Broadcast Company of the Americas had two of their San Diego radio stations pulled from the airwaves. Programming was replaced on 105.7 MAX FM and ESPN 1700 over a lease dispute between their operators and owners, which could also lead to changes at The Mighty 1090.
According to Ken Leighton of the San Diego Reader, both stations have Mexican licenses and are leased by Broadcast Company of the Americas from Tijuana businessman and politician Jaime Bonilla Valdez. Valdez did not provide comment to the Reader, but he reportedly no longer wanted his stations to be operated without receiving the negotiated monthly rent fee of around $135,000.
Broadcast Company of the Americas operates a third station, San Diego’s sports leader, The Mighty 1090 which is leased from Andreas Bichara. While Bichara has not pulled the plug on 1090, an industry insider told the Reader the 1090 owner is not satisfied with his relationship with Broadcast Company of the Americas and could seek a new operator that would pay the $100,000 per month rent fee.
While 105.7 Max FM and ESPN 1700 are no longer heard on the radio dial, Max FM has continued to make its regular programming available via their stream on 1057max.com.
Brandon Contes is a freelance writer for BSM. He can be found on Twitter @BrandonContes. To reach him by email click here.
Brandon Contes is a former reporter for BSM, now working for Awful Announcing. You can find him on Twitter @BrandonContes or reach him by email at Brandon.Contes@gmail.com.
