Since the day after Halloween, KADQ 94.3 FM has been putting out a steady stream of Christmas/Holiday music and calling itself “K-Santa” instead of X-94. No live DJs speak on the station, and there are only occasional breaks for commercials.

The change came without prior warning or explanation from Sandhill Media, KADQ’s parent company in Logan, Utah. A company spokesman explained that it’s common practice for radio stations to not give advance notice to the public before a change is made.

The spokesman also said the company wanted to send the station in a different direction mainly for economic reasons.

“Radio stations exist to make money,” said Ron Bennett, chair of BYU-Idaho’s Communication Department. A radio station’s basic source of income is advertisements. If a radio station wants to make money, they must attract advertisers who believe that the people who listen to the radio station will buy their product. “Alternative rock, although very popular among young listeners, is less attractive to an older demographic, and older people have more money,” Bennett said.

It’s unclear what will become of KADQ after the holiday season is over, although a Sandhill Media representative has said that the station will not go back to being X-94.