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Volume 22, Issue 178, Jim Carnegie, Editor & Publisher
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Monday Morning September 12th, 2005
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Radio News®
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 RBR Analysis
The challenge for Interep
National business has been rebounding this year, but Interep has had to deal with a number of issues that all have to be resolved for the company to get back on track for future growth. The first problem started going on two years, many never forget the Katz employee walk across town on (11/17/03 RBR #225) as the headline in RBR read - RBR Exclusive The demise of Clear Channel in the rep business was devised over 1-1/2 yrs Ago - then one week later (11/24/03 RBR #230) they walked back to Katz - The Bold Three, Shaw, Flood & Gray, go back to 125 West 55th Street. The most recent bit of bad news for CEO Ralph Guild and his staff was the loss of Radio One (9/7/05 RBR #175), which had previously split its stations roughly half and half between the two big rep firms, but elected to consolidate at Katz Radio Group. It was the third major defection in 2004 and 2005, following moves by Citadel and Cumulus to Katz, adding to a public perception that Interep's client base is eroding. There has not been a major group move the other way in recent years, although Interep insists that it has been adding stations and improving billings for its clients. Another major Interep client group, Susquehanna Radio, is currently up for sale. There's nothing the rep firm can do about that, but if most or all of Susquehanna is bought by one or more Katz clients, it will be just that much more lost billing.
 At the same time, Interep has been dealing with pressure from its largest bondholder (and 2%+ stockholder), Oaktree Capital Management, which proposed a financial restructuring that would give it control of the company and bring in a new CEO to succeed Guild (4/18/05 RBR #76). Interep's board rebuffed Oaktree and with employees of the rep firm owning voting control, there's not much Oaktree can do so long as Interep stays current on its bond payments. There's no dispute that Interep needs to be recapitalized, but Guild and CFO Bill McEntee are pursuing their own plan that would not give up employee control of the company. The good news for Interep was that it posted two straight quarters of improved commission revenues in the first half of this year along with turning positive on the bottom line in Q2 - - so it's moving in the right direction financially.
RBR observation: Interep should never have done an IPO, as had previously been demonstrated by Katz, now a part of Clear Channel. But that's water over and under the bridge as their flood insurance has been cancelled. The priority now is for Ralph Guild, especially the Interep Board and other Interep managers to establish justification for the company's survival. Clients are demanding that reps focus on developing new business, not just raid each other's flow of national spot revenues. The problem there is that Interep is going to have to prove that it can be more nimble and innovative. Katz will always have more people and deeper pockets, so Interep has to prove that it can be more creative. Its ace in the hole is that it has radio groups who want it to succeed because they don't want to be dependent on Katz, owned by their competitor Clear Channel, as a major revenue source. As one group head said a few months ago, a healthy Interep would benefit the radio industry and Interep's clients need to talk about the rep firm's future. Unfortunately for Interep, that client was Al Liggins, who has now taken all of Radio One to Katz. Interep become a manageable total focused media firm. A key to Interep's growth - Become a manageable size with vision and then put your plan in motion and do it now before the close of this year.
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Second meeting held on HD Radio Consortium
Now it has been confirmed by high-level industry sources: Our exclusive story last week (9/6 RBR #174) regarding the PowerPoint presentation for internal use at Clear Channel laying out a timeline and potential business models for developing multi-channel HD Radio was confirmed, along with the fact a second meeting was held last week with more groups. We also now know this was the brainchild of CCU CEO Mark Mays and Infinity CEO Joel Hollander. The second meeting was in held in Indianapolis with Emmis CEO Jeff Smulyan. Said our high-ranking RBR source: "There was another meeting on an HD Radio alliance in Indianapolis that Smulyan hosted which Mark Mays and Joel Hollander ran. [They] are trying to get some agreement on adoption and promotion and things of that nature." What's the overall reaction from radio groups on the idea? "Very positive." Why is this needed? "Because everybody can not go out there and do their own thing like the Wild West. It is going to be a unified effort and that is what you are getting."
RBR observation: As we've said before-the only way to effectively battle the choices satellite radio offers is to make a concerted offering that competes with them head-on. In larger markets, the groups can cooperate to offer only one Reggae multicast per market; one Indie Rock multicast per market; one Chill format multicast per market, etc....The goal now is to make HD multicast the competitive solution to satellite and Internet. Hollander and Mays' idea is likely the best way to go about doing that meaning - 'Let's not compete, but cooperate, in providing more music offerings on HD.'
 Wachovia says inventory cuts are holding
After analyzing radio spot levels for August, Wachovia Securities analyst Marcia Ryvicker says she's pleased that reduced inventory levels seen in July have held up. FM stations in the top 12 revenue markets held to an average of 11.4 units per hour, or 10.4 minutes during drive time. Disney and Jefferson-Pilot posted the greatest sequential drops, while Viacom and Clear Channel were steady, she said. The more inventory is cut the more rates must rise, the analyst noted. "According to our August price analysis, rate increased of approximately 13% per unit are required just to break even, which is a difficult feat in the current environment. We believe that the inventory reduction efforts, along with spotty national and various format changes are hampering top lien growth. However, Clear channel's significant rating improvements do suggest that less inventory is more of what the audience, and eventually the advertisers, desire," Ryvicker said.
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 Consumer advocates oppose
multicast must-carry
A quartet of media watchdogs think that big broadcasters already control way too much of what Americans see on television. They argue that there is no public interest benefit that outweighs the negative impact of amplifying their "megaphone." The groups said as much in a letter to members of the two Capitol Hill Commerce Committees, both of which will be gatekeepers before DTV legislation goes before the full House and Senate. The letter is a joint effort from Gene Kimmelman of the Consumers Union, Mark Cooper of the Consumer Federation of America, Ben Scott of Free Press and Jeff Chester or the Center for Digital Democracy. They point out the danger of "...the strengthening of broadcaster control over content and viewpoints through expansion of the distribution platform." They do not rule out multicasting, but say "A decision on multicast must-carry is premature and should not be made before a thorough consideration of viewpoint diversity, consumer benefit, and policies that will increase access to diverse content through other technologies that use the public airwaves." They tell Congress that it should not expect broadcasters to put such channels to good use - - past performance, including "broadcasters' track record of declining standards in local news and an increase in homogeneous network content," along with high programming costs, will probably result in reliance on already-extant repurposed programming. On the other hand, if stations do provide compelling non-duplicative local content, cable systems will be compelled by viewer demand to carry it, making a legislative mandate unnecessary.
RBR observation: The further entanglement of the DTV web continues unabated. The Powell FCC thought multicast must-carry was unconstitutional, but the Martin FCC said it was OK - - for DBS - - at least in Alaska and Hawaii. The cable industry continues to push its strange argument that broadcasters are trying to spirit away operators' channel capacity; even though the capacity broadcasters will use in a DTV regime will be the same, or even less, than under the current analog system. Cable claims a multi-billion dollar hit because of the "loss" of this phantom capacity. Broadcasters are touting the benefits of multicasting to consumers, while at the same time consumer groups are saying they don't want it. Meanwhile, phone companies are trying to get into both the cable business with their wires, and the broadcasting business with their cell phones, and radio operators are thinking about running their own multicasting operations in the face of increasing competition from satellite radio and iPods. And we haven't said a word about the Internet. The revenue streams in all this are also entangling - - and most likely, since there are more and more streams, they are going to get weaker, not stronger. As the Talking Heads' David Byrne wrote in his classic '80s anthem "Swamp," "Where're we goin'? Who knows?"
 Katrina floods FCC's
September Open Meeting
The FCC's monthly Open Meetings give employees an opportunity to explain various initiatives and actions, and the commissioners an opportunity to discuss and vote on them. This month, however, the usual lineup of agenda items has been hijacked by Hurricane Katrina, which had far-reaching effects on numerous areas under the Commission's purview. The meeting is set for Thursday, 9/15/05 at 9:30 AM. An agency statement replaces the usual enumeration of agenda items: "The Meeting will focus on presentations regarding the effects of Hurricane Katrina on communications services in the Gulf Coast states." Broadcast, MVPD and phone service were all affected by the storms. FCC Chair Kevin Martin and senior Democrat Michael Copps actually visited the area last week, issuing the following joint statement: "We are encouraged that in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina carriers are working day and night to speed the restoration of service in Gulf State communities. We salute the Herculean efforts of their employees - - many of whom have experienced terrible personal loss and property damage in this tragic storm. We are committed to doing everything within our power to aid these extraordinary recovery efforts. In the days ahead, the challenge will be facilitating service restoration. But in the long term, we will need to learn from this event and work together to improve the reliability, survivability, and security of our nation's telecommunications networks."
RBR observation: A lot of finger-pointing is in progress at the moment, but we have not heard of a single finger pointing in the direction of the FCC. The Commission's reaction has been swift and accommodating. It's performance so far suggests that it will continue to take an active role in getting communications in the region back to 100% functionality.
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Astrodome LPFM denied
KAMP 95.3 "Evacuation Radio Services", a low-power FM for Hurricane Katrina evacuees housed at the Houston Astrodome has so far been denied the right to broadcast. Although the group trying to organize the station has scored three 90-day licenses from the FCC, as of last week, they were shut down by a handful of temporary administrators' content to maintain radio silence, reported Wired. While basic needs have been met, the survivors inside the Astrodome say they continue to suffer from a lack of information. Short blasts of information periodically echo from the Astrodome's PA speakers. Inspired by the crisis, volunteers gathered Sunday, planning to broadcast hourly updated information evacuees would need to move forward with their lives. Support poured in from wireless nonprofits like the Prometheus Radio Project. All levels of government seemed excited by the idea, including Houston's Mayor Bill White, Texas Gov. Rick Perry, and federal agencies like the FCC and FEMA. The group also found 10,000 radios in a warehouse in Houston, waiting to be purchased from and delivered by a distributor. Tuesday, two KAMP technicians scouted out a skybox high above the arena floor as a potential radio site with Astrodome staff. Nina Jackson, another administrator, assured the technicians that their request was heading up the chain of command at the Astrodome. But according to KAMP, Rita Obey, a local official from Harris County Public Health Services, gave them a laundry list of prerequisites, and later KAMP received word that their request had been officially denied. RW Royall Jr., the incident commander of the Joint Information Center -- the group temporarily governing the operations of the Astrodome campus -- told KAMP they could not install their equipment. According to KAMP, Royall claimed the Astrodome was not able to provide power to KAMP's low-power FM transmitter. When KAMP offered to bring in enough batteries to power the equipment off the Astrodome's grid, they were still denied. Meanwhile, the NAB is distributing 1,300 battery-operated hand-held radio and television sets to public safety officials for Hurricane Katrina relief efforts.
 ABC's Wide World of Sports
Chris Schenkel passes
In Fort Wayne, Schenkel lost a long battle with lung disease on Sunday. Schenkel was a great sportscaster and was one of the main anchors when ABC covered the Olympics. He was also the first to broadcast college football from coast to coast and was an important fixture at the Indy 500. But many remember Shenkel as the voice of the PBA tour which was a must in the '60s for many on Saturday afternoons on ABC.
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Adbiz©
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Dodge renews campaign on NTN Interactive Television
NTN Communications announced Dodge has extended its sponsorship program with NTN for an additional two years. Dodge has been the exclusive automotive sponsor of NTN's QB1 program for the past four years. The campaign will include Dodge commercials, sponsorship of QB1, NTN's Predict-The-Play football strategy game, the Dodge "Battle To The Bowl V" trivia competition, and the Dodge "Haul of Fame IV" Advergame featuring 3D animation. Dodge will also include the opportunity for local participation by Dodge dealers. Local dealers can sponsor local tailgate events at restaurants and sports bars that carry the NTN iTV Network while showcasing Dodge vehicles, distributing prizes and promoting their dealerships. The NTN iTV Network delivers interactive game content to over 3,800 sports bars and restaurants across North America, reaching 1 million consumers daily.
Sears Chairman demotes CEO
Sears Holdings Corp. Chairman Eddie Lampert has demoted Sears CEO Alan Lacy, replacing him with former Kmart CEO Aylwin Lewis. Lacy will continue to serve as Vice Chairman and a Director of Sears. He also expanded his own role in day-to-day merchandising and marketing duties. The announcement, made by Lampert in a letter to shareholders, came as Sears reported sales dropped 7.4% at stores open at least one year and Kmart reported. Analysts criticized Lampert's move, saying he doesn't have the marketing and merchandising experience and credentials-he's experienced as a hedge fund manager.
Steve Centrillo named Foote Cone & Belding NY CEO
Steve Centrillo has been named President/CEO of Foote Cone & Belding New York. Centrillo, along with Chris Becker, Chairman of FCB New York, will report directly to Steve Blamer, CEO of Foote Cone & Belding Worldwide. Most recently, Centrillo was EVP and Chief Growth Officer of Interpublic Group. Prior to joining Interpublic, Steve was with Grey Global Group, where he had been EVP and Managing Partner of darkGrey, an integrated communications unit dedicated to technology and telecommunications clients, as well as COO of Grey Worldwide Atlanta.
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| Media Business Report |
 Anti-email advertising laws
keyed to children
Two states have put laws on the books making it a crime to use the Internet to advertise to children a number of products not intended for children, according to an article at ADWEEK.COM. The states are Michigan and Utah. The products include potent beverages, smoking material, games of chance, and adult material (whether it consists of literature, stills or otherwise). The rules kick in if such an ad winds up in the email box of a child. In Michigan, the fines can be as much as 250K a day with up to a year in jail; in Utah, we're talking up to 1K per message. The Association of National Advertisers is mulling a legal challenge. However, such advertisers fear that the general unpopularity of unsolicited email advertisements will inspire similar legislation in other states (Illinois is said to be considering it already). Forget other states - - how about the legislative bodies which hold their meetings in Washington DC? Congress has already created do-not-call legislation, and has held hearings on the topic of email spam.
MBR observation: Since TVBR and RBR are a web-based publication this has been somewhat of a difficult story to write. The very words useful in describing content banned from children's' email boxes are the words that would get this serious compilation of news and opinion snared by even the most casual and open-minded spam filter. Email boxes are to us what paper is to a newspaper, airwaves are to radio and TV, and wires are to cable. It's where we live. We would be very happy to no longer have to share our space with spammers. At the same time, we hope - - like tuna companies who take care not to catch any dolphins - - that any legislative attempt to weed the junk out of America's email boxes does not throw legitimate users of the venue into the dumpster along with spam being rightly targeted.
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| Media Markets & MoneyTM |
Fidelity disapproves of Mays contracts
Fidelity Investments, the world's largest mutual fund company, disclosed in regulatory filings that it had withheld votes for all directors of Clear Channel Communications at the company's annual shareholders meeting in April - - effectively a vote of no confidence in the company's management. Fidelity is Clear Channel's largest shareholder. At the time of the vote it held approximately 15.5% of the company's shares, compared to around 7% for members of the Mays family. What Fidelity objected to was the signing of new employment contracts in March for Chairman Lowry Mays, President and CEO Mark Mays and CFO Randall Mays - - contracts with around 90 million bucks worth of golden parachutes should anyone from outside the family take control of Clear Channel.
Bohach finds Frontier in middle of Ohio
Arlene and Mark Bohach are entering the radio ownership business with a 260K deal for WLOH-AM, a 1320 kHz facility hailing from Lancaster OH, southeast of state capital Columbus. The Borlachs' license organization, WLOH Radio Company, will pick about 158K in existing debt from owner Bart Johnson's Frontier Broadcasting LLC III, and will pay the remaining 102K in cash.
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| Washington Beat |
More closed captioning fun
The FCC continues to draw a hard line when it comes to getting out of closed captioning broadcast video material. The latest to get shot down is Little Heart Entertainment's (LHE) "Dooley and Pals Christian Children's Ministry Series." A group of national hearing impaired organizations opposed LHE's attempt to get a CC waiver. LHE said that the show is "...a locally produced and distributed non-news program with no repeat value..." In turning LHE down, the FCC explained what it considers exempt local material - - things like "...local parades, local high school and other nonprofessional sports, live unscripted local talk shows and community theatre productions." Further, the program, in addition to being locally created, must not be shown outside that same local area. In this case, the opponents noted that "Dooley" was distributed to 99 other broadcast stations, a statistic they came up with via an Internet search. LHE still has the option of pursuing a financially-based undue burden exemption, but at this point has not provided the FCC with sufficient evidence to consider such an exemption.
 SCOTUS ads directed at Gang of 14
Groups purchasing ads in an attempt to influence the hearings on Supreme Court nominee John Roberts have been placing buys in states that have Judiciary Committee members in their Capitol Hill delegation. However, this buy-pattern has expanded to include the bloc of moderate senators that banded together to save the filibuster as a legislative tactic earlier this year - - particularly in the case of groups opposed to Roberts. The Brennan Center for Justice and the Justice at Stake Campaign has been tracking the air wars over the nomination. Opponents of Roberts have mainly targeted Republican members of the so-called "Gang of 14" have seen their states become targets, including John Warner (R-VA), Susan Collins and Olympia Snowe (both R-ME), Lincoln Chaffee (R-RI) and Lindsay Graham (R-SC). The only Democrat on the opponents list thus far Ben Nelson (D-NE). Supporters of Roberts also have Warner and Virginia on their list, and are also targeting Ken Salazar (D-CO), Joseph Lieberman (D-CT) and Daniel Inouye (D-HI). As usual in campaigns aimed at influencing national political action, Washington DC is getting a lot of media action from both sides.
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| Engineering |
WAMU launches WAMU2 HD multicast
Beginning today WAMU-FM launched its multicast HD Radio digital channel "WAMU2," 88.5-2. Programming content in the demonstration will be the special gavel-to-gavel coverage of the confirmation hearings for Chief Justice of the Supreme Court Nominee John Roberts, produced by NPR. Providing reporting and commentary on location from the Capitol will be NPR Legal Affairs Correspondent Nina Totenberg (in her 18th stint covering Supreme Court nomination hearings) and Neal Conan, Host of the NPR talk series (Talk of the Nation). WAMU's main channel will proceed without interruption while the confirmation hearings will be aired on WAMU2 and on an additional live web stream. Said GM Caryn Mathes, "We envision WAMU developing into a 'family of content services' to listeners utilizing conventional analog and HD Radio transmission, HD Radio multicast channels and data services, live streaming, web-exclusive program streams-such as BluegrassCountry.org, 'on-demand' downloads of programming and podcasting. This opportunity to use a major national news event to demonstrate how different content can be directed to multiple delivery systems offers our listeners an exciting look into the near future of radio." At the conclusion of the hearings, WAMU2 will go silent. However, WAMU plans to utilize its second digital channel on an ad hoc basis when opportunities arise. The station is seeking grant money to conduct market research on what a viable, permanent format for WAMU2 might be, and to subsidize the startup of a permanent second channel.
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| TVBR TV News |
Cable ad revenues up 15.3% in first half
 According to TNS Media Intelligence, Cable ad revenue increased 15.3% to 7.9 billion during the first half of 2005, leading gains made by all other media. Internet ad spending is up 9.4% and consumer print magazine spending increased by 9.1% in the first half. TNS said the spike in cable was due to higher unit costs, increases in commercial inventory and larger audiences. Overall, TNS put first-half 2005 advertising expenditures across all media at 70.5 billion, up 4.5 % from the first half of 2004. Two media lost ground in the first half of the year -- spot TV dropped 6.1% and network radio fell 3.3%. Overall, national advertising's 7.4% growth outpaced local advertising's 0.1% increase.
TVB looks further out
In addition to issuing its forecast for 2006 (9/9/05 TVBR #177), the Television Bureau of Advertising (TVB) is looking further ahead. TVB President Chris Rohrs notes that the TV business has moved increasingly to a two-year cycle. "The structure of the business has changed dramatically because of the Olympics switching to a two-year frequency and because of the growth of political advertising in Spot. Odd years will always face tough comparisons to even years, when spending on both the Olympics and political ads show up. Spot TV is a two-year business cycle," Rohrs noted. Thus, TVB has issued a full forecast for 2007.
2007 TV revenue growth forecast
Local Spot
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+2.0 to +4.0%
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National Spot
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- 1.0 to -3.0%
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TOTAL SPOT
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- 0.2 to +1.8%
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Network
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+2.0 to +4.0%
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Syndication
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+2.0 to +4.0%
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Network Cable
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+5.0 to +7.0%
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Local Cable
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+6.0 to +8.0%
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Source: TVB (more at TVB.org)
NRB pushes moral dimensions of multicast
National Religious Broadcasters is urging Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert (R-IL) to make sure a multicast must-carry mandate is included in any DTV legislation passed by Congress. It says its reasons transcend the kind of economic arguments which often obscure "cultural and moral dimensions of legislation." Passage of multicast must-carry "...will ensure that additional family friendly programming and programming exemplifying high moral values, such as that offered by members of [NRB], will be more widely available to families across the country. Without this provision, it is likely that we will see continued development of non-family friendly alternatives." The reason for this argument is simple - - over the air broadcasters are subject to indecency rules, while cable programmers are not. "Without this action on the part of Congress," NRB concludes, "we will continue to see what some members of the FCC have called 'the headlong race to the bottom' in television programming. Signatories to the letter include Dr. Ron Harris, KCBI Radio; Bill Blount, Blount Communications; Richard P. Bott II, Bott Radio Network; Stuart Epperson, Salem Communications; Jim Gwinn, CRISTA Ministries; Robin Jones, Moody Broadcasting Network; Roger Kemp, Roger Kemp and Associates; Michael Little, Christian Broadcasting Network; Mrs. Janet Parshall, Janet Parshall's America; Bill Skelton, Love Worth Finding; and Dr. Frank Wright, NRB.
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| Monday Morning Makers & Shakers |
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Transactions: 8/1/05-8/5/05
Trading continued to be a one-to-a-customer proposition as July segued into August. At least, FM stations were back in the picture, and a TV deal on the coastal plains of South Carolina made sure there was a curly number at the front of the weekly total.
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Total
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Total Deals
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15
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AMs
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6
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FMs
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9
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TVs
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1
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| Value |
37.604M
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| Complete Charts |
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Radio Transactions of the Week
Amassing stations for Mass
| More... |
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TV Transactions of the Week
Double trouble on the SC shore
| More... |
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| Transactions |
24.1M WPDE-TV Myrtle Beach-Florence SC (Florence SC) from Grand Strand Communications (Carolyn A. Barrett), a subsidiary of Diversified Communications (David H. Lowell) to Barrington Broadcasting of South Carolina Corp. (K. James Yager et al). 750K escrow, balance in cash at closing. Includes non-compete. Duopoly with LMA of WWMB-TV, which is also being transferred to buyer. WPDE is ABC affiliate on Channel 15; WWMB is UPN affiliate on Channel 21. [File date 8/1/05.]
1.774M WWKG-FM Orlando (Clermont FL) from Hispanic Broadcast System Inc. (Idalia Arzuaga) to Central Florida Educational Foundation Inc (James S. Hoge, Dean Chapman, G. Carter Kenyon III). Cash. Station is noncommercial. [File date 8/1/05.]
1.5M WBKK-FM Albany-Schendectady-Troy (Amsterdam NY) from GEM Associates LP (J. Taylor Monfort) to WMHT Educational Telecomunications (Michael Whiteman, Deborah Onslow et al). 100K escrow, balance in cash at closing. Buyer will change license for noncommercial operation. [File date 8/1/05.]
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| Stock Talk |
Optimism on Wall Street
A drop in oil prices and optimism that the ravaged Gulf Coast will be rebuilt pushed stock prices higher on Friday. The Dow Industrials rose 83 points, or 0.8%, to 10,679.
Radio stocks were slightly higher. The Radio Index gained 0.253, or 0.1%, to 204.359.
There were no big movers. Regent gained 1.7% to lead the day.
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| Radio Stocks |
Here's how stocks fared on Friday
| Company |
Symbol |
Close |
Change |
Company |
Symbol |
Close |
Change |
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Arbitron
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ARB
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42.08
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+0.01
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Jeff-Pilot
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JP
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49.99
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+0.28
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Beasley
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BBGI
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14.90
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unch
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Journal Comm.
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JRN
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15.87
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-0.04
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| Citadel |
CDL |
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13.14 |
+0.13 |
Radio One, Cl. A
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ROIA
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13.60
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+0.05
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Clear Channel
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CCU
|
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32.43
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+0.31
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Radio One, Cl. D
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ROIAK
|
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13.57
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+0.01
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Cox Radio
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CXR
|
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15.00
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-0.06
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Regent
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RGCI
|
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5.30
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+0.09
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Cumulus
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CMLS
|
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12.46
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-0.08
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Saga Commun.
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SGA
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14.00
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-0.09
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Disney
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DIS
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25.04
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+0.09
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Salem Comm.
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SALM
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18.71
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+0.03
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Emmis
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EMMS
|
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23.62
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+0.05
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Sirius Sat. Radio
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SIRI
|
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7.39
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+0.19
|
| Entercom |
ETM
|
|
31.85
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-0.07
|
Spanish Bcg.
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SBSA
|
|
7.31
|
-0.02
|
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Entravision
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EVC
|
|
7.71
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-0.06
|
Univision
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UVN
|
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26.05
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+0.05
|
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Fisher
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FSCI
|
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48.50
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+0.20
|
Viacom, Cl. A
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VIA
|
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34.59
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+0.23
|
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Gaylord
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GET
|
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47.60
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-0.20
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Viacom, Cl. B
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VIAb
|
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34.62
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+0.27
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Hearst-Argyle
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HTV
|
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25.50
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+0.05
|
Westwood One
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WON
|
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20.73
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+0.07
|
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Interep
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IREP
|
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0.58
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-0.02
|
XM Sat. Radio
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XMSR
|
|
36.00
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+0.93
|
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International Bcg.
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IBCS
|
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0.01
|
unch
|
-
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-
|
- |
-
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-
|
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Bounceback
|
 We want to
hear from you.
This is your column, so send your comments to [email protected]
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Radio Media Moves
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 From TV
to Interep
Lisa Rosengard has joined Interep Innovations, the rep firm's new business development division, as Director of Marketing. She has previously been Director of Sales Marketing at WCIU-TV Chicago.
Entercom adds NSM
Scott Speropoulos, a veteran of broadcast sales and promotions, has joined Entercom as National Sales Manager for WJCE-AM, WMBZ-FM & WRVR-FM Memphis.
Lawyer joins GSB
Deborah Salons has joined Garvey Schubert Barer the firm's Washington, DC office as an Associate in the Communications and Information Technology Practice Group. She joins the firm after an active career in the industry, having served as Editor-in-Chief of the Federal Communications Law Journal, as a Telecommunications Licensing analyst for the County of Los Angeles Cable Franchising Division, as a Legal Intern for FCC Commissioner Kathleen Abernathy, and as a Law Clerk with the Legal Department of the NAB.
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Stations for Sale
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Oregon Coast:
Two Class A FMs, $900K/Terms
Washington State:
C-2 FM, Spanish, $1.1M Eastern Nevada:
Class C-1, $1M. Call 805.237.0952
MCH Enterprises, Inc. www.mchentinc.com
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NAB Daytime Planner
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The following brokers will be attending the NAB. Call or email to make your appointment in advance.
American Media Services,
Todd Fowler, David Reeder,
843-972-2200, Marriott,
[email protected], [email protected]
Clifton Gardiner & Company,
Cliff Gardiner, 303-758-6900,
Ritz-Carlton Hotel,
[email protected]
Force Communications, Hal Gore, John Laurer, Stan Raymond,
770-329-2234, Hilton Garden Inn, [email protected]
Frank Boyle & Co., Frank Boyle,
203-969-2020, Marriott Courtyard, [email protected]
Gordon Rice Associates,
Gordon Rice, 843-884-3590,
Marriott Downtown, [email protected]
Henson Media, Inc. Ed Henson,
502-589-0060, Loews Hotel, [email protected]
John Pierce & Company LLC,
John Pierce, Cell 859-512-3015,
Jamie Rasnick, Cell 513-252-1186,
859-647-0101 Hilton Garden Inn,
Kozacko Media Services,
Dick Kozacko, Cell 607-738-1219,
George Kimble, 607-733-7138,
Marriott, [email protected]
MCH Enterprises, Inc.,
Brett Miller, Cell 805-680-2265,
805-237-0952, Marriott Courtyard,
[email protected]
Patrick Communications,
Larry Patrick, Greg Guy,
410-740-0250, Marriott, [email protected], [email protected]
Schutz & Company,
Bill Schutz, Cell 757-880-9251,
757-258-8740, Loews Hotel, [email protected]
Serafin Bros., Glenn Serafin,
cell 813-494-6875, 813-885-6060, Marriott Downtown, [email protected]
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September Digital Magazine Now Available
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Media House 2005
And what a food fight we have going into 2006! The Cover alone is worth the download!
Read RBR/TVBR in 2 simple steps:
1.Create a simple account with Zinio and download the Zinio Reader.
2. You can then download the
September Issue of RBR/TVBR
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RBR Radar 2005
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Radio News you won't read any where else. RBR--First, Accurate, and Independently Owned.
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ABCRN to produce, distribute
Jack-FM format
already in several major US markets - - including Infinity stations in New York, LA and Chicago, among other markets. Now it's going to be rolling out in smaller markets. ABC Radio Networks has struck an exclusive agreement with SparkNet Communications to develop and market the Jack-FM format for national distribution beginning 10/1. RBR observation: Remember the Lawsuit by SparkNet Communications saying CCU hijacked Jack and is going after Clear Channel, charging it with cybersquatting and trademark infringement. SparkNet says it is the creator and rights-holder for the new Jack FM Format, and it's heading into a San Diego federal court to challenge Clear Channel's alleged trespass. Now that ABCRN will have exclusive rights to Jack wonder if ABCRN will join in this legal battle. There will be new battles in the coming year dealing with cybersquatting and trademarks. One thing is noted, SparkNet has common law of the trademark of Jack on its side. 09/08/05 RBR #177
TVB sees 2006 growth of 6.1-7.9%
With a federal election year on the horizon forecast that TV stations will see revenues rise 6.1-7.9% in 2006, with national spot outpacing local. Having projected that the spot TV business would be flat in 2005, TVB now sees the actual results won't even be that good, since the core business growth that was supposed to counteract the lack of political advertising didn't materialize. TVB is now expecting 2005 to finish down 5% for total spot TV. Looking at 2006, oil prices will certainly be one of the factors driving the business climate in 2006, since the price of oil affects the price of just about everything else that consumers use. The TVB is "cautiously optimistic" about the automotive sector.
RBR observation: Same goes for radio and other media sectors as you know what runs down hill.
09/08/05 RBR #177
RBR observation - Close-Up First
Clear Channel preparing HD Radio multicast Consortium
 See the attached PDF, the PowerPoint presentation does a good job of laying out the pros and cons of each possibility. While it may seem arrogant to some to propose that Clear Channel and Infinity manage a national partnership, don't forget that the two already supply lots of programming to everyone else in radio, and even to each other, via Westwood One and Premiere Radio Networks. But would an industry-wide coalition pass muster with the DOJ's antitrust watchdogs? That question is raised in the document and we strong suggest you view it and print it out and read it carefully. See you at NAB Philly as HD is the hot topic and will be the buzz of future planning. Publisher Note: Look for RBR Staffers and read RBR Epaper on our 42" Plasma Screen - Location: On the Right Side entrance to the NAB Radio Store. Can't miss it and must read it. RBR will be at NAB Philly. 09/08/05 RBR #176
Katrina's cost: Too soon to count
With no word yet on when people will even be able to return to New Orleans, broadcasters say they can't project when they'll resume normal business or what the financial impact will be. Hearst-Argyle Television withdrew its Q3 guidance to Wall Street, and Entercom followed suit. Hearst-Argyle CFO Harry Hawks said Hearst is withdrawing our previously issued earnings guidance for the quarter ended September 30, 2005. RBR observation: No one is even projecting when life will return to anything resembling normal in these hard-hit markets, so projecting losses at this point is pretty much impossible. The only thing you can say for certain is that they will be big. According to BIAfn VP Mark Fratrik, New Orleans was expected to have 110.8 million in TV revenues in 2005 and 73.3 million in radio revenues - - those projections, of course, made before Hurricane Katrina. Estimates for Biloxi-Gulfport had been 21.4 million for TV and 12.5 million for radio. It's too early to try to estimate the storm's impact.
09/08/05 RBR #176
Why Radio One consolidated
its rep contracts at Katz
The news broke here in an alert early Tuesday morning - - Radio One has consolidated its national representation at Katz Radio Group, leaving Interep out in the cold. It wasn't too hard to see this coming. After months of debate within Radio One, the decision all 69 Radio One stations in 22 markets would be repped by Katz. RBR observation: The loss of Radio One is also a blow to Interep's reputation as the top rep firm for stations targeting African-Americans, dating back to its acquisition of HNWH, the rep firm which pioneered national representation of black stations. The problem now for Interep is dispelling the public perception that its clients are jumping ship. 09/08/05 RBR #176
Radio hits a July pothole
June radio results, as reported by the Radio Advertising Bureau, were flat. That was the expectation for July as well, but it turns out predictions for a flat month was overly optimistic. A modest 3% gain in non-spot revenue was not enough to radio out of the hole dug by a 2% decline in local business and a 3% drop in national. YTD, local, national and total revenue are all up 1% over the January-July stretch of 2004, unaffected by flat results in non-spot.
RBR observation: We haven't heard any speculation, but it seems that there is a very good chance that September revenue statistics are going to be reported out of the red ink well - - it would take strong positive gains elsewhere to make up for the revenue crater left in the wake of Katrina in the Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama.
09/06/05 RBR #174
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ABCRN Producer
ABC Radio Networks needs a motivated, creative, talk radio producer for a nationally syndicated daily talk show targeted to women. Must have a love for news and current events, possess superb writing skills, a terrific sense of humor, and work well under pressure. No Calls. EOE
See Radio Careers
GSM Nations Capital
Washington DC Business Talk station has an immediate GSM opening. Must have proven experience in large to major market sales. Full benefits added incentives and extraordinary growth potential. AE positions also available.
See Radio Careers
Account Executive
Radio People of Jackson, MS (WUSJ, WYOY, WJKK and WIIN) are interested in talking to any displaced sales executives from the Gulf Coast area. Nancy Fletcher 601-956-0102 EOE
See Radio Careers
Talk Radio GSM
Clear Channel's KTLK-FM Minneapolis-St. Paul needing GSM with a proven track record to take a new Talk station to record heights. If you are a direct "Animal" we want to hear from you.
See Radio Careers
Market Manager
Montgomery, AL our 3 Urban stations dominating need this key person to be community involved and provide leadership to a hungry sales staff. In confidence contact us.
See Radio Careers
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Stay Problem Free
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With the ever growing importance of computers in our daily lives and our businesses, it is important to remember that software and hardware often need attention too.
Rules For The Road To 2006 you must do often:
1. Windows Update
(run it every two weeks)
2. Microsoft is putting out "critical" updates every month. Turn Auto-Update On. When it asks you to install the new updates - say Yes!
3. Virus Protection (make sure your system is up to date) Norton, McAfee - all flavors of the same ice cream. We like ice cream right?
4. Application Updates - Office - Lotus Notes, all software typically has updates, make sure you update your software once per month.
No one wants to lose a business day to the IT guy - except for the IT guy. Help yourself steer clear of the bad parts of computing - Update, early and often.
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©2005 Radio Business Report, Inc. All rights reserved.
Radio Business Report -- 2050 Old Bridge Road, Suite B-01, Lake Ridge, VA 22192 -- Phone: 703-492-8191
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