WZEI

WZEI
City Meredith, New Hampshire
Broadcast area Central New Hampshire
Branding SportsRadio 101.5 WEEI Lakes Region
Frequency 101.5 MHz
First air date November 16, 1988[1]
Format Sports Talk
ERP 6,000 watts
HAAT 100 meters (330 ft)
Class A
Facility ID 73216
Transmitter coordinates 43°35′46″N 71°29′53″W / 43.596°N 71.498°W / 43.596; -71.498 (WZEI)Coordinates: 43°35′46″N 71°29′53″W / 43.596°N 71.498°W / 43.596; -71.498 (WZEI)
Callsign meaning similar to WEEI
Former callsigns WMRQ (1988–1990)
WWSS (1990–1994)
WBHG (1994–2005)
WWHQ (2005–2012)
Affiliations WEEI Sports Radio Network
Owner Great Eastern Radio, LLC
Sister stations WLKZ, WTPL
Website WZEI-FM site within WEEI-FM website

WZEI (101.5 FM) is an American licensed radio station with studios located in Bow, New Hampshire. The station is owned by Jeffrey Shapiro's Great Eastern Radio. WZEI is licensed to serve the community of Meredith, New Hampshire, and has coverage of central New Hampshire, particularly the Lakes Region area. WZEI is an affiliate of the WEEI Sports Radio Network, based in WEEI-FM in Boston.

On November 6, 2012, WZEI was granted a U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) construction permit to move to a new transmitter site, decrease its effective radiated power (ERP) down to 560 Watts and raise its height above average terrain (HAAT) up to 324.7 meters (1,065 feet). That construction permit will expire on November 6, 2015.[2]

History

Former logo of the radio station

Prior to March 2008, the station was WBHQ (Big 101.5) playing Classic Rock In March 2008, the station (then WWHQ) shifted from classic rock to a more mainstream rock format.

Prior to August 22, 2008, WWHQ simulcast with WWHK (102.3 FM) in Concord, New Hampshire; the simulcast ended after Nassau Broadcasting Partners was forced by the FCC to end its joint sales agreement with Capitol Broadcasting.[3]

On April 27, 2009, it was announced that WWHQ and former sister station WNNH (99.1 FM) in Henniker would be spun off into a divestiture trust and sold as part of a debt-for-equity restructuring of Nassau Broadcasting in which Goldman Sachs became 85% owner of the company. The new ownership structure ended Nassau's grandfathered status with respect to how many stations in the Concord (Lakes Region) NH market it could own.

On November 4, 2009, WWHQ began stunting while its "Hawk"-branded classic rock format moved to WLKZ (104.9 FM) in Wolfeboro, New Hampshire. The station went silent on March 1, 2010 due to power failure; at that time, it did not intend to return until the completion of the transfer of ownership.[4] However in February 2011, WWHQ resumed broadcasting as a simulcast of Nassau's WBACH network of classical music stations in Maine.

WWHQ and 29 other Nassau stations in northern New England were purchased at bankruptcy auction by Carlisle Capital Corporation, a company controlled by Bill Binnie (owner of WBIN-TV in Derry and WYCN-LP in Nashua), on May 22, 2012. The station, and 12 of the other stations, was then acquired by Vertical Capital Partners, controlled by Jeff Shapiro.[5][6]

The sale of WWHQ and the other 12 stations was consummated on November 30, 2012, at a purchase price of $4.4 million. After a brief silent period, the station returned to the air with a simulcast of new sister station WTPL. On December 24, 2012, the station changed call signs to WZEI; on January 4, 2013, the station switched to a sports talk format provided by the WEEI Sports Radio Network.[7] As WWHQ, the station had previously planned to join the network in January 2008,[8] but the deal between Nassau and Entercom ended up collapsing.[9] The Vertical Capital Partners stations were transferred to Shapiro's existing Great Eastern Radio group on January 1, 2013.[10][11]

References

  1. ↑ Broadcasting & Cable Yearbook 1999 (PDF). 1999. p. D-281. Retrieved May 22, 2012.
  2. ↑
  3. ↑ "FCC Denies Waiver Bid, Rules Nassau Must End JSA". Radio Ink. 2008-08-12. Retrieved 2008-08-26.
  4. ↑ "Notification of Suspension of Operations / Request for Silent STA". CDBS Public Access. Federal Communications Commission. March 4, 2010. Retrieved March 5, 2010.
  5. ↑ "Carlisle Capital Corp. Wins Bidding For Rest Of Nassau Stations". All Access. May 22, 2012. Retrieved May 22, 2012.
  6. ↑ Venta, Lance (May 22, 2012). "Nassau Broadcasting Auction Results". RadioInsight. Retrieved May 24, 2012. (updated May 23, 2012)
  7. ↑ "WEEI adds new affiliate to the largest sports radio network in New England" (Press release). Entercom Communications. January 3, 2013. Retrieved January 3, 2013.
  8. ↑ "Nassau Broadcasting Brings A Championship To New Hampshire" (Press release). Nassau Broadcasting Partners. 2007-10-26. Retrieved 2007-10-27.
  9. ↑ "Entercom-Nassau Deal Falls Through". Radio Ink. 2008-01-04. Retrieved 2008-01-07.
  10. ↑ "APPLICATION FOR CONSENT TO ASSIGN BROADCAST STATION CONSTRUCTION PERMIT OR LICENSE OR TO TRANSFER CONTROL OF ENTITY HOLDING BROADCAST STATION CONSTRUCTION PERMIT OR LICENSE". CDBS Public Access. U.S. Federal Communications Commission. December 11, 2012. Retrieved June 8, 2013.
  11. ↑ "Consummation Notice". CDBS Public Access. Federal Communications Commission. January 4, 2013. Retrieved June 8, 2013.
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