they’re not obliged to do (a). And it’s not their issue if they do (b) and the results are as you predict. ARN has no duty of care to what happens to the licence after it’s sold. ARN’s only interest was to offload the station, tick, and get a good dollar for it, tick. And maybe indirectly (c) make sure that any buyer of the station doesn’t adversely compete with any overflow from the outer FM stations of theirs that may creep into Brisbane. That’s it. ARN doesn’t owe 4KQ a future, that’s now SEN’s problem. If it bombs under SEN then that’s entirely on them, not ARN.
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Both parties are equally responsible IMO. ARN got top dollar, and the SEN model is to run their stations at a profit by sponsoring absolutely everything including their open line number & breaking news reports.
If ARN had sold to ACE and 4KQ was retained as is, I doubt ACE would have the money to sustain the talent & station as is and it would’ve likely ended up in a bad way sadly.
As history shows, radio brands chop, change and die. Look at other stations like 2UW, 2SM, 3XY, 3AK and now even 2UE playing easy favourites just a few decades after being a talkback powerhouse.
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That is just the purely capitalist view which everyone has heard, and some companies continue to sprout. Of course it’s technically correct but smarter companies often take a broader and longer-term view and consider the health of the industry that ultimately supports them. A company like ARN SHOULD in fact care that the audience is adversely affected, especially such a big chunk of audience. Ultimately the health of radio in general will affect their health. Of course most of the time business is business, but on some occasions they need to take an industry-wide view.
Why not take $2m less for 4KQ but retain 15% of the station? Who knows what might happen in the future regarding regulation of the 2 station rule, particularly where an AM station is involved and licence overlaps are in play. Who is to say whether at some point they couldn’t buy back the station?
It’s a mean spirited and short-sighted decision that has weakened the industry they rely on for the future.
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but that’s 10% of the audience they are just throwing away to listen to other stations like 4bh.
Brent James just described it as one of the craziest decisions he’s seen in 45 years of radio. He hopes to continue.
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The Carnival is Over by The Seekers was the last song on Sunday Morning 60s on 4KQ.
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Listening to 4KQ for the first time (and probably last time) live via the RadioApp in Melbourne, for the 75th Years An Icon special.
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This morning was a typical episode featuring several tracks that had charted highest in Brisbane; one track with the Bee Gees as backing singers before they were famous. Also noted the theme music to the original Casino Royale by Tijuana Brass - never expected to ever hear that on the radio.
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and you probably never will again.
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No mention during the 75 years special of the change from 690 to 693.
Lots of interesting history of studio moves and format changes but not of any transmitter moves eg to St Helena or power increases.
Mentioned was first 24 hour Brisbane station.
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It was mentioned that this morning’s 75 year special will be repeated at 6pm Thursday ahead of the last hours of the station.
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The Radio Vault has posted highlights of 4KQ’s 75 year special.
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Ok, who was it?
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Oh dear. 
Although in reaction to ARN’s response - although you’d think would’ve been written as watertight in their contracts like any gap in surveys… it’s still strange to use the survey break as an excuse for ending breakfast this past week when you only have four workdays left in the life of the format. Probably fortunate that we’ll still have 4KQ in classic hits mode until Thursday as it is though.
I actually don’t mind this final promo too much - a lot of the artists that would have been played on 4KQ would have also been associated with the heydays of the Festival Hall, and (apologies if well known to Brisbanites, being from Sydney I didn’t know) when it was demolished a couple of decades ago, they did sell the seats off in groups of three (hence the comp logo) - hardly surprised that at least one set ended up at 4KQ.
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Yes, even the sleep timer on the SEN app is sponsored. Not much they havent got a sponsor for
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But why would they care? They probably care more than a good chunk of the ~10% of the audience flick over to 97.3 rather than a new owner of 4KQ, hence their happiness to sell it to SEN.
I agree it’s a sad outcome for Brisbane that 4KQ is about to disappear. I also agree that it’s ridiculous that ARN is not allowed to continue to own 4KQ because they own stations in Nambour and Ipswich, not even in Brisbane. But I also think that, if I were the executive in charge of the decisions re 4KQ’s future, I might very well have made a similar decision in the circumstances, a hard reality though it may have been…
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Also mentioned today that this iconic CD anthology series original idea came from 4KQ. So it’s not a coincidence it matches the name of one of its shows.
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The last songs on the final Sunday night Living In the 70s, after 30 years:
It’s over- Boz Scaggs
Bye bye Baby- Bay City Rollers
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WSFM line up this week
6-9 am Ugly Phil
9am-1pm Ryan
1-2pm Totally 80s with Jason Staveley
2-6pm Bill Weaver
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Todays top 9 at 9 on 4KQ featured songs about money
“ Money,money ,money “ Abba
“Money” Pink Floyd
“She Works Hard for the Money” Donna Summer
“Money’s Too Tight to Mention “ Simply Red
can’t remember the rest.
Very appropriate,soon 4KQ on air and off air staff won’t be receiving any more money 
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Just a thought… everybody is upset that 4KQ is leaving us. But does anybody really think ARN would go without a Pure Gold station in Brisbane?
What’s the bet the same format will pop up at another station close to the Brisbane market.
ARN would be mad not to have a Pure Gold/Classic Hits station in SE QLD.
I doubt it’s the last we see of that logo & music in the Brisbane market.
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