RBR's Daily Morning Epaper

Volume 22, Issue 27, Jim Carnegie, Editor & Publisher

Tuesday Morning February 8th, 2005

Radio News®

Entravision adds "El Cucuy" in 13 markets
Entravision Radio may compete with Renán Almendarez Coello in Los Angeles, but that hasn't stopped it from signing to air his "El Cucuy de la Mañana" show in 13 other markets. It's the first big affiliate signing announced since Spanish Broadcasting System and the top-rated morning star from KLAX-FM Los Angeles began syndication by ABC Radio Networks late last year (11/11/04 RBR #221). Entravision will air "El Cucuy" on stations that carry its Radio Tricolor network. "The show is a great fit for Radio Tricolor's target audience, adults 18-34, and a great complement to our existing program line-up," said Entravision Radio President Jeff Liberman. | More... |

FCC seeking over 300M for FY 2006
The Federal Communications Commission has told President Bush that it will require 304.057M dollars to get its job done during fiscal year 2006. The figure represents an increase of over 11M from the 292.958M it wanted for FY 2005. The FCC says it needs the extra money for mandated salary and benefits increases and for inflationary trends in rent, supplies, printing and contractual services. It also wants to upgrade its Columbia MD facility and upgrade it electronic filing system, among other things. The FY 2004 request was for 280.798M.

RBR observation: Wonder where all that money goes? Ah, website photo gallery. Here is a real case where a federal agency needs real down sizing or a better business plan and a level of management operations which is held accountable to someone besides to - themselves.

Anti-consolidation confab set for St. Louis
Media watchdog Free Press has booked St. Louis's Millennium Hotel for three days in May to eulogize, organize and strategize over the issue of creating "a more democratic media system." There will be "panel presentations, interactive workshops, speeches, film screenings and roundtable discussions on topics such as media ownership and consolidation, grassroots organizing, media literacy, public broadcasting, intellectual property, commercialism, community Internet," and more. Free Press indicates that it is expecting "several thousand people," which will include Democratic FCC Commissioners (and frequent forum flyers) Michael Copps and Jonathan Adelstein. Air America's Al Franken and columnist and former candidate for governor of California Arianna Huffington are also planning to attend.

RBR observation: Just mentioned about what the FCC is requesting in funds in budget to run that joint but now you have to wonder who pays for Copps and Adelstein to fly to these functions. Come on they are not the Secretary of State.

Dad's an idiot?
That's what radio Talker Glenn Sacks says, in the aftermath of another round of male-bashing by the producers of the latest crop of Super Bowl ads. Sacks cites ads for Jack in the Box, Cadillac, Staples and Emerald Nuts as worst offenders, and throws in Budweiser, Sprint, Degree, Michelob and Verizon as second tier offenders. When Dad wasn't being portrayed as an out-and-out idiot, according to Sacks, he was often getting kicked in the groin or otherwise tortured in commercials exploiting the also popular "men's pain is funny" theme. Federal Express, State Farm and Ameriquest were cited on the pain count. Sacks is host of a nationally-syndicated radio show about men's and fathers' issues. He's been crusading against advertisements which utilize the idiot and pain themes since last fall.

RBR observation: Sacks didn't even mention the stupidest man we saw. You can't get much dumber than the bozo who turned himself into a popsicle by driving a convertible Ford Mustang in a Fargo-like environment.

So old it's news again
If you've been reading the RBR Daily Epaper for a while, you've known for a month and a half that Katz Radio Group was re-opening the Eastman rep firm (12/16/05 RBR #244), with Tucker Flood heading up the company's third rep firm for radio groups other than its own parent, Clear Channel. At long last, that's now all been publicly confirmed by Katz. The official reopening will take place on Valentine's Day. With Flood moving to Eastman, look for KRG President Steve Shaw to announced a new President for Christal Radio in a week or so.

RBR observation: So what's in this box of Valentine's chocolates for radio groups such as Saga, Cox Radio, Citadel, Fisher and Nassau, who will be repped by Eastman? Will they get better service by having a third company in the Katz Radio Group alongside Katz and Christal? And how much will the group owners keep pressing Clear Channel to sell them all or part of KRG to make it truly independent of the industry's 900-pound gorilla? Otherwise, there's always that sneaking suspicion that the Clear Channel Radio Sales side of Katz Media Group is getting its share of business off the table before the KRG companies get their shot.

Survey says:
"No commercials" is big draw for satellite radio
Satellite radio companies may be shelling out big bucks for sports rights and big name talent like Howard Stern and Opie & Anthony, but a survey for Wall Street's JP Morgan finds that content is not what's selling XM and Sirius. Rather, the top draw is "no commercials." The survey of 1,600 consumers (both satellite radio subscribers and non-subscribers) found that no having commercials is the biggest attraction for people to subscribe to either satellite radio company. "Unique content, on the other hand, appears to be the least important factor," said JP Morgan analyst Spencer Wang in reporting the results to clients. Thus, he concludes that losing Howard Stern and other programming to satellite should not be a big hit for terrestrial radio. But regardless of why people are subscribing to satellite radio, the analyst does see satellite listening having some impact on terrestrial radio's audience. He's estimating that satellite will reduce terrestrial listening by 3.5% by 2010. Although the survey found that 57% of all respondents were willing to pay for satellite radio, it also found that people who don't currently subscribe to either XM or Sirius are more price resistant that the early adopters who already have satellite radio.

RBR observation: C'mon! Are you kidding me? Tell us something we don't know.

Conference Calls Q4 2004

Jefferson-Pilot Communications revs. Up 8%
Jefferson-Pilot Corporation reported that Q4 earnings increased 25% to 145.7 million, largely due to improved insurance sales. For its broadcast stations group, Jefferson-Pilot Communications, Q4 earnings were up 8% to 16.6 million. Broadcast cash flow grew 9% to 31.8 million. The company said that all Communications divisions - - radio, television, and sports - - produced strong gains for the year with higher broadcast cash flow margins and good revenue share performance.

Adbiz©

DIRECTV asks consumers to ''Rethink TV''
DIRECTV launched its new branding campaign on Super Bowl Sunday, which emphasizes that there is a difference among TV providers and where consumers get their TV from really does matter. Encapsulating the theme of the campaign, DIRECTV will launch its new tag, "Rethink TV," along with a modernized version of the DIRECTV logo. Creative was developed by BBDO, New York. The campaign launched with two national TV spots that aired over the course of the Super Bowl pre-game show. Two additional 30-second ad spots will air at a later date and run through the end of June on both cable and network stations, including NBC, CBS, FOX, A&E, CNN, Discovery and ESPN. Local print will begin 2/11, followed by local radio ads 2/14 and continue through June. Both radio and print ads will run in the top 20 markets.

TiVo report details Super Bowl ads
TiVo said this year's Super Bowl and the commercials within it got the typical huge global audience as in years past. But despite efforts to scale back tastelessness and sex in the game and advertising, the commercials that pushed the envelope the furthest still drew the most enthusiastic viewership, according to TiVo's annual audience measurement of the big game.

RBR observation: See the chart of what was replayed and you will see GoDaddy.com at number three. The ad that got their 2.5 million was GoDaddy - Censorship Hearing. That spot ran a number of times on news channels, morning shows, you name it before it aired on the Super Bowl. Now that my Friends is called ROI - Return on Investment. Period.
| More... |

Anheuser-Busch still king of ads
For a record seventh year in a row, Anheuser-Busch has won USA TODAY's exclusive Ad Meter consumer ranking of the top Super Bowl ads. In this year's winner, by DDB Chicago, when a skydiver refuses to jump, his buddy tosses out a six-pack of Bud Light. The guy still doesn't jump, but the pilot does. | More... |

March Radio & Television Business Report

2005 Technology Odyssey..
The Changing Landscape
Ipods, DTV, FCC, Technology, People Meters. If you are in Business to Do Business in today's New Environment, Position your Company, Technology, Programming and what you do that Radio and Television executives need to know as budgets are being put into action. The Landscape is Changing Fast - March 2005 report is ahead of the curve as first quarter is closing fast.

Advertising/Marketing Placement - Contact
Jim Carnegie - 813 909 2916
June Barnes - 803 731 5951

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Media Markets & MoneyTM

ROI ploy on Black Mountain
Perhaps 850K doesn't sound like that big of a deal when talking about the market for radio stations. However, it wasn't all that long ago that Rick and Beth Howerton bought WZNN-AM Black Mountain NC (part of the Asheville market) for 375K. That puts a whole new light on the current transaction. According to broker Terry Greenwood of TAG Media Consulting, the Howertons' Zybek Media Group is selling the 1350 kHz Talker to HRN Broadcasting Inc., headed by D. Mark Boyd III. Boyd was represented by Josh Wilkey of WilkeySouth Media Brokers. He'll run the station in an LMA pending FCC approval of the deal. According to paperwork filed with the FCC on the earlier deal, Zybek's acquisition of the station from Truett Yarbrough included debt forgiveness to the tune of 50K (10/27/04 RBR #210). This time around, according to Greenwood, it's a strict escrow plus cash deal, with the full around due at closing.

Washington Beat

House Energy and Commerce Committee takes shape
The makeup of the House of Representatives committee with predominant oversight on issues of interest to broadcasters for the 109th Congress has been determined. The biggest change - - the chairmanship of the committee - - was determined last year when outgoing Billy Tauzin handed the gavel over to Joe Barton (R-TX.) Chip Pickering (R-MS) returns as vice-chair and also sits on the all-important Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet. Fred Upton (R-MI) continues as its chair. On the Democratic side, John Dingell (R-MI) continues his long reign as Ranking Member, and Ed Markey (D-MA) handles that chore in Telecom/Internet. | More... |

FCC prepares for SHVERA
The Satellite Home Viewer Extension and Reauthorization Act of 2004 requires that the FCC create and maintain a list of "significantly viewed" television signals from out-of-market which can be carried over DBS. A station is deemed to be "significantly viewed" if a "significant" portion of the community tunes in the station over the air. Cable viewing doesn't count. The Commission has been using a definition of significant viewership and applying it to cable regulation for more than 30 years, and will now apply the same rules to satellite. The changes are being presented in the form of a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM), which along with a list of significantly-viewed stations and communities, should be available shortly on the FCC's website. The NPRM will also deal with other issues relate to the passage of SHVERA.

Engineering

Continental Electronics licenses HD Radio technology
Leading up to the NAB2005 unveiling of its new HD Radio transmitter line, Continental Electronics has licensed with iBiquity Digital to develop, manufacture and market HD Radio exciters for AM and FM broadcasters who are converting to digital broadcasting. "The time is right for HD Radio broadcasting, and we have been waiting but certainly not idle. This will be evident at this year's NAB Convention," said John Uvodich, Continental Electronics GM. "We have followed the development of HD Radio from the beginning with great interest and are enthusiastic about being an integral part of advancing the AM and FM digital revolution."

NAB names 2005 Engineering Achievement
Award recipients
This year's NAB Radio and Television Engineering Achievement Awards winners, Oded Bendov and Milford Smith, will be honored at the NAB2005 Technology Luncheon on April 20 in Las Vegas. Dr. Robert W. Lucky, engineer, author and commentator on the state and future of data communications technology, will provide the keynote address. Radio Engineering Achievement Award Winner: Milford K. Smith, VP/Radio engineering for Greater Media Television Engineering Achievement Award Winner: Oded Bendov, President/TV Transmission Antenna Group, a company established in 2003 and dedicated to the development of new technologies, design, and consulting services to broadcasters and television set manufacturers.

Transactions

WHBS-AM Moultrie GA from Christ in You the Hope of Glory Church to Sailor Broadcasting of Georgia Inc.

KSWB-AM Seaside OR from Cannon Beach Radio LLC to Calcomm Stations Oregon LLC.

| More... |

Stock Talk

Broadcast stocks buck soft market
The broad stock market was slightly lower on Monday, despite a favorable drop in oil prices, but broadcast stocks bucked the down trend. The Dow Industrials slipped a fraction of a point to close at 10,716.

The Radio Index had a better day, rising 1.110, or 0.5%, to 217.003. The main contributors were Emmis, up 2.9%, Cumulus, up 2.2%, and Clear Channel, up 2%.

Radio Stocks

**Here's how stocks fared on Monday**
Company	Symbol	Close		Change	Company	Symbol	Close		Change
Arbitron	ARB		41.54	-0.34	Jeff-Pilot	JP		50.49	-0.50
Beasley	BBGI		16.36	-0.14	Journal Comm.	JRN		16.15	-0.10
Citadel	CDL		14.00	+0.15	Radio One, Cl. A	ROIA		14.58	+0.11
Clear Channel	CCU		33.97	+0.65	Radio One, Cl. D	ROIAK		14.54	+0.06
Cox Radio	CXR		15.34	+0.19	Regent	RGCI		5.22	-0.04
Cumulus	CMLS		13.93	+0.30	Saga Commun.	SGA		16.72	+0.23
Disney	DIS		29.88	+0.57	Salem Comm.	SALM		23.70	+0.24
Emmis	EMMS		17.68	+0.50	Sirius Sat. Radio	SIRI		6.16	-0.26
Entercom	ETM		31.24	+0.29	Spanish Bcg.	SBSA		10.06	-0.17
Entravision	EVC		7.89	-0.11	Univision	UVN		26.10	-0.17
Fisher	FSCI		50.07	+0.07	Viacom, Cl. A	VIA		37.94	-0.23
Gaylord	GET		40.13	-0.46	Viacom, Cl. B	VIAb		37.61	-0.17
Hearst-Argyle	HTV		25.57	+0.08	Westwood One	WON		24.30	-0.30
Interep	IREP		0.68	unch	XM Sat. Radio	XMSR		31.41	-1.09
International Bcg.	IBCS		0.01	unch	-	-	-	-	-

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Bounceback

Send Us Your Opinions We want to
hear from you.
This is your column, so send your comments to [email protected]

These readers disagree with our view that satellite radio companies are heading for huge churn rates
(2/7/05 RBR #26).

Scott Cason
President
LaGrange Communications, LLC

Russ Oasis
WKLU Indy / WJFX Ft. Wayne

| More... |

Upped & Tapped

Moore gets Total control in Boston
Karl Moore has been named Regional Director of Operations for the Boston hub of Clear Channel Radio's Total Traffic Network. Moore joins CC Radio's expanded traffic operation from rival Metro Networks, where he was also Director of Operations.

Sanchez to Tricolor
Entravision Radio has named Carlos "Napoleon" Sanchez as Format Director of its Radio Tricolor network. He had been on-air talent for Tricolor from 1992 to '95 and most recently was morning host and PD of KIWI-FM Bakersfield, CA.

Henderson gets Jazzed
Veteran Philly radio/TV personality Doug Henderson has joined Clear Channel's Smooth Jazz WJJZ 106.1 to host "Philadelphia After Hours" 7-midnight weekdays.

Stations For Sale

Saginaw/Bay City/Midland FM
WSAG-FM 104.1 Mhz Class A, Pinconning, Michigan. ARB ranked #130, revenue ranked #97, 23M. Newly on the air. New owned 350' tower. 4,600 watts ERP, new 5KW solid state transmitter, ERI 3 bay antenna. No revenue yet, no sales staff, only minimal personnel. Running oldies format with BSI computer system. New studio facility will be needed for new owner. Minimal studio equipment, with EAS equipment, STL, etc. New construction project, currently
owned by an engineering company. Operating company needed to be brought in to finish project. Priced as "stick" value. Asking $950,000.00.
[email protected]

Phoenix AM Bankruptcy Sale
KFNX 1100, 50,000 Watt AM radio station in Phoenix, AZ, will be sold for the highest and best offer on March 31, 2005 at 10:00 a.m. MST
at the US Bankruptcy Court in Phoenix, AZ. An initial bid of $3.6 million has been received. The sale of the business is "as is/where is". Please go to www.1100kfnx.com for station information, and
call 602-277-1100 x.499 for details.

More News Headlines

Karl Haas dead at 91

"Free Spirit" found at C-SPAN

Dr. Laura's son to join Special Forces

AWRT and Katz team for Women's Career Summit

January Digital
Solutions Magazine

No more political money or more Olympics advertising. In '05 you're going to have to make money the old fashioned way - earn it. Keep up on trends and figuring new ways to earn ad dollars. The need is serious for a business-oriented publication. In radio or television, many of the challenges are the same -each industry can learn from the other.
No fluff. No hype. Just business.

November Zinio Solutions Magazine
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1.Create a simple account with Zinio and download the Zinio Reader.
2. You can then download the January Issue of RBR

RBR Radar 2005

Radio News you won't read any where else. RBR--First, Accurate, and Independently Owned.

Lehman sees satellite
threat to radio stocks
Analyst Bill Meyers has reduced his revenue estimates and price targets for most of the radio stocks he covers, saying the growing impact of satellite radio can no longer be ignored. He's expecting total radio revenues to be up only 2% this year - - less than the expected inflation rate. Meyers' near-term outlook adjustments in chart form for individual companies are inside this mornings report. RBR observation: What no one on Wall Street seems to get is that the deals which Sirius and XM have cut with the automakers are going to turn around and bite them in the butt. That's where their dramatic escalation in churn rates is going to come from in a couple of years. Many people are out there now buying a new car equipped with a satellite radio, not because they have any interest in having a satellite radio, but because they want a particular model in blue - - and the only blue one on the dealer's lot happens to have a satellite radio in the dash. The cost of that receiver and the first year subscription is wrapped up in the price, likely with 0% financing, so it's virtually unnoticed. But once that one-year subscription expires, that car buyer who never really wanted a satellite radio in the first place isn't going to pay a monthly charge to keep it operating. Churn, churn, chrurn. 02/07/05 RBR #26

Hello wake up Local TV,
Basic cable rates up 5.4%
The FCC says that the combined rate of increase for getting cable TV has gone up 5.4% for the year ending 1/1/04. The average monthly charge for basic and expanded basic service went up that same 5.4%, from 38.95 to 41.04, while equipment fees jumped 5.9%, from 4.04 to 4.28. The presence of effective competition did seem to put a damper on increases. In those areas where it was deemed present, the increase was held to 3.6%, compared to 5.6% everywhere else. 97% of all cable households are now served by systems with digital service, a number sure to raise eyebrows at hundreds of broadcast television stations which are seeing only their analog signals making it to the wires. TVBR observation: With price hikes like this anyone changing their mind on joint Nexstar's Perry Sook's fight for what is a reasonable price for your content, signal, local news, your consumers? DA?
02/07/05 TVBR #26

General or Local
Sales Manager
Shreveport's fastest growing radio cluster, Cumulus Broadcasting has an immediate opening depending on experience. If you are motivated by winning and by money we have the job for you. Five station cluster moving into showcase studios. Cumulus, EOE, the best radio company in America.

See Radio Careers for more info.

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