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KVPW

For the Kingsburg, California radio station that held the call sign KVPW at 106.3 FM from 2007 to 2019, see KUFW (FM).

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KVPW (97.7 MHz) is a radio station licensed to serve Mecca, California, broadcasting to the Coachella Valley area. The transmitter is in a mountain range north of Bermuda Dunes. It is an owned and operated affiliate VCY America, airing a Christian format.

History[edit]

Early years[edit]

The Federal Communications Commission held a spectrum auction for the 97.7 frequency in Mecca in the late 1990s, and issued a construction permit to the winning bid, Playa del Sol Broadcasters, on April 7, 1998. During construction, the station was assigned the KRCK-FM call sign on February 1, 1999.^[2] The station received its broadcast license in summer 2001. On June 20, 2001, KRCK-FM signed on. The station originally had an '80s rock format branded as "K-Rock", but was ordered to drop the use of the slogan due to a possible trademark infringement with KROQ-FMofPasadena. After that, KRCK-FM flipped to Top 40 (CHR), branded as "Hot 97.7". This would happen in the summer of 2006.

CHR era[edit]

For the first 18 months, the airstaff consisted of Kid Corona in afternoon drive and Chase Martinez in nights, with the station being automated for the remaining dayparts. In 2007, the station introduced new sonic imaging and rebranded as "Hot Hits 97.7 KRCK". In 2010, it rebranded again as "Hot 97.7 KRCK".

In 2016, the station was sold to Major Market Radio LLC, a subsidiary of Royce International Broadcasting Corp. (led by radio entrepreneur Ed Stolz), former owner of what is now KEXC. The sale was approved on July 26, and was consummated on the 29th.

In 2018, KRCK-FM placed its new HD radio transmitter on the air, with a Talk radio format heard on the HD2 format. Translators at 98.1 MHz and on 95.5 FM in the Coachella area relay the HD2 subchannel, which itself is a simulcast of Las Vegas station KBET. The agreement was nullified after the VCY LMA came into effect.

ASCAP lawsuit and attempted receivership sale[edit]

From April 2016 - June 2018, on behalf of W.B. Music and other music companies, ASCAP successfully sued Royce International Broadcasting Corp. and its subsidiaries for copyright infringement. The result was a $330,000 judgment, increased to over $1.3 million with attorney fees and sanctions.

After the defendants were unable to pay, KRCK-FM was transferred into a court-ordered receivership controlled by broker Larry Patrick on July 6, 2020, along with two other CHR stations mentioned in the lawsuit, KFRH in Las Vegas and KREV-FM in San Francisco.^[3]

The Court Order appointing the receiver authorized Larry Patrick to take control of the three named FM radio stations, and to『solicit offers for the sale of Defendants’ Radio Stations’ assets.』However, that appointment order did not give Mr. Patrick control of the business entities. On December 30, 2020, it was announced that VCY America would acquire the three stations.^[4]

On March 15, 2021, after Judge Jesus Bernal denied Stolz' bid to end the receivership and have the stations returned to him, VCY America began operating the three stations under an LMA (local marketing agreement) while the sale of the stations was being finalized.^[5]

On January 31, 2022, federal Judge August B. Landis apparently quashed the sale of the stations by ordering Receiver Larry Patrick to turn over control of KRCK-FM (and Stolz's other two FM stations) back to Stolz's companies. The agreement with Larry Patrick was dissolved; the radio station was taken off the air, and its website suspended. In October 2023, VCY America participated in a bankruptcy auction for these stations and was the winning bidder for KFRH, KRCK-FM its two translators in the Palm Springs area for $2,445,952.88.^[6]

The station changed its call sign to KVPW on February 9, 2024 and in May 2024 it became an affiliate of VCY America.^[7]

References[edit]

External links[edit]

• KVPW in the FCC FM station database
• KVPWinNielsen Audio's FM station database
• K238AK in the FCC FM station database
• K238AK at FCCdata.org
• K251BX in the FCC FM station database
• K251BX at FCCdata.org

33°48′04″N 116°13′30″W / 33.801°N 116.225°W / 33.801; -116.225