Bangor, Maine, the broadcast location of Stephen King radio station WKIT, which has actually discovered a brand-new owner. Picture Credit: Vasiliymeshko
Previously in December, reports suggested that several Stephen King-owned radio stations would close down at 2024’s end. Now, among these Maine-based stations has actually supposedly been conserved thanks to a last-minute purchase.
Regional outlets simply recently clarified that eleventh-hour sale, about 3 weeks after the Portland, Maine-born author exposed strategies to stop running the stations in concern.
77-year-old King has actually long owned those stations (WKIT 100.3 FM, WZLO 620 AM, and WZON 103.1 FM), however in a declaration about the shutdowns revealed a desire to get his company affairs in much better order.
Basic supervisor Ken Wood acknowledged the stations’ large cumulative losses– with King having actually taken in the multimillion-dollar hit over the years.
WKIT 100.3 FM (explained as the most popular of the 3 stations) has actually discovered a purchaser days before its anticipated closure and is set to continue relaying as typical, per Maine’s WABI 5.
According to the exact same outlet and remarks from WKIT on-air skill, that purchaser is Bangor-based entrepreneur Jeff Solari, who, together with his organization partner Greg Hawes, is stated to have actually completed the offer.
As set out on his LinkedIn profile, Solari has significant experience in media along with radio particularly. Plus, Solari works as president of Rock Lobster Media, billed as the owner of Sports Chowdah, “Maine’s only complimentary, weekly sports e-mail newsletter.”
Furthermore, Rock Lobster “is getting a popular regional Bangor-Brewer dining establishment,” its LinkedIn description reveals, “with more to come.”
Simply put, the purchase, the financials of which have not been openly exposed, appears to make good sense on numerous levels for Solari. At the time of composing, King himself didn’t appear to have actually resolved WKIT’s brand-new ownership on social networks, and it looks as though WZLO and WZON are still set to go dark in a matter of days.
The favorable ending for WKIT gets here versus the background of ongoing cuts throughout radio usually, referring to both terrestrial and satellite.
Sweeping iHeartMedia layoffs last month impacted group members at stations consisting of Los Angeles’ KFI 640. In November, Cumulus Media moved forward with layoffs of its own.
And on the satellite side, a significant tactical adjustment is underway at SiriusXM, which published uninspired Q3 financials in November and has actually suffered a product stock-price slip given that 2024’s start.
