Liverpool Broadcasting and Transmitting Co Pty Ltd was granted an
AM radio licence in the late 1970s, specifically to serve the Western Suburbs of Sydney. 2WS began broadcasting at 12:24 am on 23 November 1978 – the same day all Australian AM radio stations switched from 10 kHz to 9 kHz frequencies – from temporary studios in a relocated cottage at 2 Leabons Lane,
Seven Hills with a 5
kW transmitter located at nearby
Prospect. The studios subsequently moved, in October 1979, into a purpose-built complex behind the old cottage in Leabons Lane. The original building was demolished, with the material donated to charity. In the early 1990s the station was granted an
FM licence covering the full Sydney metropolitan area. Its original FM transmitter was located in Willoughby on the
Channel 9 TV Tower, later moving in with sister station, MIX106.5 (now KIIS) to
Artarmon, in northern Sydney. The official callsign was changed to 2UUS (using a literal 'double-U' to compensate for the extra letter required), although the station still identified as 2WS until 2001, when they changed their on-air name to WSFM. 2WS, 1224 on the A.M. band converted to the FM band and began broadcasting as 2WS-FM on 101.7 MHz on 1 June 1993 at 8 a.m. In 2002 WSFM Studios was located in
North Ryde. In 2024 it moved to new studios at
Coca-Cola Place,
North Sydney. The building also houses facilities for
KIIS 106.5 and
CADA, both also owned by
ARN. The original studios at Leabons Lane, Seven Hills are now occupied by Christian/
Adult Contemporary radio station,
Hope 103.2. In November 2024, renovations to ARN's website pages leaked a new logo for GOLD101.7 on its GOLD Network page, confirming that WSFM would be rebranded to GOLD101.7, bringing it in line with
GOLD104.3 in
Melbourne. On 29 November 2024, ARN announced that WSFM will officially be rebranding to GOLD101.7 from January 2025. The station will now target a younger 25-54 age demographic whilst still appealing to the station's loyal fan base. ==References==