege. 

3KZ was the highest bidder for one of the two FM conversion licences in Melbourne and chose to convert to the 104.3 MHz frequency which would place it between Melbourne’s existing commercial FM stations, 3FOX (101.9 MHz) and 3MMM (105.1 MHz).

At 12.00am on 1 January 1990, 3KZ re-launched as KZFM (call-sign: 3KKZ).  With 3KZ proven popular on the AM band, there was not much need to alter much of the station’s format in converting to FM, so the station kept its ‘hits and memories’ playlist.

Presenting Melbourne radio listeners with their first new commercial FM station in almost ten years, the conversion to FM paid an immediate dividend.  In the first ratings survey for 1990, KZFM recorded a rating of 14.6 per cent – bringing an end to an almost three-year run at the top for 3FOX – and an increase of more than three points from the last survey as 3KZ.

But as sharp as KZFM’s rise to the top was, its popularity was short-lived.  By the second survey for 1990, 3FOX was back at #1 and KZFM had dropped to third place.  KZ endured further decreases over the next four surveys, and by mid-1991 the station was sitting on a rating of 7.7 per cent, as other FM stations had emulated part of KZ’s playlist and more modern hits were creeping into KZ’s format, thereby weakening their position.  It was now rating lower than it had been on the AM band and now with the additional pressure of meeting the interest repayments on its $32 million loan that it used to fund the FM conversion bid.

In October 1991, KZFM re-focused on the hits of the ‘60s and ‘70s and re-branded itself as Gold 104 – a move that offered a definite point of difference from the other FM stations and would return ratings increases, but not enough to stop it falling into receivership.  The station later ended up in the hands of the Austereo radio network (which also owned 3FOX) before being sold to the Australian Radio Network which already owned rival station TTFM (call-sign: 3TTT).

Website: Gold 104.3

Melbourne: 3TT, 3TTT

3TT made its debut at 5.00am on Easter Saturday, 2 April 1988 as the new call-sign for the station previously known as 3DB.  The name and format change followed the sale of the 3DB licence to the Albert family, whose radio network was the predecessor to the present-day Australian Radio Network.  The origin of the call-sign is not known, though it may possibly have reflected the station’s broadcast frequency – ‘Ten 26’ – 1026 kHz. 

 

3TT was programmed as a ‘Classic Hits’ format, featuring hits of the ‘60s, ‘70s and ‘80s, as a rival to the popular 3KZ which had broadcast a ‘Hits and Memories’ format successfully for several years.  The first song played on 3TT was Listen To The Music by the Doobie Brothers – their initials, DB, providing a link to the station’s predecessor.

In 1989 the Federal Government invited bids from commercial AM radio stations for the right to convert to the FM band – with two conversion licences available in Melbourne.  3KZ gained the first licence after a record $32 million bid while, in a surprising move, low-rated station 3AK presented the second highest bid of $22 million.  3TT missed out on a conversion licence with its third-placed bid of $11 million but the station got a lucky break when 3AK defaulted on its payment – leaving 3TT the right to convert to the FM band at a third of the price of its main rival, 3KZ.

3TT made the move to the FM band at 12.00am on Sunday, 24 June 1990 (almost twenty years ago to the day).  The last song played on 3TT before midnight was the same as the first song played in April 1988 – Listen To The Music by the Doobie Brothers.

3TT’s conversion to FM led to the station adopting a new three-letter call-sign, 3TTT, with the on-air branding as ‘Classic Hits TTFM’, maintaining a similar format to its AM predecessor.  The first song played on TTFM was In The Air Tonight by Phil Collins.

The Classic Hits format still struggled to gain a decent audience on FM, so by the early ‘90s the station adopted a more contemporary format, accompanied by a colourful logo – 101.1 TTFM.  The move led to a ratings boost, with the station eventually claiming #1 spot in two surveys in 1995.

 

In 2001, TTFM had a change of image.  The station adopted a new branding, Mix 101.1, with a similar logo to its Sydney counterpart Mix 106.5.

Mix 101.1 now plays a contemporary music format, aimed at tackling rival station Fox.

Website: Mix 101.1

Melbourne: 3MP

This blog has been lying dormant for a while… so let’s give it a kick-start on what is a significant day for one Melbourne radio station.

At 12.00pm today, 18 April 2010, radio station 3MP ceased to exist as we have known it.  The station, presenting an Easy Listening format since 1986, has struggled in the ratings competition for the last several years.  3MP’s owners, Pacific Star Network, have now set up a joint venture with Sydney radio broadcaster Macquarie Radio Network (owner of 2CH and top-rating 2GB) to operate a talk-back station on 3MP’s frequency, 1377 kHz, mixing a local talkback format with networked programming from 2GB.

1377 MTR – Melbourne Talk Radio – launches at 6.00am tomorrow morning with Steve Price (ex-3AW and ex-2UE), followed by Steve Vizard, Chris Smith (via 2GB), Martin King (A Current Affair), Ross Greenwood (via 2GB) and Luke Grant (ex-2HD).

The original 3MP was launched in July 1976.  It was the first new commercial radio station in Melbourne since 3XY first appeared in 1935.  The station’s original broadcast frequency was 1380 kHz, shifting slightly to 1377 kHz with the re-alignment of the AM radio band in 1978.

Based in Frankston on the Mornington Peninsula (hence the call-sign “MP”), 3MP traditionally had an emphasis on the southern suburbs and bayside communities and presented a rock music format that was a little softer than 3XY which was not far up the dial on 1420 kHz.

By about 1984, 3MP had mellowed somewhat, settling into a hits-and-memories playlist and the slogan ‘The Way You Are Today’.

When rival station 3AK shocked its listeners by abandoning its long-running, and popular, Beautiful Music format on 1 January 1986, 3MP quickly responded.  The station was to relaunch itself as Easy Listening and spent the next two weeks re-working its music library, recording promos, hiring announcers and updating its logo and publicity material.  Easy Listening 3MP launched by mid-January 1986.

The effect of the radical change in formats between 3AK and 3MP saw both stations literally swap positions in the ratings ladder.  When the first radio ratings survey of 1986 was released, 3MP leapt up from a low 4.5 per cent to a very competitive 10.0 per cent of the Melbourne audience.  3AK in the same period fell from 10.4 to 3.4 per cent.

3MP continued to rate at the top end of the ladder for several years, but it started to come undone in the mid-1990s.  The station had bought rival radio station 3EE – 693 kHz – as the laws had now allowed one owner to have two stations in a single market.  3MP initially turned over 693 kHz to a straight relay of 1377 kHz to strengthen its audience reach across Melbourne, as 1377 was clearer only in the southern, eastern and bayside suburbs.  The broadcasting authority ruled that 3MP was not allowed to broadcast the same program on both frequencies and would have to set up a new format on 693.  3MP then responded with a new station – Magic 693 – broadcasting a big-band and old-time classics playlist from the ‘40s, ‘50s and ‘60s.  Magic became a hit with listeners and gradually starting taking numbers away from 3MP. 

Then 3MP and Magic 693 were sold to Southern Cross Broadcasting which also owned radio stations 3AW and 3AK.  Southern Cross decided to keep 3AW and Magic and sell off the lower-rating stations, 3MP and 3AK.  3MP’s decline continued when Magic then broadened its playlist to a wider playlist, and so 1377 became less of a match for 693.

3MP was sold to Goulburn Valley Broadcasters and then to Data and Commerce Limited (now Pacific Star Network).

The first song played on 3MP back in July 1976 was Howzat! by Sherbet – it was also the last song played on 3MP before handing over to MTR 1377.

Website: Melbourne Talk Radio

Melbourne: 3JOY

During most of the ‘90s there was a battle on Melbourne’s airwaves for control of the last three available FM frequencies assigned for community broadcasters.

One of the aspirant broadcasters was Joy Melbourne, a station run and aimed at Melbourne’s lesbian, gay, transgendered and bisexual communities. Joy made its first test broadcast on 1 December 1993 (World AIDS Day) and broadcast on a part-time basis as it had to share its frequency – 90.7 MHz – with other aspirant broadcasters. One day you could be listening to Kylie, the next you could be hearing Islamic prayer.

After years of test broadcasts, in 2001 Joy Melbourne was successful in gaining the Melbourne City broadcast licence – covering the CBD and inner suburbs – and from 2002 commences full-time broadcasting on its new permanent frequency of 94.9 MHz. At that time the station was assigned its official call-sign 3JOY.

Website: Joy 94.9

Melbourne: 3UZ

When radio began in Australia there were two classes of radio stations - ‘A’ class stations, which were funded by licence fees and limited advertising, and ‘B’ class stations which were funded entirely by advertising.

3UZ was Melbourne’s first ‘B’ class radio station when it launched in March 1925.  The original broadcast frequency was 930 kHz.

3UZ was the radio station that ‘discovered’ a young talent by the name of Graham Kennedy who later went on to embrace the new medium of television from the mid-1950s.

The station was also one of the first in Melbourne to adopt a dominant Top 40 format after the introduction of television and won many ratings surveys in the 1960s and early ‘70s.

Through the ‘70s and early ‘80s The Greater 3UZ rated well with a talkback line-up, headed by popular personalities including Bert Newton, Don Lane and Tony Barber, and racing coverage that commanded a much larger audience than what it does now.

But by 1983 3UZ took the controversial step of removing all horse racing coverage and adopted a music format: 

The new format was not a huge hit and, in 1985, the station went another direction with a country music format, again with little success.

By 1988, 3UZ was bought out by the Victorian racing industry and the station resumed exclusive coverage of horse racing, supplemented by morning and drive-time news and talk-back programs.

With a format based heavily on racing and sporting discussion, 3UZ was re-branded 3UZ Good Sports and, in 1996, later changed to Sport 927 which continues today.

With a strong signal on the 927 kHz frequency, 3UZ can be heard across much of Victoria but its regional coverage is also boosted by re-transmission sites across the State including Shepparton (1260 kHz), Bendigo (945 kHz), Ballarat (1314 kHz), Mildura (1359 kHz) and medium and low-powered FM sites in other areas.

Website: Sport 927