Big 106.2
City | Auckland, New Zealand |
---|---|
Slogan | "Move to the Sound of Auckland" |
Frequency | 106.2 MHz |
First air date | 1 November 2008 |
Format | Adult contemporary |
Language(s) | English |
Owner | Big Radio Limited |
Website | Official website (link dead) |
Big 106.2 or Big FM was a radio station in Auckland New Zealand that launched on 1 November 2008 at 9AM, broadcasting on 106.2FM. The original station was started by radio veterans Larry Summerville and Bernie Brown and was owned and operated by Big Radio Limited. The original station played Adult Contemporary music. In April 2010 there were reports that Big FM had been sold to Thane and Richard Kirby for an undisclosed sum. Thane Kirby is the founder of Auckland radio stations, George FM, UpFM, and Base FM and the now defunct TV station ALT TV. On 1 May 2010 the current format was supposedly dropped and a spoiler format known as Big Time FM was launched. Most of the announcers disappeared from the station around this time as well. The station was planning to launch its new format in June 2010.[1][2]
Big FM was one of the few stations in New Zealand not owned or operated by New Zealand's two largest radio companies RadioWorks or The Radio Network, thanks to the limited commercial licence Big FM broadcast on neither company could purchase the station when it came up for sale.
On 23 June 2010 the station unexpectedly went off the air. No press release was issued as to why the station went off the air and the main indicator that Big FM was no longer operating from a comment left from a Big FM staff member on their Facebook page saying "arghh ** Gurgle gurlge .....gasp - - - splutter..... sssssssss".[3] The Big FM website was up for a time after it went off-air with no news as to what had been happening, and clicking on the web stream on the page brought up an error.
There were several complaints on Big FM's Facebook page from listeners unhappy at the changes made.[4] The Facebook page was removed in mid-September 2010, while the Big FM website was taken down in early November 2010.
In April 2011, the 106.2FM frequency began transmissions by Hindi radio station Humm FM.
Announcers
Big FM's original lineup was as follows.[5]
- Breakfast 5.30am - 10am: Brent Harbour (who went on to work in radio in Dubai before returning to Mediaworks) & Lance Dunne (now breakfast host on Rodney's More FM - formerly Times FM)
- Daytime 10am - 2pm: Suzy Cato
- Drive 2pm - 7pm: Tony Ujdur
- Nights 7pm - 12am: Nick Robinson
During the period between 1 May and 23 June when the station went off the air there were no announcers on the air.
References
- ↑ "BIGFM sold to Kirby bros".
- ↑ "Independent radio Big FM changing hands". The New Zealand Herald. 23 April 2010.
- ↑ https://www.facebook.com/pages/Auckland-New-Zealand/BIG-1062/31820256921?v=wall&story_fbid=132257330129140&ref=mf
- ↑ https://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Auckland-New-Zealand/BIG-1062/31820256921?ref=ts
- ↑ http://www.bigfm.co.nz/OnAir/tabid/62/Default.aspx