*** Welcome to piglix ***

CIQM-FM

CIQM-FM
97.5 Virgin Radio logo.svg
City London, Ontario
Branding 97.5 Virgin Radio
Slogan London's #1 Hit Music Station
Frequency 97.5 MHz (FM)
First air date 1986 (at 103.1 FM)
Format CHR
Audience share Increase 10.3%
ERP 50,000 watts
Class B
Owner Bell Media
(Bell Media Radio)
Sister stations CJBK, CJBX-FM
Webcast Listen Live
Website london.virginradio.ca

CIQM-FM is an FM radio station broadcasting at 97.5 FM in London, Ontario, Canada, branded as 97-5 Virgin Radio. The station airs a CHR format. CIQM is owned by Bell Media and its sister stations include CJBX, CJBK and CKSL.

CIQM operates on a frequency once occupied by CKO from 1977 to 1989.

CIQM originally operated as "Q103" at 103.1 FM (now the home of CFHK-FM "Fresh FM" in St. Thomas) from its sign-on in 1986 until moving in 1993 to the 97.5 frequency vacated by CKO. For many years, the station was known as "Q97.5," even after taking on the "EZ Rock" trademark; in 2006, the "Q" was dropped and the station became known as simply "97.5, London's EZ Rock."

On September 6, 2010, CIQM underwent several changes, including a tweak in branding (as "The New Sound of EZ Rock"), a new logo and new on-air staff. The station moved from its 24-year-old adult contemporary format to hot adult contemporary. The switch was due to rival CKOT-FM switching from easy listening to a gold-based Soft AC mix, and also because of rimshot rivals CIHR-FM and CHGK-FM, both mainstream AC stations, also being heard in London. The station also dropped the decimal point from the station ID after flipping to Hot AC. Just after the format tweak, Astral switched CIQM's jingles from the adult hits jingles to the hot adult contemporary jingles. Despite all of the changes, CIQM, which once dominated the market, suffered from ratings erosion, and had the lowest share in the London CMA, and was a distant second place behind CKOT.


...
Wikipedia

...