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Ottawa, 20 March 1986
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Decision CRTC 86-240
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CJMR 1190 Radio Limited
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Mississauga, Ontario - 851034900
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At a Public Hearing in Toronto on 3 December 1985, the Commission considered an application by CJMR 1190 Radio Limited for a licence to carry on an English-language FM radio broadcasting transmitting undertaking at Mississauga, operating on the frequency 96.3 MHz (channel 242 A) with an effective radiated power of 3,000 watts.
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This application, among others considered at the hearing, was submitted in response to a call issued by the Commission on 15 October 1984. The call followed the Commission's announcement, in May 1984, of the lifting of a long-standing freeze on private FM applications for southern Ontario. This freeze had been imposed by the Commission in April 1979 to allow the CBC time to develop its long range plan for the extension of its network radio services.
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The applicant is the licensee of an existing AM station in Mississauga, CJMR. It has proposed a Group I FM station, featuring predominantly instrumental music.
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At the hearing, the applicant submitted that its proposed FM station was needed to support and complement CJMR which, due to technical constraints, is only able to operate as a day-time station. The applicant argued that this limitation reduced the station's ability to compete effectively, and expressed the view that Mississauga residents would benefit from a full-time radio service directed to their needs and interests.
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The Commission has considered carefully the arguments outlined by the applicant in support of its proposal. It has examined the applicant's programming plans and its responses to questioning at the hearing. The Commission has also taken into account the interventions submitted in support of this application.
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In the Commission's view, the program budget and staff resources proposed by the applicant appear to be inadequate to deliver a truly attractive, competitive listening choice to the large and sophisticated Mississauga population. Moreover, the applicant failed to commit sufficient funds to promote the proposed station.
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In these and in other areas, the applicant did not project the strong and knowledgeable image that would be required to aggressively launch and operate a successful new full-time radio station in a community such as Mississauga. The Commission was also concerned, based on the applicant's responses to questions at the hearing, that the applicant may not have a sufficient grasp of the obligations and goals of the FM policy.
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Moreover, the Commission questions whether the proposed service represents optimum use of the frequency 96.3 MHz.
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In reaching its decision, the Commission has also taken note of the fact that the technical parameters of the proposed station would have produced a signal readily receivable across most of Metropolitan Toronto. Nothwithstanding the applicant's assurances that it wished to maintain in its programming a primary focus and orientation on Mississauga, based on discussion at the hearing, the Commission is not convinced of the strength of the applicant's commitment in this regard. Furthermore, at the hearing, the applicant confirmed that it had not searched for a lowpower frequency to serve Mississauga.
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In light of all of the foregoing, the Commission is not satisfied that approval of the present application is in the public interest. Accordingly, the application is denied.
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Fernand Bélisle
Secretary General
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