Kool 101 (formerly Kool FM and Buletin FM, stylised as KOOL 101) is a Malaysian private radio station owned by Media Prima Berhad through its radio subsidiary, Media Prima Audio, which broadcasts in the Malay language. It was launched on 1 March 2016. It is the fourth radio station from Media Prima Audio after Eight FM, Fly FM, Hot FM and before Molek FM. The radio station is based on the acquisition of Copyright Laureate Sdn. Bhd. in October 2015, which owns Ultra FM and Pi Mai FM. Kool 101 is the first Media Prima radio station to remove the "FM" suffix from its brand name.

History

2016-2019: Classic hits & adult contemporay format 

Originally, Kool FM targeted listeners from the country's Generation X, with songs being played mostly from the 1980s and 1990s, but it also included some songs from the 2000s and 2010s. Depending on what they were playing, the name was based on the band Kool and the Gang.

2020-2021: Shift to talk radio 

On 3 January 2020, Kool FM rebranded with a new logo. It changed its radio format into talk radio from 6 January with the tagline Suara Semasa, focusing on current affairs, social and community, and various talk and infotainment programmes. The announcers as well as the music playing on the station (80s, 90s and current songs) would remain.

Beginning 4 May 2021, the station broadcast simultaneously on TV9, every day from 3:30 - 4:30 am.

2021-2023: Rebrand to Buletin FM  

On 2 August 2021, Kool FM was renamed as Buletin FM and rebranded as the most focused and credible news radio station, with Ally and Hawa (from Malaysia Hari Ini and Buletin Utama TV3 respectively) as the new announcers. Buletin FM will complement TV3's news and current affairs programming and compete with Bernama Radio. The live audio simulcast of Buletin Utama from TV3 began on air from 2 August 2021 to 31 May 2022 every weekday.

On 29 November 2021, Buletin FM broadcasts in Kuala Terengganu, Terengganu and Kota Bharu, Kelantan were discontinued. It was replaced by Molek FM on 9 January 2022.

On 14 March 2022, Buletin FM changed its tagline again from "Info Terkini & Muzik Sepanjang Zaman" to "Isu Semasa dan Info Terkini".

From March 28, 2022, Buletin FM no longer broadcast temporarily through the MYTV platform.

2023-now: Rebrand to Kool 101 

According to the GfK Radio Audience Measurement Wave 1 2023, Buletin FM recorded 133,000 weekly listeners, the lowest number of weekly listeners recorded on any Media Prima owned stations (compared to the previous Kool FM branding which recorded 701,000 weekly listeners in late 2020). Because such a large number of weekly listeners were lost and its previous role as an all-news radio didn't work well, Buletin FM ceased using the brand on 17 June 2023. It was rebranded as Kool 101 on July 3, 2023. The name "Kool 101" was chosen as it is more relevant to the current situation where most listeners are familiar with the original Kool FM name. The number "101" on the station name refers to giving basic knowledge of the topic, as well as being the frequency used for the Klang Valley. The music playlist has changed to play more Malaysian adult contemporary based music from the 90s to now. Indonesian and English songs were occasionally played with Malay rock jiwang music rarely featured on Kool 101.

Frequency

Similar radios
Sonora FM in Indonesia

References

External links 
 
 

2016 establishments in Malaysia
Radio stations in Malaysia
Malay-language radio stations
Radio stations established in 2016
Media Prima
Adult contemporary radio stations
Talk radio stations