CISS-FM

For the radio station that began as CISS-FM, see CKIS-FM.

CISS-FM

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City of license	Ottawa, Ontario
Broadcast area	National Capital Region (Eastern Ontario, Western Quebec, Upstate New York)
Branding	105.3 KiSS FM
Slogan	Today's Best Music
Frequency	105.3 MHz (FM)
First air date	1972 (CKBY), 2004 (CISS)
Format	Hot AC/CHR
ERP	84,000 watts
Class	C1
Callsign meaning	Play on the word "Kiss"
Owner	Rogers Media, a division of Rogers Communications (Rogers Radio)
Sister stations	CHEZ-FM, CIWW, CJET-FM, CKBY-FM
Website	www.1053kissfm.com

CISS-FM is a Canadian radio station in Ottawa, Ontario. The station broadcasts a hot adult contemporary format at 105.3 on the FM dial, using the brand name 105.3 KiSS FM. CISS-FM's studios are located at Thurston Drive and Conroy Road, while its transmitter is located in Camp Fortune, Quebec.

History

The station was launched in 1972 with the call letters CKBY, playing a country music format.

On January 9, 2004, the station adopted a hot adult contemporary format and the "105.3 KISS FM" moniker. The station launched with Pink's Get The Party Started. A month later after the format change, the station adopted its current calls. The CISS calls previously belonged to a Toronto radio station, also owned by Rogers, which now uses the call letters CKIS-FM. The CKBY calls, in turn, were moved to a third Rogers station in Smiths Falls. In the station's early years, the station's playlist was very similar to that of CHUM-FM in Toronto, but with a less rhythmic lean. Later that year, it shifted from Hot AC to adult top 40.

KISS-FM came at the expense of 101.1 XFM, an alternative rock station that was shut down to make way for KISS and for a move of country radio Y105, currently Y101, to another frequency. The two morning show hosts of XFM, Mauler and Rush, were left unemployed.

On August 13, 2004, popular morning show hosts Carter Brown, Sandra Plagakis, Andrew "The Boyle" Boyle and Jenny “From the Block” Usher resigned from competing CHR station CIHT-FM and became the new morning hosts at Kiss FM. Mauler and Rush ultimately became the hosts of the morning show at CIHT.

With the flip of the former CISS in Toronto from Jack FM to top 40 as Kiss FM on June 5, 2009, the CISS calls remained unchanged on this station. As a result, Rogers swapped the CJAQ-FM calls in Toronto with the former CKIS-FM (a Jack FM station) in Calgary.

More recently, as of the fall of 2009, CISS has begun to lean more rhythmic again and dropped most modern adult contemporary artists.

As of 2011, the station has eliminated the majority of its pre-1999 playlist and sticks towards a more 2000s-now direction. A new logo was added, along with adding the tagline "The New" in its "KISS FM" branding. The station leans heavily on rhythmic material, especially during nights and weekends, when the station plays songs that other Hot AC stations in Canada won't play, more in the style of a CHR station and to compete with CIHT. However, CIHT still plays pre-1999 music, and continues to beat Kiss in ratings by a large margin, though Kiss FM's ratings have improved slightly since the addition of rhythmic material. As of March 31, 2014, CISS also picked up more competition in the form of CKQB, which flipped from active rock to a Top 40/CHR presentation that heavily favours current Rhythmic and Dance product aimed at young adult and teen listeners. Despite the Top 40 competition from both CIHT and CKQB, CISS, however, still sticks to the Canadian hot AC panel of Mediabase & Nielsen BDS.

External links

• 105.3 KiSS FM
• CISS-FM history - Canadian Communications Foundation
• Query the REC's Canadian station database for CISS-FM