QM/FM Among 10 Bell AC’s Switched to ‘MOVE RADIO’

It’s funny how they left CHUM. These big companies don’t care about any other market other than Toronto. CHQM is a heritage station that still performs well. But sure, let’s mess with a legend to save on imaging and make syndication easier.

Lots of branding stations when will station be able to put there own music on like the older days hate when its the same playlist across canada

It might still be the same playlist as when it was qmfm still. They were very repititive in recent years anyway. Their easy listening brand is a misnomer really. Mostly top 40 anyway. Hope the breeze improves with more obscure 60s 70s 80s rather than simply staying on topic or even maybe changing format under any name. We still need a true easy listening station like the jewel fm network back east. Evanov, kill pulse 107.7 and turn it into one of those and put on the roger ashby oldie show and have tom lucas do his as well as his real estate program. Anything with 50s 60s 70s 80s oldies as a mainstay will keep me hooked.

What else do you expect from the phone company …. it is all about marketing … not broadcasting or actually serving the city or community….

On top of my favorite station EZ Rock changing to this Move thing, they have also apparently fired Andy and TJ my beloved morning hosts. Not sure what I will listen to now.

it was bound to happen, “heritage” stations do not exist a change is needed. the biggest thing is to do nothing. more change is needed like 104.9, 99.3, 104.3 fm in Vancouver

Actually, 104.3 is a heritage station kinda under a different name. Basically like kiss fm was in the 90s and early 2000s before the jack fm switch. They just need to add more older songs and have an oldie show weekends and scrap the jazz show nights. If they dont, 104.9 needs to switch back to oldies, if not then 730 or 1410, or even pulse fm should be sold to evanov and turned into jewel fm.

cam breeze is national branding just like the move radio is

It may be national branding, but at least the three stations are kinda heritage branding. At least its not quite all american or “cascadian” like jack fm. Modern version of network began in england and new zealand. Breeze here anyway ironically seems to have increasingly same playlist as move fm.

Another example of the move to corporate radio. The ownership has nothing to do with history/heritage, local news or community event coverage or popular program hosts. It’s all about the bottom line and if they can save money by programming in one location, they’ll do that in a heartbeat. In most cases, these large companies are in Toronto so the rest of the country pretty much gets forgotten in all their programming. Elsewhere, smaller stations are centring their programming in one location and feeding even smaller communities various dayparts thereby eliminating employees in those smaller markets. Although not clairvoyant, I seem to recall many of us predicting things like this in the mid-’80’s. Sadly, this practice is not over yet.

Sure, let’s flush 50 years of brand equity down the toilet, just so we can save a few dollars when we do promotions and branding.

And as for the CISL 650 shutdown a few years back, sure, just flush a long standing absolutely perfect older and anti hipster format down the toilet completely, just so our hockey team will still be broadcast on the radio and so that the lady that was on the station before the shutdown can get on hold trying to get through on the sports talk radio program the jim rome show trying to get through which she never will, no names mentioned, simona.

Strange that they would include a popular station like 103.5. Mind you, corporate-led name takeovers are nothing new; think about Virgin Radio/Z95.3 and more recently Virgin Radio/The Beat. But it’s not like QMFM’s playlist has changed at all — a little disappointing for me but I’m sure it’s just fine with most of their listeners.

As for those hoping for change from the Breeze:forget it. If a station is thinking of a revamp, it’s usually just after Christmas. Not only have they not done that, they haven’t changed their playlist at all. Maybe it’s purely surviving on the success of their Edmonton and San Francisco markets, which would seem to be an even better example of corporate influence. But realistically, as much as many would like to see an oldies format back again, how often does a station admit defeat by switching back to the same format they once abandoned? Not likely.

Well, I actually liked the switch to the breeze in the first place too, for then it was more of an easy listening oriented station. But now, except for friday mornings, there seemed to be mainly the same playlist as qm/move and not enough pre 1980. And in response to nicolas: format changes happened before outside of december. Fm 104.9 greatest hits and CISL both changed under any name in late summer. And the breezes move if and when it happens I figure will be hip hop or south asian or worldbeat or even a country music format. There should have been a 60s 70s soft oldie show on 104.3 weekends. And its staying as is possibly on the synergy of a respite from the coronavirus. So, hint for management: listen to your employees and listen to your customers, or expect your customers to just stop being picky about music overall. And I agree with terry bell as well especially the last part, for even coop radio today is a shadow of its former self, turned into college/blm activist radio mainly.

I liked the Breeze when it first came out as well, as no other station played that sort of music except 103.5 after 9pm (and ironically, looks like that segment is now being discontinued). But I get tired of almost any station if I’m hearing the same songs day after day.

I agree that management needs to listen to both employees and customers. Sadly, it’s becoming increasingly uncommon in the music industry. 103.5 had its music listener feedback; now I wonder if that’s going to go away as well.

Long time listener to 103.5 The Breeze. Very disappointed in the change to the new MOVE radio.
Seems like listening to a bubble gum station. All the music is the same and teeniebopper like. Hard to differentiate between songs. Sorry but not impressed. Time to switch.

Terry: you are correct that 103.5 plays almost all uptempo music now that can be hard to differentiate, but for the record, 104.3 The Breeze and 103.5 Move FM are two different stations.

Terry: I agree but mostly qmfm before the “move” (get it??) is 90 percent the same even during the love song program except sometimes. Now if 104.3 could get rid of the jazz show. And keep the breeze and add a 60s 70s soft oldie show in lieu of its old format a la kiss fm in 90s.

Cam: or get rid of the jazz show and have Stacy’s dedication/request program extended until 12:00am. Haven’t the foggiest idea why they haven’t done that yet as Stacy already is broadcast on the Edmonton Breeze until that time. So it would cost them nothing and be a great way to take advantage of 103.5’s programming change.

I agree so much with nicolas. However, its a programming licence from the crtc left behind from the stations era of shore fm. They need to absolutely drop that licence overall and if they dont, then they have to naturally switch to hip hop or country or even south asian or worldbeat, for….. what else is there? So memo to 104.3 management: take off the licence or switch completely under any name.

John beaudin is still on 103.5. But looks like the love song program is officially done for good. What else can I say?