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The Original KOST vs. KBIG Rivalry

G

Gregg.

I can remember when KOST and KBIG were owned by different companies and had recently transitioned from Easy Listening to Soft AC. KOST did it first and KBIG followed, in the 1980s. (KJOI 98.7 stayed Easy Listening a little longer.)

It sounded like KBIG copied KOST note for note. A male-female morning team was on each station back when this was not common on Soft AC. If I remember correctly, the morning teams only used their first names, usually. So KOST had something like Bob & Karen, while KBIG had something like Ken & Linda. Both had quarter hour sweeps with no talking over song intros. Playlists were nearly identical.

KOST was usually top 5 and KBIG was top 10. I guess KBIG's "big"ger signal helped when both stations were Easy Listening and were competing in both the LA and Orange County ratings. KOST was better in LA, KBIG was better in Orange County.

When you walked into stores and offices, you'd hear Kenny Rogers or Linda Ronstadt playing and have to wait for a DJ to speak to know which station was on, 103.5 or 104.3. So when did Clear Channel acquire KBIG and end the rivalry? Did Clear Channel buy KBIG and move it to Hot AC? Or did KBIG already make that adjustment and stop competing directly with KOST before they were co-owned?
 
Gregg. said:
KOST was usually top 5 and KBIG was top 10. I guess KBIG's "big"ger signal helped when both stations were Easy Listening and were competing in both the LA and Orange County ratings.
Click to expand...
Remember, the OC Arbitron book was just a "breakout with a printed cover" from the LA book, sort of like San Jose is to the San Francisco book and Long Island is to the New York City MSA book.

The only way to get the LA County data was to be a subscriber to the book and then to run a special report within the software... and that was only in the mid-90's period onwards when you could get computer data. Before that, you could manually subtract the OC report data from the full market (not precise as the OC book used the same data, but different weighting needed to create a separate "universe".
Gregg. said:
When you walked into stores and offices, you'd hear Kenny Rogers or Linda Ronstadt playing and have to wait for a DJ to speak to know which station was on, 103.5 or 104.3. So when did Clear Channel acquire KBIG and end the rivalry? Did Clear Channel buy KBIG and move it to Hot AC? Or did KBIG already make that adjustment and stop competing directly with KOST before they were co-owned?
Click to expand...
Chancellor bought KBIG from Bonneville in August 1997. Sold by what had become AM/FM to Clear in October 1999. I don't have closing dates on hand right now.

BTW, when Clear took over AM/FM, they assumed about $6.1 million in debt. The merger valued AM/FM at $23 billion.
 
I remember in the early 90s while getting a ride to school, KBIG played some songs that were more upbeat while KOST (103 as it was called back then) was on the softer side. That's how they kinda differentiated the stations even though both were considered AC
 
Gregg. said:
So when did Clear Channel acquire KBIG and end the rivalry? Did Clear Channel buy KBIG and move it to Hot AC? Or did KBIG already make that adjustment and stop competing directly with KOST before they were co-owned?
Click to expand...
What you're talking about happened well before Clear Channel.

Bonneville owned KBIG until 1997 and made the move to Hot AC in 1992.

Amplifying David's post, Bonneville did a swap with Chancellor (six stations in different markets). In 1999, Chancellor bought KFI/KOST and changed its name to AMFM.

Clear Channel swallowed AMFM in 2000 (closing date on the October '99 sale).
 
Also, a footnote: AC was not the original KOST vs. KBIG rivalry. They were head-to-head for the better part of 20 years as beautiful music stations, along with KJOI (98.7). The ranking was usually KBIG-KJOI-KOST, and they were also fending off attempts at the format from KLVE (107.9) and KWST (105.9).
 
DrAkbar said:
And at one time, KBIG was on daytimer 7~Forty and KBRT was on 104~Three. The combo was known as Big & Bright.
Click to expand...
And didn't Bonneville also have 7-Forty in Phoenix, too?
 
Gregg. said:
I can remember when KOST and KBIG were owned by different companies and had recently transitioned from Easy Listening to Soft AC. KOST did it first and KBIG followed, in the 1980s. (KJOI 98.7 stayed Easy Listening a little longer.)

It sounded like KBIG copied KOST note for note. A male-female morning team was on each station back when this was not common on Soft AC. If I remember correctly, the morning teams only used their first names, usually. So KOST had something like Bob & Karen, while KBIG had something like Ken & Linda. Both had quarter hour sweeps with no talking over song intros. Playlists were nearly identical.

KOST was usually top 5 and KBIG was top 10. I guess KBIG's "big"ger signal helped when both stations were Easy Listening and were competing in both the LA and Orange County ratings. KOST was better in LA, KBIG was better in Orange County.

When you walked into stores and offices, you'd hear Kenny Rogers or Linda Ronstadt playing and have to wait for a DJ to speak to know which station was on, 103.5 or 104.3. So when did Clear Channel acquire KBIG and end the rivalry? Did Clear Channel buy KBIG and move it to Hot AC? Or did KBIG already make that adjustment and stop competing directly with KOST before they were co-owned?
Click to expand...
Way back when. both of these stations were the leading FM "Beautiful Music" stations. Don't remember which, but one of them played syrupy instrumentals non-stop 24/7 and the other one was similar, but every three or four tunes they would throw in an MOR vocal. And then KJOI (98.7) came along doing whatever they did. Very boring radio back then for anyone under 40.
 
DrAkbar said:
And at one time, KBIG was on daytimer 7~Forty and KBRT was on 104~Three. The combo was known as Big & Bright.
Click to expand...
And even with just 10kw, AM 740 could be heard like a local more than 100 miles away in San Diego -- thanks to the saltwater path from their sticks on Catalina Island.
 
DrAkbar said:
And at one time, KBIG was on daytimer 7~Forty and KBRT was on 104~Three. The combo was known as Big & Bright.
Click to expand...
Please someone correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't believe the "KBRT" calls were ever on 104.3. I do know that KBIG 740 for a time had the calls KGLM but then reverted to KBIG and then later to KBRT,
 
Signal Geek said:
And even with just 10kw, AM 740 could be heard like a local more than 100 miles away in San Diego -- thanks to the saltwater path from their sticks on Catalina Island.
Click to expand...
Not to mention that their directional pattern main lobe was aimed right at San Diego. Based on their signal they were essentially a "local" San Diego station until 1965 when KFMB (now KGB) moved from 540 to 760 and blew 740 out of the water on wide band radios.
 
KBIG-740 seemed to be a big player when I was a kid. I can still sing their jingles. They covered San Diego to Santa Barbara from Catalina Island. Signal was a little light in Pasadena or the SF valley, but still very viable. Around 1962 they changed from MOR to Beautiful as KGLM. My cousin lived in Avalon and got us a tour of the new studio and a ride up to the transmitter on Sunday night to watch the transmitter maintenance. It had to be done when KCBS was also on a maintenance schedule.
 
Robert Douglas said:
KBIG-740 seemed to be a big player when I was a kid. I can still sing their jingles. They covered San Diego to Santa Barbara from Catalina Island. Signal was a little light in Pasadena or the SF valley, but still very viable. Around 1962 they changed from MOR to Beautiful as KGLM. My cousin lived in Avalon and got us a tour of the new studio and a ride up to the transmitter on Sunday night to watch the transmitter maintenance. It had to be done when KCBS was also on a maintenance schedule.
Click to expand...
Interesting, do you know when KGLM/KBIG moved its studio to LA ? BTW the reception problem in the SFV was from the overwhelming signal of KMPC 710 as received on many radios in the Valley.
 
I took a tour of 740 in 1973, and I'm pretty sure the call letters were KBIG at that time. I too recall their jingles, which I believe were from Pepper Tanner. "KBIG, radio Catalina, 26 miles across the sea."
 
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