CJFO-FM (branded as ''94,5 Unique FM'') is a

radio station Radio broadcasting is transmission of audio (sound), sometimes with related metadata, by radio waves to radio receivers belonging to a public audience. In terrestrial radio broadcasting the radio waves are broadcast by a land-based radi ...

which broadcasts a francophone

community radio Community radio is a radio service offering a third model of radio broadcasting in addition to commercial and public broadcasting. Community stations serve geographic communities and communities of interest. They broadcast content that is popula ...

format on the frequency 94.5 FM/

MHz The hertz (symbol: Hz) is the unit of frequency in the International System of Units (SI), equivalent to one event (or cycle) per second. The hertz is an SI derived unit whose expression in terms of SI base units is s−1, meaning that one he ...

Ottawa, Ontario Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...

, Canada. Owned by Radio de la communauté francophone d'Ottawa (RCFO), the station received

CRTC The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC; french: Conseil de la radiodiffusion et des télécommunications canadiennes, links=) is a public organization in Canada with mandate as a regulatory agency for broadcasti ...

approval on February 4, 2010. The station officially launched at 6 a.m. on November 15, 2010 after a testing period that began in September 2010. While the Ottawa- Gatineau market is served by several francophone stations, CJFO is the first station in the market targeted specifically to the Franco-Ontarian audience in Ottawa and

Eastern Ontario Eastern Ontario (census population 1,763,186 in 2016) (french: Est de l'Ontario) is a secondary region of Southern Ontario in the Canadian province of Ontario which lies in a wedge-shaped area between the Ottawa River and St. Lawrence River. It s ...

. The commercial francophone outlets are licensed to Gatineau and primarily target listeners on the Quebec side of the Ottawa River. The

Radio-Canada The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (french: Société Radio-Canada), branded as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian public broadcaster for both radio and television. It is a federal Crown corporation that receives funding from the government. ...

outlets focus on not only the

National Capital Region A capital region, also called a capital district or capital territory, is a region or district surrounding a capital city. It is not always the official term for the region, but may sometimes be used as an informal synonym. Capital regions can exis ...

, but Canada as a whole. The station is the francophone radio broadcast partner for the

Ottawa Senators The Ottawa Senators (french: Sénateurs d'Ottawa), officially the Ottawa Senators Hockey Club and colloquially known as the Sens, are a professional ice hockey team based in Ottawa. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a membe ...

and the

Ottawa Titans The Ottawa Titans Baseball Club (French: ''Les Titans d'Ottawa'') is a professional baseball team based in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. The Titans made their debut in 2022 as a member of the independent Frontier League, which is an official MLB Pa ...

. CJFO's studios are located in Vanier, while its transmitter is located in

Camp Fortune, Quebec Camp Fortune is a commercial alpine ski centre located in the municipality of Chelsea in the Gatineau Hills north of Gatineau, Quebec, approximately fifteen minutes from Downtown Ottawa, Ontario. Camp Fortune is composed of three mountainsi ...

. The station is a member of the

Alliance des radios communautaires du Canada The Alliance des radios communautaires du Canada is a Canadian organization, which serves as a coordinating body for French-language community radio stations in the regions of English Canada, where French speakers are in the minority. Founded in 19 ...

History

On August 26, 2008, RCFO's first attempt to obtain a license was denied by the CRTC. The initial application would have had the station broadcast at 101.7 MHz, with an average effective radiated power of 718 watts. On November 21, 2008, federal Minister of Canadian Heritage and Official Languages James Moore issued a statement calling on the CRTC to review its prior approval of two new stations in the Ottawa area, Astral Media's

CJOT-FM CJOT-FM (99.7 MHz) is a commercial FM radio station licensed to Ottawa, Ontario. It broadcasts a classic hits format and is owned by Corus Entertainment. The station uses its on-air brand name '' Boom 99.7''. CJOT's studios and offices are lo ...

and Frank Torres'

CIDG-FM CIDG-FM (101.7 FM, "Rebel Rock 101.7") is a radio station in Ottawa, Ontario. Owned by Torres Media, it broadcasts a mainstream rock format serving the National Capital Region. Its studios are located on Ridgewood Avenue, while its transmitter i ...

. Moore asked the commission to assess whether the francophone population of the Ottawa-Gatineau area was sufficiently well-served by existing French radio services, and to consider licensing one or more of the French language applications — which included a

Christian music Christian music is music that has been written to express either personal or a communal belief regarding Christian life and faith. Common themes of Christian music include praise, worship, penitence, and lament, and its forms vary widely aroun ...

station, a

station and a campus radio station for the

Université du Québec en Outaouais The Université du Québec en Outaouais (UQO) is a constituent university of the Université du Québec system located in Gatineau, Quebec, Canada. As of September 2010, combined enrolment at UQO's Gatineau and Saint-Jérôme campuses was 6,017 ...

— in addition to or instead of the approved stations. In the resulting round of hearings, Torres proposed that a new francophone station could be licensed on 94.5 FM, although such a station would be second-adjacent to Astral's

CIMF-FM CIMF-FM (94.9 Hertz, MHz) is a French language, French-language Canadian radio station in Gatineau, Quebec, and serving the National Capital Region (Canada), National Capital Region, including Ottawa, Ontario. It has an adult contemporary radio ...

. Industry Canada subsequently aired a testing signal on 94.5 in May 2009 to determine whether the signal could be used without impacting CIMF.Scott Fybush
"On Memorial Day, No On-Air 'Rewound'"
''NorthEast Radio Watch'', May 25, 2009. The test found that the signal could be used without causing significant interference to CIMF, and Astral consequently gave its consent to the use of the frequency as long as the company retained authorization to launch CJOT.Scott Fybush

''NorthEast Radio Watch'', June 15, 2009.

References

External links

Radio CJFO FM

Radio de la communauté francophone d’Ottawa
''(formerly www.rcfo.ca)'' * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Cjfo-Fm Jfo Jfo Jfo Radio stations established in 2010 2010 establishments in Ontario