There will be some shake ups in Austin radio starting this Friday that may cause you to change some of your station presets.
After 19 years, popular Austin radio station KGSR is moving -- not out of town -- just down the dial. It will slide down to 93.3 FM and soon a Spanish language format station will move in to the 107.1 FM slot. And that leaves Hot 93.3 out in the cold.
"Friday at 5 p.m., Hot 93.3 will flip from the hip hop format to simulcasting 107.1 KGSR on the 93.3. Frequency," said Chase Rupe, Emmis of Austin Operations Manager.
KGSR will continue simulcasting on both frequencies for 10 days.
"And then on November 30th at 5 p.m. we will debut a new Spanish language regional Mexican format on the 107.1 frequency," Rupe said.
Chase Rupe, the operations manager for Emmis Austin, says the move down the dial is a step up for KGSR. The 93.3 signal is broadcast from a 100-thousand watt tower in Cedar Park, twice the signal strength of 107.1's Bastrop based tower which should open up the iconic Austin adult alternative station to even more listeners.
"Its position basically allows the station to reach Williamson County which is sort of a sore spot for the 107.1 frequency," Rupe said.
Conversely, Rupe says the Bastrop based tower of 107.1 is perfect for the Hispanic community in Southeast Austin.
"Change in the air and now change in the airwaves," said KGSR DJ Jody Denberg.
Denberg says there may be some confusion in the beginning, but the move should prove to be a boon for KGSR listeners and Emmis of Austin.
"In the beginning some people may tune in and hear a Spanish language station and think what happened to KGSR but I think in time they find that we're just a little bit further left down the dial, they'll find us," Denberg said.
Emmis of Austin admits, like any business decision, the move was financially motivated. But according to Emmis, Hot 93.3 was a ratings winner and a money maker.
A company spokesman says it would have been easy to stay with what's working, but in the end Emmis just felt this was the best fit at this time.
