WKMX explained

WKMX
City:Enterprise, Alabama
Area:Dothan, Alabama
Branding:106-7 KMX
Airdate:November 27, 1974
Frequency:106.7 MHz
Format:Top 40 (CHR)
Erp:100,000 watts
Haat:326 meters (1070 feet)
Class:C
Facility Id:73179
Coordinates:31.4114°N -85.9589°W
Callsign Meaning:MX = "Mix"[1]
Affiliations:Westwood One
Owner:Gulf South Communications
Sister Stations:WTVY-FM, WDJR, WDBT
Webcast:Listen Live
Licensing Authority:FCC

WKMX-FM (106.7 MHz) is a radio station broadcasting a Top 40 (CHR) format.[2] Licensed to Enterprise, Alabama, United States, the station serves the Dothan, Alabama, metropolitan area. WKMX-FM is a 100,000-watt Top 40 station owned by Digio Strategies and features Atlanta syndicated "The Bert Show" in the mornings.

History

In 1974, veterinarian Jones Wallace Miller was granted a construction permit for a new FM radio station to broadcast with 100,000 watts of effective radiated power on 106.7 MHz. It began broadcasting on November 27, 1974.[3] [4] In 1979, WKMX was broadcasting a middle of the road music format.[5]

In June 2004, WKMX Inc. (Wallace Miller, president) made a deal to sell WKMX after 30 years of continuous ownership to Styles Media Group LLC (Thomas A. DiBacco, managing member) for a reported sale price of $4.5 million.[6] The deal gained FCC approval on August 4, 2004, and was consummated on September 3, 2004.[7] In 2006, Styles Broadcasting became the Magic Broadcasting Company.[8] After the sale to Magic Broadcasting, the WKMX studio and business offices were moved from downtown Enterprise to a facility on the 7th and 8th floors of the historic Houston Hotel, since renamed the Charles Woods Building, in downtown Dothan.

In 2011, the station was sold again, this time along with sister properties WTVY-FM, WJRL-FM, WLDA, and WBBK-FM. WKMX and WTVY were sold to Gulf South Communications, where they became sister stations to WDJR and WUSD, while WJRL-FM and WLDA were sold to Southeast Alabama Broadcasters, which now owns them along with WDBT and WESP. WBBK was sold to a third company, Alabama Media Investments.[9] The sale was consummated on December 1, 2011. As a result of this sale, the WKMX studio moved to its current location on Highway 231 on Dothan's northwest side.

Controversy

The station drew national attention in May 2001 when WKMX, Inc., filed a federal lawsuit against The Coca-Cola Company alleging that the soda giant stole the station's name and colors for its KMX energy drink.[10] In June 2003, then-general manager Terry Duffie told the press that "the matter has been resolved" although no details of any settlement were revealed.[11]

External links

Notes and References

  1. News: Call Letter Origins . 238 . The Broadcast Archive . Nelson . Bob . June 2, 2009 . June 21, 2009.
  2. Web site: WKMX Facility Record . United States Federal Communications Commission, audio division.
  3. Book: Broadcasting Yearbook 1975 . 1975 . C-5 . The Facilities of Radio . Broadcasting Publications, Inc. . Washington, D.C..
  4. News: Radio Daily News . Enterprise's only radio station . January 2004 . 2008-12-24 . https://web.archive.org/web/20090212134959/http://radiodailynews.com/rdncentralarchives-2004-1.htm . 2009-02-12 . dead .
  5. Book: 1979 Broadcasting Yearbook . 1979 . C-4 . The Facilities of Radio . Broadcasting Publications, Inc. . Washington, D.C..
  6. News: Changing Hands - 7/12/2004 . Broadcasting & Cable . July 12, 2004.
  7. Web site: FCC Media Bureau . Application Search Details (BALH-20040615ACJ) . September 3, 2004.
  8. Web site: Don McCoy's Magic House . Life Story . December 19, 2008 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160817125330/http://www.donmccoy.com/story.html . August 17, 2016 . dead . mdy-all .
  9. Web site: Seven stations are changing hands in Dothan, Alabama . February 16, 2011 . Radio-Info.com.
  10. News: Atlanta Journal-Constitution . Daily Briefing . May 11, 2001 . C2 . WKMX Inc., an FM radio station, filed a lawsuit, alleging that Atlanta-based Coca-Cola Co. and its biggest bottler stole the station's name and colors for its KMX energy drink. In a federal suit filed in Dothan, WKMX said it's the top station for young adult listeners in its market and has used those call letters since 1974..
  11. News: Airplay Monitors . RADIOACTIVE: LA Station Presents NY Show . June 20, 2003 . Two years ago, adult top 40 WKMX Dothan, Ala., sued Coca-Cola over its new soft drink, DMX. Now, GM Terry Duffie says that the matter has been resolved; no details were disclosed..