KVPW

Last updated
KVPW
Broadcast area Palm Springs, California
Frequency 97.7 MHz
Programming
Format Silent
Ownership
Owner
  • Major Market Radio LLC
  • (Bankruptcy Estate of Major Market Radio, LLC)
History
First air date
June 20, 2001 (2001-06-20)
Former call signs
KRCK-FM (1999–2024)
Technical information [1]
Licensing authority
 FCC
Facility ID 52808
Class A
ERP 1,600 watts
HAAT 174 meters (571 ft)
Translator(s)
Links
Public license information

KVPW (97.7 MHz) is a radio station licensed to serve Mecca, California, broadcasting to the Coachella Valley area. The station's studios are in Palm Desert, while the transmitter is in a mountain range north of Bermuda Dunes. It is owned by the Bankruptcy Estate of Major Market Radio, LLC. The station was put into a receivership by court order in July 2020. On March 15, 2021, VCY America, which owns Christian stations across the U.S., began operating the station under a local marketing agreement (LMA). On January 31, 2022, a court ordered possession and control of the station back to Major Market Radio LLC.

Contents

History

Early years

The Federal Communications Commission held a spectrum auction for the 97.7 frequency in Mecca in the late 1990s, and issued a construction permit to the winning bid, Playa del Sol Broadcasters, on April 7, 1998. During construction, the station was assigned the KRCK-FM call sign on February 1, 1999. [2] The station received its broadcast license in summer 2001. On June 20, 2001, KRCK-FM signed on. The station originally had an '80s rock format branded as "K-Rock", but was ordered to drop the use of the slogan due to a possible trademark infringement with KROQ-FM of Pasadena. After that, KRCK-FM flipped to Top 40 (CHR), branded as "Hot 97.7". This would happen in the summer of 2006.

CHR era

For the first 18 months, the airstaff consisted of Kid Corona in afternoon drive and Chase Martinez in nights, with the station being automated for the remaining dayparts. In 2007, the station introduced new sonic imaging and rebranded as "Hot Hits 97.7 KRCK". In 2010, it rebranded again as "Hot 97.7 KRCK".

In 2016, the station was sold to Major Market Radio LLC, a subsidiary of Royce International Broadcasting Corp. (led by radio entrepreneur Ed Stolz), former owner of what is now KEXC. The sale was approved on July 26, and was consummated on the 29th.

In 2018, KRCK-FM placed its new HD radio transmitter on the air, with a Talk radio format heard on the HD2 format. Translators at 98.1 MHz and on 95.5 FM in the Coachella area relay the HD2 subchannel, which itself is a simulcast of Las Vegas station KBET. The agreement was nullified after the VCY LMA came into effect.

ASCAP lawsuit and attempted Receivership sale

From April 2016 - June 2018, on behalf of W.B. Music and other music companies, ASCAP successfully sued Royce International Broadcasting Corp. and its subsidiaries for copyright infringement. The result was a $330,000 judgment, increased to over $1.3 million with attorney fees and sanctions. [3]

After the defendants were unable to pay, KRCK-FM was transferred into a court-ordered receivership controlled by broker Larry Patrick on July 6, 2020, along with two other CHR stations mentioned in the lawsuit, KFRH in Las Vegas and KREV-FM in San Francisco. [4]

The Court Order appointing the receiver authorized Larry Patrick to take control of the three named FM radio stations, and to "solicit offers for the sale of Defendants’ Radio Stations’ assets." However, that appointment order did not give Mr. Patrick control of the business entities. [3] On December 30, 2020, it was announced that VCY America would acquire the three stations. [5]

The December 28, 2020 Asset Purchase Agreement entered into by Larry Patrick has been criticized for being a "fire sale price" of $6 million for all three FM stations, and also because the contract was signed by "W. Lawrence Patrick, solely in his capacity as court-appointed receiver for Silver State Broadcasting LLC, Golden State Broadcasting LLC, and Major Market Radio LLC," while the appointment order clearly states that Patrick is receiver over the three FM stations only, not the business entities. [3]

On March 15, 2021, after Judge Jesus Bernal denied Stolz' bid to end the receivership and have the stations returned to him, VCY America began operating the three stations under an LMA (local marketing agreement) while the sale of the stations was being finalized. [6]

The LMA, which cost VCY America $5,000 / month to operate all three FM stations, has been criticized for being underpriced. A comparable LMA for a San Francisco FM radio station was $80,000 / month for one station. As with the Asset Purchase Agreement, the LMA was entered into by Larry Patrick purportedly as receiver of the business entities, while the Order of Appointment states that Patrick is receiver over the FM radio assets only. [3]

On January 31, 2022, federal Judge August B. Landis apparently quashed the sale of the stations by ordering Receiver Larry Patrick to turn over control of KRCK-FM (and Stolz's other two FM stations) back to Stolz's companies. [7] The agreement with Larry Patrick was dissolved; the radio station is currently off the air, and the website is suspended. The three radio stations have since been auctioned off and the winning bidders had until November 7, 2023 to designate which leases in contracts they would assume and reject. On November 14, the judge was to grant final approval of the auction winners.

The station changed its call sign to KVPW on February 9, 2024.

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References

  1. ↑ "Facility Technical Data for KVPW". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
  2. ↑ "Query the REC California FM station database for KVPW". REC Networks. Retrieved 3 August 2020.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Baker, Alex (15 July 2021). "Ed Stolz: Off the Canvas, Fighting Back in Legal Brawl Over FM Radio Stations". Pmjmp.org. Retrieved 5 February 2022.
  4. ↑ "Ed Stolz Avoids Jail; Makes Last Ditch Attempt To Retain Stations". Radioionsight.com. Retrieved 5 February 2022.
  5. ↑ Venta, Lance (30 December 2020). "VCY America Acquires Ed Stolz' Las Vegas, Palm Springs & San Francisco FMs From Receivership". Radio Insight. Retrieved 3 January 2020.
  6. ↑ "VCY America To Begin LMA Of Three Stations From Stolz' Receivership". Radioinsight.com. Retrieved 5 February 2022.
  7. ↑ Baker, Alex (1 February 2022). "Huge Win For Ed Stolz! Radio Stations Ordered Back Into His Control". Pmjmp.org. Retrieved 5 February 2022.

33°48′04″N116°13′30″W / 33.801°N 116.225°W / 33.801; -116.225

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