CHBE-FM (107.3 MHz) is a

commercial Commercial may refer to: * a dose of advertising conveyed through media (such as - for example - radio or television) ** Radio advertisement ** Television advertisement * (adjective for:) commerce, a system of voluntary exchange of products and s ...

radio station Radio broadcasting is transmission of audio (sound), sometimes with related metadata, by radio waves to radio receivers belonging to a public audience. In terrestrial radio broadcasting the radio waves are broadcast by a land-based radio ...

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, for ...

. The station is owned by

Bell Media Bell Media Inc. (French: ) is a Canadian company formed by the amalgamation of several companies. Establishment (2011–13) On December 9, 2011, the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan announced the sale of its majority stake in Maple Leaf Sports ...

and broadcasts a Top 40/CHR

format Format may refer to: Printing and visual media * Text formatting, the typesetting of text elements * Paper formats, or paper size standards * Newspaper format, the size of the paper page Computing * File format, particular way that informatio ...

. The

radio studio A recording studio is a specialized facility for sound recording, mixing, and audio production of instrumental or vocal musical performances, spoken words, and other sounds. They range in size from a small in-home project studio large enou ...

s and offices are on Broad Street in Victoria. CHBE has an

effective radiated power Effective radiated power (ERP), synonymous with equivalent radiated power, is an IEEE standardized definition of directional radio frequency (RF) power, such as that emitted by a radio transmitter. It is the total power in watts that would h ...

(ERP) of 20,000

watt The watt (symbol: W) is the unit of power or radiant flux in the International System of Units (SI), equal to 1 joule per second or 1 kg⋅m2⋅s−3. It is used to quantify the rate of energy transfer. The watt is named after James ...

s horizontal polarization only. The

transmitter In electronics and telecommunications, a radio transmitter or just transmitter is an electronic device which produces radio waves with an antenna. The transmitter itself generates a radio frequency alternating current, which is applied to the ...

is on Claudette Court in Victoria. CHBE broadcasts using

HD Radio HD Radio (HDR) is a trademark for an in-band on-channel (IBOC) digital radio broadcast technology. It generally simulcasts an existing analog radio station in digital format with less noise and with additional text information. HD Radio is used ...

technology. The HD-2

digital subchannel In broadcasting, digital subchannels are a method of transmitting more than one independent program stream simultaneously from the same digital radio or television station on the same radio frequency channel. This is done by using data compres ...

carries the talk format on co-owned CFAX. The HD3 subchannel rebroadcasts the comedy format heard on

CKST CKST (1040 AM) is a radio station in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Owned by Bell Media, it broadcasts comedy-oriented programming, including stand-up comedy routines. CKST's studios are located on Robson and Burrard Street in Downt ...

History

CFEX (2000-2004)

The station received approval in October 1999. It originally launched in May 26, 2000 as CFEX, a

modern rock Modern rock is an umbrella term used to describe rock music that is found on college rock radio stations. Some radio stations use this term to distinguish themselves from classic rock, which is based in 1960s–1980s rock music. Radio format Mod ...

station branded as ''Extreme 107.3''. It was owned by Seacoast Communications, which also owned CFAX in the city. On August 16,

2002 File:2002 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 2002 Winter Olympics are held in Salt Lake City; Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and her daughter Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon die; East Timor gains East Timor independence, indepe ...

, at 1:07 p.m., it changed to adult hits as ''B107.3''.

Kool FM (2004-2019)

CFAX and CHBE were acquired by CHUM Limited in November

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight ...

. On the 19th of that month, CHBE began playing all

Christmas music Christmas music comprises a variety of genres of music regularly performed or heard around the Christmas season. Music associated with Christmas may be purely instrumental, or, in the case of carols or songs, may employ lyrics whose subject ...

. At Midnight on December 26, CHBE changed to

hot AC Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul, R&B, quiet sto ...

as ''107.3 Kool FM'', bringing back the format since

CHTT-FM CHTT-FM is a Canadian radio station in Victoria, British Columbia, which airs at 103.1 FM. The station, owned by Rogers Sports & Media, airs an adult hits format branded as ''Jack 103.1''. Its studios are located at 817 Fort Street in Downtown ...

flipped to adult hits in January that year. Kool's first song was

The Black Eyed Peas Black Eyed Peas (also known as The Black Eyed Peas) is an American musical group consisting of rappers will.i.am, apl.de.ap, Taboo (rapper), Taboo. The group's line-up during the height of their popularity in the 2000s featured Fergie (singer ...

' ''

Let's Get It Started "Let's Get It Started" is a song recorded by American group the Black Eyed Peas. It is a clean version of "Let's Get Retarded" from their third studio album, '' Elephunk'' (2003). The album version was originally only reworked for its use in pr ...

''. CHUM Ltd., in turn, was purchased on June 22,

2007 File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple Inc., Apple's first iPhone (1st generation), iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakis ...

by CTVglobemedia, which now owns CFAX, CHBE and CIVI-TV in Victoria. Months later, CTVglobemedia would acquire CFBT-FM in

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the city, up from 631,486 in 2016. ...

, with CHBE shifting to Top 40/CHR. The shift to

top 40 In the music industry, the Top 40 is the current, 40 most-popular songs in a particular genre. It is the best-selling or most frequently broadcast popular music. Record charts have traditionally consisted of a total of 40 songs. "Top 40" or "cont ...

proved unsuccessful, and around August 2010, songs from the

1980s File:1980s replacement montage02.PNG, 420px, From left, clockwise: The first Space Shuttle, ''Columbia'', lifts off in 1981; US president Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev ease tensions between the two superpowers, leading to the ...

and

1990s File:1990s decade montage.png, From top left, clockwise: The Hubble Space Telescope orbits the Earth after it was launched in 1990; American General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon, F-16s and McDonnell Douglas F-15 Eagle, F-15s fly over burning o ...

were phased back in the playlist, bringing the station back to hot AC. The station placed 3rd in the Spring 2012 BBM Ratings for Victoria. In its final rating survey as "Kool", the radio station placed 6th for the fall 2018 Numeris Diary Survey for Victoria.http://assets.numeris.ca/Downloads/2018_Fall_Radio_DI_TopLineReports.pdf

Virgin Radio (2019-present)

On February 8, 2019, the station re-branded as ''107.3

Virgin Radio Virgin Radio launched in the United Kingdom in 1993. In 2008, Virgin Radio UK was sold to TIML, a subsidiary of The Times of India group, and the name was changed to Absolute Radio; the Virgin Radio name was not included in the sale. In 2001, ...

''. The last song played on "Kool" was " Thank U, Next" by

Ariana Grande Ariana Grande-Butera ( ; born June 26, 1993) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Her four-octave vocal range has received critical acclaim, and her personal life has been the subject of widespread media attention. She has received ...

, while the first song on "Virgin" was " High Hopes" by

Panic! At the Disco Panic! at the Disco is the solo project of American musician Brendon Urie. It was originally a pop rock band from Las Vegas, Nevada, formed in 2004 by childhood friends Urie, Ryan Ross, Spencer Smith, and Brent Wilson. They recorded their fi ...

References

External links

107.3 Virgin Radio
* * HBE HBE HBE Radio stations established in 2000 2000 establishments in British Columbia Virgin Radio {{BritishColumbia-radio-station-stub