Surf FM - History

History

Surf FM first switched on its Frankston transmitter on the 1st of October 2001. Soon after the station commenced some live programming presented by a team of young adults, programming a youth-oriented dance music format.

This team had disbanded by mid-2003 and Surf FM experienced a quiet period when it was not always on the air. Activity was revived in 2005 when national dance network Raw FM installed a satellite dish on the roof of the Surf FM studios to coincide with a national tour of outside beach broadcasts. For a period of time Surf FM would relay Raw FM's programming to make use of the satellite feed and fill airtime.

In August 2007 Cranbourne resident Ian Wood joined Frankston resident Justin Christie as a co-owner of the radio station and soon after a second licence was purchased. It took about 14 months to secure transmitter site approvals and install broadcast equipment at the new site in Cranbourne. Surf FM relaunched as a networked radio station on the 16th of December 2008 when it switched on its Cranbourne transmitter.

In the same year, Surf FM's music format was in a "holding pattern", broadcasting only 60's and 70's music as a novelty tribute to the defunct Melbourne commercial radio brand 3TT which had first gone to air approximately 20 years earlier. During a 9 month period, Surf FM limited its music to compacts discs and music charts specifically issued by 3TT between 1988 and 1989.

Within weeks of launching into Cranbourne, Surf FM changed course and adopted a more contemporary music format. Soon after a syndicated news service including hourly news bulletins was added to the format. During this period of Surf FM's life (between 2009 and 2012) the station gained substantial experience with live outside broadcasts, making use of internet enabled technologies not as widely available as when the station first aired in 2001.

On the 15th of December 2011 Surf FM switched on a third transmitter in Berwick to provide improved coverage within the City of Casey.

Then at 4pm on the 23rd of December 2011 the network extended across Metropolitan Melbourne for the first time by launching a second radio brand - Surf City Sound - transmitting on 1674 kHz (AM band) with a much greater coverage transmitter located in Werribee South, on the northern edges of Port Phillip Bay (much of Metropolitan Melbourne wraps around the shores of this bay).

Surf City Sound shares its AM band frequency in partnership with Melbourne Jewish Radio (also known as LION 1674). While LION occupies 120 hours of airtime mostly on the weekdays, Surf City Sound occupies a weekend segment between 12pm Friday and 12pm Sunday, coinciding with the Jewish Shabbat (day of rest). The first song to air on Surf City Sound was On The Floor by Jennifer Lopez featuring Pitbull.