I encourage you to forward today's TVBR onto a colleague or friend and Share the Voice.
Thanks, Jim Carnegie, Publisher and Broadcaster
SIGN UP HERE
|
|
|
|
|
Volume 23, Issue 111, Jim Carnegie, Editor & Publisher
|
Wednesday Morning June 7th, 2006
|
|
|
TV News ®
|
 ABC goes Country
After 34 years on CBS (and four before than on NBC), the CMA (Country Music Association) Awards move to ABC this year. But fans should feel right at home, with Brooks & Dunn back to share the host duties for the third straight year. The live broadcast from Nashville on November 6th will feature many of Country's biggest stars performing on stage at the Gaylord Entertainment Center (back home in Nashville after last year's road trip to Madison Square Garden in New York). "ABC is passionate about our partnership with Country music, and we are thrilled and honored to have the CMA Awards on our network. As one of the biggest events on television, the CMA Awards value to us as a marquee event is enormous, as the Awards joins the lineup of our two other premiere award specials, the Oscars and the American Music Awards," said Andrea Wong, executive vice president, Alternative Series, Specials and Late-Night, ABC Entertainment. "To debut with the 40th anniversary is a historic occasion and a special opportunity for us to showcase our commitment to further enhancing and building the CMA Awards in the years to come," she added. The 40th Annual CMA Awards is a production of the Country Music Association. Walter C. Miller is the executive producer and Robert Deaton is the consulting producer.
 Live Nation spin-off paying off for shareholders
If you are a Clear Channel shareholder who sold off the Live Nation shares you received when the former CC Entertainment was spun off, you may wish you'd held on for a while. Nearly six months after separating from the Clear Channel mother ship, Live Nation's stock is up 120%. While the low margin, cyclical concert promotion business, which is at the heart of Live Nation, had been a drag on Clear Channel with media investors and analysts, things have been looking up for the post-separation company. Q1 revenues were up 16% to 516.6 million, with the events business (including concerts) up, while other segments of the company saw revenue declines. Direct operating expenses were up 20% to 377.8 million, but costs were cut elsewhere. On the bottom line, net income was 1.1 million for the quarter, versus a loss of 22.7 million a year earlier. Although now independent of Clear Channel, Live Nation still paid its former parent 1.3 million for administrative and corporate services in Q1 and 500K in trademark royalties. Of course, Live Nation buys advertising on Clear Channel radio, TV and billboard outlets, but less than before: 2.6 million in Q1, down from 3.2 million a year ago. Lowry, Mark and Randall Mays all serve as directors of Life Nation, as does Connie McCombs McNab, whose father "Red" co-founded Clear Channel with Lowry Mays. It is apparently because of those directors' ties that an antitrust lawsuit filed last week against both Clear Channel and Live Nation claimed that "both continue to be dominated by the same individuals" (6/5/06 TVBR #109). Another director familiar to broadcasters is Jeff Hinson, former CFO of Univision and Hispanic Broadcasting Corp. before that.
TVBR observation: We had wondered whether the Mays family would dump their shares of Live Nation and bid adieu to a disappointing investment that had cost Clear Channel billions of bucks. But no, they have not. The three have continued to be directors (although Randall gave up his interim CEO post after filling it permanently with Michael Rapino). As such, they would have to file with the SEC if they sell or buy shares of Live Nation. There have been no such filings, so it appears all three still have the same holdings reported in the company's annual report: 3,565,898 shares for Lowry, 206,399 for Mark and 158,259 for Randall, including those held directly and those held by trusts or foundations that they control.
|
|
|
Smaller Buffet table in store for newspapers?
Wall Street legend Warren Buffett did not have good news for newspapers, in comments published by HyperGene MediaBlog. He noted that they remain extremely profitable, but in the face of rapidly increasing competition for consumer attention and increasing alternative news sources, not to mention the tastes and habits of the younger demos, newspapers can expect a future of unbroken annual 5% decreases in revenue. A big source of the problem is the Internet, which Buffett pointed out has had a similar negative impact on the encyclopedia business. He said for him they are essential, he reads four a day. But he is becoming the exception. "Newspaper readers are heading into the cemetery, while newspaper non-readers are just getting out of college." The break in the consumer chain and lack of replacement readers makes the business unsustainable at current levels.
TVBR observation: Before anyone in broadcasting starts popping champagne corks, Buffett included broadcast television in his eulogy. When there were three major broadcast pipelines (ABC, CBS & NBC), it made sense for big retail to pay big bucks to use them as paths to consumers. Cable brought that to an end and now is in turn under assault from satellite and telco in its own right. It's come to the point where broadcast television and radio, in an effort to compete with the cacophony of voices available on all these new platforms, are bringing their own Docket 80-90 down on themselves in the form of digital multichannel, which will fracture the available audience even more than it already is. The results of Docket 80-90 were not particularly good, with its parade of move-ins and rimshots. It would seem to be a path best avoided, but this time around, we can't say it's a bad idea. All we know is that the old business models are going away, and new models need to take their place as swiftly and effectively as possible. Broadcast and newspaper do have one anchor which other media cannot offer nearly as well, which we will state in three simple words. Don't forget them. The three simple words are local, local and local.
 NAB launches two-pronged attack
on satellite audio
The National Association of Broadcasters wants a level playing field with satellite radio, particularly when it comes to indecency regulations. Even more to the point, it wants to bring an end to conditions where satellite radio terrestrial repeaters are interfering with FM stations. And if satellite wants to continue airing unregulated speech on grounds that its programming is a paid choice of its subscribers, then it has to stop providing it free to people who never asked for it. In a letter to FCC Chairman Kevin Martin, NAB President/CEO David Rehr described the first count, writing, "...interference from satellite radio devices is causing 'bleed through' so that nonsubscribers listening to FM radio, especially in their cars, receive satellite radio programming via FM frequencies, at least for limited periods of time." Ironically, listeners most susceptible to hearing indecent satellite material are those trying to hear noncommercial stations, including religious stations. On the second count, Rehr notes that satellite programming is often supplied free without being requested in rental cars, and in newly purchased cars, where the programming is made accessible "for a number of months without subscribing..." Rehr concluded, "...members of the public today are disturbed about receiving 'unexpected' sexually explicit and profane satellite program content, particularly if children are listening. In light of this problem and the availability of satellite radio programming on a nonsubscription basis in other contexts, merely asserting that 'subscription-based services do not call into play the issue of indecency' no longer seems adequate to justify the inequitable regulatory treatment of free over-the-air and satellite radio."
|
|
|
|
|
Ad Business Report TM
|
 ABC will now make Live-only deals;
Goldstein comments
It looks like ABC, the network that first made the statement to buyers that it will only do upfront deals that included Live viewing and Live Plus/delayed viewing via DVRs (2/7/06 TVBR #26) has backed down a bit, likely ending the stretch of stagnation with other networks as well that was beginning to threaten their share in the upfront process (6/2/06 TVBR #108). In a statement, ABC said will offer to make upfront ad deals based on Live ratings only. "The live viewers' standard will be one option offered to advertisers. While the majority of the advertising community has reached a consensus on the Nielsen DVR ratings issue, and has concluded that that commercials seen during a DVR-recorded programming have no value, the ABC Television Network continues to believe strongly in the worth of the 'Live Plus' viewer, and will continue its efforts to include this audience." Buyers will be looking at lower CPM deals for advertisers who opt to include Live Plus viewing as part of their deals. Marc Goldstein, Mindshare CEO, tells TVBR he's optimistic this will get the deal flow moving: "I think that there were many issues on the table, currency being one of them. Now that the issue of currency had been seemingly resolved, the pace of the marketplace is likely to pick up. Business will begin to be written, and I believe the market will proceed in an orderly fashion."
TMT announces schedule campaign
on CNN, MSNBC, Fox News, CNBC
Telzuit Medical Technologies has posted on its Web site a detailed schedule of the current campaign for its flagship Statpatch Wireless Heart Monitor. The Company expects to launch a physician/medical community targeted campaign later this year to coincide with the launch.
| See the schedule here |
 Flying J defends itself in ad suit
Flying J, a nationwide truckstop company accused of unlawfully putting commercials into regular television programming broadcast at its locations moved Monday to dismiss a lawsuit brought by the leading TV nets. ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox are among the nets claiming Flying J Inc. is violating copyright law and promoting unfair competition by replacing the scheduled commercials with different advertising it sold, said an AP story. They're seeking unspecified monetary damages and have asked the court to stop Flying J from airing the substituted programming. Flying J sells the substituted ad time through a subsidiary called TON Services. Advertisers who purchase the ads through Flying J and TON service, known as Plaza TV, sometimes pay more than 30,000 a month for 30-second spots, The AP said. The substitute ads often target the demo frequenting Flying J establishments, i.e. American Truckers Legal Association. Visitors can watch the programming in televisions in the truck stops' restaurants and lounges. Flying J gets the channels through Dish Network. In its argument against the lawsuit, filed Monday, Flying J compares the detection device to a remote control that lets users switch away from programming. In defending itself against a copyright argument, Flying J says the device does not "copy, modify, redistribute or create a derivative work from the incoming signal." The device is offered by segOne Inc., not a defendant in the suit. Flying J further says it is protected from an infringement action partly because of a licensing agreement with EchoStar/Dish. It also argues that the networks' unfair competition claim fails under federal standards.
|
|
|
|
| Washington Media Business Report TM |
FCC dragnet nabs four more TVs
Another trio of television stations were found with inadequacies, at least in part, in their handling of children's programming and a fourth had a public file that was a little light. Although such violations often result in a fine-free admonition or even better, an FCC declaration that the violation was too minor to consider further, that is not the case this time. The parties now on notice face fines of from 4K to 18K if the charges hold up. WDKY-TV in Danville KY (Lexington DMA) had the 4K public file problem. The employee who maintained the issues/programs portion left, and nobody took up the job for a year thereafter, leaving a gap for all four quarters of 2004. Another Sinclair stations, WDBB-TV Bessemer AL (Birmingham DMA) was missing several file items, including its authorization to operate the station, its 2003 ownership report and its children's programming reports. WRSP-TV in Springfield IL (Champaign-Springfield-Decatur DMA), in the process of being sold from Bahakel to GOCOM, was hit with a similar charge, and both were assessed a 10K fine. Finally, WDKA Acquisition's WDKA-TV in Paducah KY (Paducah-Cape Girardeau-Harrisburg-Mt. Vernon DMA) was nailed for 18K on children's advertising charges. It was accused of five times going over the ad-time per hour limit by between 15 and 60 seconds, and on seven occasions it was accused of running program-length commercials. The latter was due to commercials for Fruit Loops and Nintendo Gameboy which depicted Pokemon, aired during the Pokemon program.
|
|
|
|
| Cable Business Report TM |
 Time Warner Cable upgrades
with Open TV
OpenTV, a provider of enabling technologies for advanced digital television services, announced a multi-year license agreement with Time Warner Cable to deploy the cable operator's digital navigator on the Open TV platform. The Time Warner Cable digital navigator will enhance existing program guides, facilitate cross platform integrated services and speed to market new product introductions on the Company's Motorola set-top boxes. Additionally, OpenTV's Core 2.0 software and related interactive television services will be available to Time Warner Cable divisions running Motorola equipment for deployment. This licensing agreement represents the first U.S. cable deployment of OpenTV's advanced digital solutions and applications. Initial launch of OpenTV's solutions is expected in late 2006 on Time Warner Cable's Motorola set-top boxes, ranging from the DCT-2000 to more full-featured Motorola set-top boxes. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. OpenTV will provide its Core 2.0 set-top software, interactive applications, and infrastructure systems for application delivery, set-top messaging, and advanced two-way communications. As part of the deal, OpenTV has agreed to make available a variety of interactive applications for Time Warner Cable's use, and expects to write additional applications for the OpenTV platform, OCAP, and other platforms that Time Warner Cable introduces within its Divisions.
|
|
|
|
| Entertainment Media Business Report TM |
 If you can't take the heat...
Fox is hoping for summertime reality TV success with the return of "Hell's Kitchen," premiering Monday, June 12th (9:00-10:00 pm ET). The second season will feature men versus women in the weekly cook-off to pick the top kitchen artist from a group of 12. Head chef Gordon Ramsay, a former pro soccer player turned award-winning chef, will judge the competition. The winner gets the coveted title of Executive Chef of a luxurious fine-dining restaurant at the brand-new Red Rock Casino Resort and Spa in Las Vegas. In addition, the winner will be eligible to receive a financial interest in the restaurant and assist in its design. Of course, the contestants have to know how to cook, but they come from varied backgrounds, including a former prisoner, a marketing executive and a former stockbroker. "Hell's Kitchen" is produced by Granada Entertainment and A. Smith & Co. Arthur Smith, Kent Weed, Paul Jackson and Layla Sabih serve as executive producers.
"Tercer Grado" to debut on Galavision
Galavisión, the Univision-owned Spanish-language cable television network, will debut "Tercer Grado" (The Third Degree) on Saturday, 6/10 at 1 pm ET. Tercer Grado is a one-hour news and issues discussion program hosted by international news director Leopoldo Gómez González. This frank and freewheeling roundtable discussion program was announced at Galavisión's recent Upfront presentation. The program will feature some of Galavision's most well-respected and influential news personalities including Carlos Loret de Mola, anchor of the early morning newscast "Primero Noticias," Joaquín López Dóriga, anchor of the latenight news update "Noticiero con Joaquín López Dóriga" and Adela Micha, anchor of the live evening newscast "Las Noticias por Adela" among others. "Tercer Grado's" unscripted format and its controversial topics spark heated debates and unusually insightful analysis. Nine cameras capture all the energy, the arguing and the clashing of ideas from each of the participants. In addition, some of today's top newsmakers face-off with the distinguished panel in discussions on the latest political, economic and social issues affecting viewers.
|
|
|
|
| Ratings & Research |
CBS drama reruns score big
 Drama reruns led by "CSI" gave CBS an easy Household win in the first full week of the summer TV season. And here's something you haven't heard in a while: NBC won the 18-49 demo, powered by the ongoing success of "Deal or No Deal." For HH, CBS scored a 5.9 rating and 10 share, with NBC at 4.8/8, ABC 3.8/7, Fox 3.6/6, Univision 1.7/3, UPN 1.4/2, WB 1.3/2, Telemundo 0.5/1, TeleFutura 0.3/1 and i 0.3/1.
| View the Chart |
|
|
|
|
| Stock Talk |
Fed talks; money walks
Tough talk about rates and inflation from more Fed officials sent stocks lower again. The Dow Industrials fell 47 points, or 0.4%, to 11,002, having dipped below the 11K mark in trading.
TV stocks were mixed. Nexstar led the gainers, up 2.2%. Saga had the worst day, down 2.2%.
|
|
|
|
| Stocks |
Here's how stocks fared on Tuesday
| Company |
Symbol |
Close |
Change |
Company |
Symbol |
Close |
Change |
|
Acme
|
ACME
|
|
5.06
|
-0.07
|
LIN TV
|
TVL
|
 |
8.73
|
-0.03
|
|
Belo
|
BLC
|
|
17.03
|
-0.10
|
McGraw-Hill
|
MHP
|
|
51.00
|
-0.54
|
| CBS CI. B |
CBS |
|
26.28
|
-0.28
|
Media General
|
MEG
|
|
37.15
|
-0.05
|
| CBS CI. A |
CBSa |
|
26.25
|
-0.31
|
Meredith
|
MDP
|
|
50.11
|
-0.23
|
|
Clear Channel
|
CCU
|
|
30.45
|
-0.17
|
News Corp.
|
NWS
|
|
20.06
|
-0.13
|
|
Disney
|
DIS
|
|
30.53
|
-0.21
|
Nexstar
|
NXST
|
|
5.22
|
+0.11
|
|
Emmis
|
EMMS
|
|
16.27
|
+0.14
|
NY Times
|
NYT
|
|
23.99
|
+0.12
|
|
Entravision
|
EVC
|
|
8.02
|
-0.01
|
Ion Media
|
ION
|
|
0.88
|
unch
|
|
Fisher
|
FSCI
|
|
42.69
|
-0.09
|
Saga Commun.
|
SGA
|
|
9.45
|
-0.21
|
|
Gannett
|
GCI
|
|
53.22
|
-0.44
|
SBS
|
SBSA
|
|
5.40
|
+0.08
|
|
Gen. Electric
|
GE
|
|
34.55
|
+0.33
|
Scripps
|
SSP
|
|
46.42
|
+0.05
|
|
Granite
|
GBTVK
|
|
0.21
|
+0.02
|
Sinclair
|
SBGI
|
|
8.31
|
+0.15
|
|
Gray
|
GTN
|
|
6.39
|
+0.03
|
Time Warner
|
TWX
|
|
17.63
|
+0.13
|
|
Gray, C1. A
|
GTNa
|
|
6.48
|
-0.03
|
Tribune
|
TRB
|
|
30.00
|
+0.11
|
|
Hearst-Argyle
|
HTV
|
|
21.94
|
-0.06
|
Univision
|
UVN
|
|
35.73
|
+0.03
|
|
Journal Comm.
|
JRN
|
|
11.47
|
+0.02
|
Wash. Post
|
WPO
|
|
794.75
|
+0.50
|
|
Lincoln Natl.
|
LNC
|
|
56.89
|
+0.14
|
Young
|
YBTVA
|
|
3.62
|
+0.14
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Bounceback
|
 We want to
hear from you.
This is your column, so send your comments and
a photo to tvnews@rbr.com
|
|
|
Below the Fold
|
Ad Business Report
ABC will now make Live-only deals
Has backed down a bit and Marc Goldstein comments...
Cable Business Report
Time Warner Cable upgrades
With Open TV ...
Washington Media Business Report
FCC dragnet nabs four more TVs
Found with inadequacies in handling of kids programming and a 4th the public file...
Entertainment Media
Business Report
If you can't take the heat
Fox is hoping for summer reality TV success...
Ratings & Research
Reruns score big
Something not heard in a while: NBC won the 18-49 demo...
|
|
|
More News Headlines
|
WESH-TV
celebrates 50 years
On Sunday, June 11, WESH-TV Orlando is celebrating its 50th anniversary serving the Central Florida community. Originally an independent TV station transmitting only in Volusia County, WESH now reaches nine counties throughout Central Florida. Moreover, it is one of the top NBC affiliates in the country, operating in the nation's 20th market. "We're committed to raising the bar and being a trend-setter in the region's broadcast community," said Bill Bauman, president and general manager. "When big stories happen, we want Central Floridians to depend on us to cover them on air, on cable and online, 24/7. We envision the day when more people will get their news on the Web than on their TV sets. I've also challenged our team of professionals to push the boundaries of conventional TV programming and introduce ground-breaking initiatives that will enhance our public service and the quality of life of our audiences."
|
|
|
RBR - Radio News
|
April radio results "significant miss"
That's the view from Wachovia Securities analyst Marci Ryvicker, who looked at the RAB numbers and cut her 2006 forecast to a gain of only 0.7%. And she warns this may not be the last time she cuts her estimate for radio revenues. Ryvicker had expected April revenues to be down 1%, but what RAB reported late Friday was a 4% decline. "National falls off a cliff and local isn't too far behind," Ryvicker said in her analysis of the Arpil results. She noted that national dipped 7% "despite a very easy comp of -2%" and local didn't fare much better, dropping 4% against a flat month in 2005. Those numbers, she said, explain why Q2 guidance from pure-play radio companies was disappointing, or, in some cases, not even offered. Is business going to get better? "During the May earnings season, many pure-play operators deemed Q2 the 'bottom' for radio. We would like to agree as the April numbers show this may be the case. However, other than easy comps from political races, New Orleans and Home Depot, we don't expect core demand to improve much in the second half. There continues to be a lack of demand, declining CPPs and a weak auto category," the analyst told her clients. Other than the Spanish niche players, Univision and Entravision, Ryvicker didn't recommend any radio stocks in her latest report. She is now looking for the industry to post a 1% drop in Q2 revenues, down from her previous +1% estimate. She is still maintaining a positive number for all of 2006, but not by much - forecasting a 0.7% revenue gain, down from her previous 1.3% estimate. But Ryvicker warns that this may not be the last time she has to reduce her radio forecast.
RBR observation: Ryvicker hasn't gone quite has far as her Lehman Brothers counterpart, Anthony DiClemente, who on Friday lowered his 2006 radio forecast into negative territory (6/5/06 RBR #109) - but she is not far off. 0.7% is not much of a gain and it won't take much for Ryvicker to move her forecast into negative territory. The worry is not that Wall Street is finding fault with radio - it is that the weakness is real and there is no sign of any catalyst to improve the situation. Friday's April numbers were worse than anyone had expected and there's no indication of a big bounceback in May. Whatever political windfall comes in the second half is not going to be enough to counter the ongoing weakness in automotive, lack of pricing pressure (despite full implementation of Clear Channel's Less is More) and increased ad spending on the Internet, which is taking share from radio, TV and other "old media." The idea that 2006 would be a relatively easy comeback year against 2005's easy comps has been proven wrong - and 2007, with no Olympics or election, is not looking pretty unless something surprising develops.
|
|
|
TVBR Radar 2006
|
|
Television News you won't read any where else. TVBR--First, Accurate, and Independently Owned.
|
TV could follow radio results "significant miss"
That's the view from Wachovia Securities analyst Marci Ryvicker, who looked at the RAB numbers and cut her 2006 forecast to a gain of only 0.7%. And she warns this may not be the last time she cuts her estimate for radio revenues. Ryvicker had expected April revenues to be down 1%, but what RAB reported late Friday was a 4% decline. Ryvicker isn't recommending any radio stocks. She is now looking for the industry to post a 1% drop in Q2 revenues, down from her previous +1% estimate. She is still maintaining a positive number for all of 2006, but not by much - forecasting a 0.7% revenue gain, down from her previous 1.3% estimate. But Ryvicker warns that this may not be the last time she has to reduce her radio forecast.
TVBR observation: Radio had been counting on inventory pressure from television to provide a big boost in the second half of this year. But with automotive so weak for TV as well, political advertising may not push too much other advertising off of TV this fall. While TV should do better than radio by comparison, the real worry now is that both are likely to be in the same boat in 2007 - with soft demand, no big events (Olympics or political) to soak up inventory and no catalyst (at least none that can yet be seen) to boost advertiser interest in broadcasting.
06/06/06 TVBR #110
Online newspaper ads
jump 35% in Q1
Ad expenditures for newspaper websites increased by 34.9% to 613 million in Q1 versus the same period a year ago. Print and online expenditures together totaled 11.1 billion for Q1, a 1.8% year-over-year increase. Spending for print ads in newspapers totaled 10.5 billion, up 0.3% versus the same period a year earlier led by strong gains in real estate advertising.
TVBR observation: We have heard this electronic media talk at the 4A's and TVB this year but understanding the world of electronic media is not complex. Its only complex if you are not there and still stuck in 2003. Newspaper has grabbed this quickly so TV groups this is your last year to get on board or other media will pass you by. Do not believe us then go back and see how Wall Street is projecting radio's revenue growth as TV is not far behind in issue
06/06/06 TVBR #110
Univision bidding war
begins this week
There is been No Official Announcement, nor do we expect one, but by all accounts first round bids for Univision.
TVBR observation: Univision shareholders have been rejoicing at the news that Emilio Azcarraga Jean does not want anything to do with the Haim Saban group. A consortium of consortia could have left Univision in the position that VNU was recently in - with only one bidder stepping up to the plate. The VNU deal finally got done, but the sellers didn't walk away with smiles on their faces. Details see
06/05/06 TVBR #109
|
|
|
|
 |
Sr. Level Radio Engineer
Top national sports radio network has immediate opening for Sr. level Engineer. Must be able to quickly analyze and repair issues, supervise a staff, and take initiative in all technical aspects of business. Experience in RF and satellitey distribution, Audio Vault, studio design and construction, remote broadcast facilities and project and operational budgeting is necessary. Travel is required.
See Radio Careers
TV Media Sales Executive
TVBR (RBR's sister E-paper) needs just one (1) person that has the closing contacts in the Television & Cable business to bring in the Ad dollars to TVBR with our Monthly Solutions Magazine and earn 6 figures. NO Relocation necessary. Contact me in Confidence. EOE
See TV Careers
Hard finding that key person
to fill the important position at your organization? TVBR's - Media HeadHunters is the place that key media firms use to get results. See www.mediaheadhunters.com and get results with service--Period.
|
 |
|
|
|
|
Help Desk
|
Having problems with our epapers?
Please send Questions/Concerns to:
Memberships@rbr.com
If you wish to remove your name completely from our database use this link __UNSUB__
TVBR Epaper -- 108 annual
or just 9 a month
|
|
|
|
©2006 Radio Business Report, Inc. All rights reserved.
Television Business Report -- 2050 Old Bridge Road, Suite B-01, Lake Ridge, VA 22192 -- Phone: 703-492-8191
|
|
