WINK-FM

WINK-FM
Fort Myers, Florida; United States;
Broadcast area	Southwest Florida
Frequency	96.9 MHz (HD Radio)
Branding	96.9 WINK FM
Programming
Format	Adult contemporary
Subchannels	HD2: Máxima 97.3 y 95.7 (Spanish contemporary)
Ownership
Owner	Fort Myers Broadcasting Company (McBride Family)
Sister stations	WTLQ-FM, WINK-TV, WAVV
History
First air date	October 8, 1964; 60 years ago
Call sign meaning	The word "wink"
Technical information
Licensing authority	FCC
Facility ID	22094
Class	C
ERP	100,000 watts
HAAT	457 meters (1,499 ft)
Transmitter coordinates	26°48′1.00″N 81°45′48.00″W / 26.8002778°N 81.7633333°W
Translator(s)	HD2: 97.3 W247CR (Pine Island Center); HD2: 95.7 W239CL (Golden Gate)
Links
Public license information	Public file; LMS;
Webcast	Listen live
Website	FM/HD1: winkfm.com; HD2: musicaalmaximo.com

WINK-FM (96.9 MHz) is a commercial radio station in Fort Myers, Florida, United States. The station airs an adult contemporary radio format. It is owned by the Fort Myers Broadcasting Company, locally controlled by the McBride Family, which also owns CBS Network affiliate WINK-TV. WINK-FM has studios and offices on Palm Beach Boulevard (S.R. 80) in Fort Myers.

The transmitter is located on Freeland Lane, off Florida State Road 31 in North Fort Myers, Florida.^[2] Its effective radiated power (ERP) is 100,000 watts, sharing a tower with WINK-TV at 457 meters (1,499 feet) in height above average terrain, taller than the Empire State Building. This allows WINK-FM to be clearly heard as far north as Hardee County, as far south as the Everglades and as far east as Okeechobee County. WINK-FM can also be heard on Channel 11.6, a subchannel of WINK-TV.

WINK-FM broadcasts using HD Radio technology. The HD2 digital subchannel carries a Spanish-language contemporary format known as "Máxima 97.3 y 95.7". It feeds two FM translators: 97.3 W247CR in Pine Island Center and 95.7 W239CL in Golden Gate.^[3]^[4]

History

On October 8, 1964, WINK-FM signed on the air.^[5] It was the FM counterpart to WINK (1240 AM, later WFSX) and WINK-TV. At first, WINK-FM simulcast the AM station's middle of the road format of adult pop music, news and sports. By the late 1960s, WINK-FM was playing beautiful music, as it ended the simulcast with the AM.

Over time, WINK-FM added more vocals until it made the transition flip to a Top 40/CHR format in 1980 as "97-Rock", which would later change its branding to "WINK-FM 97" in 1984. Its branding was updated as “WINK 96.9” in 1991, and in 1993, the station had evolved into a hot adult contemporary format.

On May 6, 2013, at 10 a.m., after promoting that morning that "WINK-FM will be a thing of the past", the format switched from hot adult contemporary to adult contemporary, branded as "96.9 More FM".^[6] The "More FM" branding had also been found on leading AC station WBEB in Philadelphia. The first song on More-FM was Journey's "Don't Stop Believin'". In October 2015, the station went back to the 96.9 WINK FM branding, retaining the adult contemporary format.^[7]