Since exiting the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) in December 2000 after a nearly 16-year run that concluded as VP of Research and Planning, he’s been associated with BIA Advisory Services.
Starting July 1, he’ll be associated with retirement.
Dr. Mark Fratrik will be concluding his career in broadcast media research at the end of the month.
However, Fratrik will continue as a strategic advisor and analyst to the company “offering continuity for the firm’s forecasting, insights and analytics services” that will now be led by VP of Forecasting and Analysis Nicole Ovadia, BIA said in a formal announcement released on Thursday (6/2).
Since January 2001, Fratrik has been a key figure at BIA, appearing at numerous industry conferences and conventions, including Streamline Publishing’s Hispanic Radio Conference. He was promoted to SVP in February 2014. In an interview appearing in the Washington Business Journal, Fratrik, a Ph.D., was asked at the time if there was one thing he wished everyone knew about his job? His reply, “How varied my job is. It’s touching on various issues, policy, industry and jumping across the media landscape. It isn’t just radio, TV and newspaper I deal with anymore. Now it’s all the various online competitors I look at.”
Fratrik was also asked what the most interesting project he ever worked on was. He replied, “Ten or 11 years ago, we were consulting with a local media company in Guam. We got to go there, and while it’s a different place insofar as its remoteness, there are still the same issues that a media company faces here. They’re similar to a radio station, a TV station in our area so it was interesting to see the differences and the similarities in those markets.”
He also shared that he knew his employer, BIA, for nearly 16 years before he was hired, making the transition from the NAB one that proved to be smooth and without unknowns concerning Fratrik.
“When I look at the accomplishments of BIA over Mark’s 21-year tenure at BIA, there’s a direct correlation between our success and Mark’s dedication and expertise,” said Tom Buono, BIA’s CEO and founder. “Mark’s competence in analyzing the economic forces driving the local media industry has guided our forecasting efforts and allowed us to continuously deliver high-quality, reliable data and insights. His analyses have been integral to informing and influencing decisions at the highest levels of our industry and the government, and his service to BIA has been immeasurable.”
Rick Ducey, who serves as Managing Director at BIA Advisory Services, added, “Dr. Fratrik set the standard for media economists with his dedication to the industry and his work at BIA. It’s a record of which he should be rightfully proud, and it’s been an honor to work with him both at NAB and BIA.”
Ovadia, who joined BIA last month and was previously with the New York State Broadcasters’ Association (NYSBA), commented, “Although it’s impossible for anyone to fill Mark’s shoes, I am excited and honored to have the baton passed to me. Mark has built an amazing foundation and the respect he has earned from his insightful forecasts is unmatched in the industry. Its upon that foundation that we will continue to build, improve, evolve and grow BIA’s forecasting tools and analysis.”
Before joining the NAB, Fratrik worked for the Federal Trade Commission in the Bureau of Economics where he spent nearly five years conducting analyses of industry practices to evaluate overall economic impact.
Dr. Mark Fratrik received his B.A. in Mathematics and Economics from State University of New York at Binghamton and his Masters and Doctoral degrees in Economics from Texas A&M in College Station, Tex. He had also served as an Adjunct Professor of Economics at John Hopkins University in Baltimore.
