First Bend radio station to “Stream”

KPOV-LPFM, 106.7, Bend Community Radio announced Tuesday that it is broadcasting its radio signal live over the Internet.  Listeners can now log on to the KPOV website at www.kpov.org and click on the "Listen Now" button to hear Bend's only local, listener-supported, volunteer-powered community radio station.

“We are thrilled to be able to expand our listening audience and provide a new way to listen to KPOV,” said Board President Mike Riley.

KPOV has an FCC license to broadcast a low-power, four-watt signal a limited area that is about the size of the City of Bend. The combination of its low power signal, tower location on Awbrey Butte, and local topography in Bend means many people can't hear the station, even though they live nearby the broadcast tower. Internet broadcasting—or streaming—is a new way for people to access the station’s signal from any computer with an internet connection.

“We heard from a lot of local people who wanted to hear the station but couldn't receive the signal.  So we set a goal to be streaming by January 1, 2007,” continued Riley.  “Thanks to the hard work of a lot of volunteers these last few weeks—researching streaming, setting up our systems and then testing everything—we made that goal.” 

While the main focus was to improve access to KPOV for listeners in Bend, streaming over the internet will allow people anywhere in the world to listen to KPOV.  “It's exciting for our volunteer DJs that their family and friends around the country and the world can now log on and hear their radio shows,” Riley said.

The Bend company I Love My Wifi is donating the costs of KPOV’s high speed, CD quality stream.  “We really appreciate the support and enthusiasm shown by the folks at I Love My Wifi,” said KPOV Board member Ted Schoenborn, who coordinated the streaming effort.

“We were also pleasantly surprised to learn, after a bit of Internet research, that we are the first Bend station to stream its signal live,” continued Schoenborn.  

Additional costs for streaming will run the radio station about $1,500 per year in increased music licensing fees and purchased internet bandwidth to ensure a reliable signal.  KPOV is a community supported radio station.  Riley hopes that better access to the broadcast signal will mean more listeners and increased financial support for the station over the long run.

About KPOV

KPOV is a listener-supported, volunteer-powered community radio station heard throughout the Bend area.  After eighteen months on the air, KPOV now broadcasts around the clock at 106.7 FM with nearly 50 locally-produced shows featuring a wide range of music and talk not heard on other commercial and public radio stations in the area.  KPOV also features syndicated programming including Democracy Now, Bioneers, and Free Speech Radio News.

The mission of KPOV is to educate, entertain and involve the community by giving voice to diverse cultures and viewpoints through high quality, low-power radio.  For more information or to donate or volunteer, please call 322-0863, visit the website at www.kpov.org, or drop by the studio at 501 NW Bond Street, Bend, OR.