KOMO-FM

Last updated
KOMO-FM
Simulcast of KOMO (AM), Seattle
KOMO Radio 2015.svg
City Oakville, Washington
Broadcast area Seattle Metropolitan Area and Olympic Peninsula
Frequency 97.7 MHz (FM)
BrandingKOMO News
Programming
Format All-news
Affiliations ABC News Radio
Ownership
Owner Lotus Communications
(Lotus Seattle Corp.)
KOMO (AM), KOMO-TV
History
First air date
October 26, 1984 (as KSWW)
Former call signs
KSWW (1984–1999)
KFMY (1999–2009)
Technical information
Facility ID 51167
Class C
ERP 69,000 watts
HAAT 701 meters (2,300 ft)
Transmitter coordinates
 47°18′47″N123°22′19″W / 47.313°N 123.372°W / 47.313; -123.372 Coordinates: 47°18′47″N123°22′19″W / 47.313°N 123.372°W / 47.313; -123.372
Translator(s) 99.7 K259BG (Chehalis)
102.1 K271BS (Auburn)
Links
Webcast Listen Live
Website KOMO Newsradio

KOMO-FM (97.7 MHz) is a commercial FM radio station licensed to Oakville, Washington, and serving the Seattle metropolitan area and the Olympic Peninsula. It is owned by Lotus Communications. [1] KOMO-FM broadcasts an all-news radio format, simulcast with sister station KOMO 1000 AM. It is a network affiliate of ABC News Radio. The studios and offices are co-located with former sister station KOMO-TV within KOMO Plaza (formerly Fisher Plaza) in the Lower Queen Anne section of Seattle, directly across the street from the Space Needle.

Contents

KOMO-FM has an effective radiated power (ERP) of 69,000 watts. The transmitter is off West Skokomish Valley Road in Skokomish, Washington, just south of the Olympic National Forest. [2] With its high power and tower at 701 meters (2300 feet) in height above average terrain (HAAT), KOMO-FM covers Seattle, Tacoma and much of the Olympic Peninsula with a 60 dBμ signal. KOMO-AM-FM are also heard on three FM translator or booster stations in the region.

History

On October 26, 1984, the station first signed on in Raymond, Washington. [3] The first call sign was KSWW. It was originally a Class A FM station, powered at only 230 watts, a fraction of its current output. It was owned by Pacific Broadcasting Company and had an adult contemporary format.

In 1997, it was bought by Jodesha Broadcasting, Inc., for $182,400. [4] The call letters switched to KFMY, and it began airing a classic rock format as "Eagle 97.7." [5] It later was granted a power boost and increase in its antenna height, allowing it to be heard in the more lucrative Seattle-Tacoma radio market.

In May 2009, while still owned by South Sound Broadcasting, the station began simulcasting KOMO (AM), with Fisher Communications operating 97.7 FM under a local marketing agreement. [6] On May 18, 2009, the call letters changed to KOMO-FM. In June 2017, the outright sale of the station to the Sinclair Broadcast Group (which had acquired Fisher several years earlier) for $6.75 million was announced. [7] The sale received Federal Communications Commission (FCC) approval several years later, and was consummated on June 9, 2020. [6]

On June 3, 2021, Sinclair announced they would sell KOMO-AM-FM, KVI, and KPLZ-FM to Lotus Communications for $18 million. Of the $18 million, $5 million was in cash paid at closing; the remainder was Lotus' choice of either cash or advertising for Sinclair properties on Lotus' stations. Sinclair retained KOMO-TV, as well as rights to the KOMO call letters. Lotus and Sinclair also agreed to allow Lotus to use Sinclair equipment and IT systems, including sub-leasing the current KOMO studios, for 18 months following the sale. [8] The sale was completed on September 28, 2021. [9] As required by the terms of the sale, the KOMO radio stations will change their call signs to KNWN on February 2, 2022, in conjunction with a rebranding as "Northwest News Radio"; during the week preceding the relaunch, competitor KIRO-FM preemptively began promoting itself as "Your Northwest News Station". [10]

Translators

KOMO-FM is also carried on the following booster and FM translator stations to improve reception of the station:

Related Research Articles

KOMO-TV, virtual channel 4, is an ABC-affiliated television station licensed to Seattle, Washington, United States, and also serving Tacoma. Owned by the Hunt Valley, Maryland–based Sinclair Broadcast Group, it is part of a duopoly with Bellevue-licensed Univision affiliate KUNS-TV. Both stations share studios within KOMO Plaza in the Lower Queen Anne section of Seattle, while KOMO-TV's transmitter is located in the city's Queen Anne neighborhood.

KOMO (AM) Radio station in Seattle, Washington

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W248AW Radio station translator

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References

  1. ↑ FCC.gov/KOMO-FM
  2. ↑ Radio-Locator.com/KOMO-FM
  3. ↑ Information from Broadcasting Yearbook 1988 page B-301
  4. ↑ Broadcasting Yearbook 2000 page D-482
  5. ↑ "KFMY Becomes KOMO-FM". 15 May 2009.
  6. 1 2 "Deal Digest: Sinclair Now Owns Another FM In Seattle Market". Inside Radio. June 11, 2020. Retrieved January 4, 2022.
  7. ↑ Station Sales Week Of 6/23: Sinclair Purchases KOMO-FM Lance Venta, Radio Insight, June 23, 2017
  8. ↑ "More Details On Lotus' Purchase Of Sinclair's Seattle Radio Properties". RadioInsight. Retrieved 2021-06-19.
  9. ↑ Venta, Lance (September 28, 2021). "Lotus Closes On Purchase Of Sinclair's Seattle Radio Properties". RadioInsight. Retrieved September 29, 2021.
  10. ↑ Venta, Lance (January 28, 2022). "A Northwest News Battle Arises In Seattle As KOMO Is Set To Become KNWN". RadioInsight. Retrieved January 28, 2022.
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