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Volume 23, Issue 65, Jim Carnegie, Editor & Publisher
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Monday Morning April 3rd, 2006
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Radio News ®
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Slow growth? Get used to it
Radio revenues will grow more this year than last year's almost no-growth pace, but only 2.2%, according to Mark Fratrik, Vice President of BIA Financial Network. And if you're waiting for radio to return to "normal" growth in the mid single digits, he doesn't see that happening any year this decade. "Once again, revenues in the radio industry did not keep pace with the overall economy, especially growth in retail sales," Fratrik said, looking back at 2005. He blames that on increased competition for listeners and, in some cases, advertising dollars, from iPods, satellite radio, the Internet and other new digital devices - - a trend he expects to continue. "For the industry to see stronger growth, it must better attract younger listeners by offering new formats and utilizing multiple distribution platforms. Also at the same time, radio needs to demonstrate its effectiveness as an advertising medium by utilizing improved research methods, as well as innovative selling efforts," Fratrik said. The chart below shows his radio revenue growth projections through 2010, compared with actual results from 1996-2005.
But while overall growth is soft, BIAfn does project growth for some markets, due to rapid population growth. It's just published "2006 Investing in Radio Market Report" cites some growth markets. In the top 100 markets, Ft. Pierce-Stuart-Vero Beach, FL was up 10.5% in 2005 and Ft. Myers-Naples-Marco Island, FL was up 7.9%, while radio stations nationwide were up only 0.5%.
RBR observation: Recommendation is to track your pacing is always to compare comparable markets. RBR finds BIA's comprehensive profile of all 280 radio markets to be an excellent road map compared to other data processed in today's radio environment. You can pay attention to the headlines or gather your own intelligence to set your business goals. Now is the time for executives to make personal investments in ones personal business future. If you are waiting for your HQ to shell out the money do not hold your breath. Make your personal investments for professional growth and success.
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Will radio pay for payola settlement?
Eliot Spitzer has been moving against both the radio and recording industries over the issue of payola. Whether you buy his legal arguments or not, he has been able to get big recording companies to fork over some dough to settle. At the same time, he's been chiding the FCC for not doing the same on the radio side. Democratic Commissioner Jonathan Adelstein has made it a pet issue and it turns out that work on the topic has been going on behind the scenes. According to reports, four of radio biggest companies - - Clear Channel, CBS, Citadel and Entercom - - have been in very hush-hush negotiations with the Commission on a settlement. Hush-hush remains the operative word - - nobody seems to want to go on the record - - but it would appear that the consent decree approach is the avenue being pursued. According to the New York Times, Clear Channel is said to have upped the ante to 1.5M-3M after prior bids in the 500K-1M range were rebuffed. There was no speculation on amounts for other smaller groups.
RBR observation: If a consent decree is indeed the way this goes down, it will allow the FCC to come to the aid of its country by getting its clientele to help defray the national debt. The radio companies themselves would at least cap their legal expenses, and, on the major plus side, would not be, in essence, "confessing" to any crimes or misdemeanors. As party to such a decree, they would be given a laundry list of practices to institute to avoid payola in the future - - which would be no problem at all to follow, since they have seen to it that the traditional record promotion business, widely believed to be the source of the current troubles, is pretty much dead and buried. And here's the best part: Whereas indecency is an issue hopelessly colored in multiple hues of gray and unlikely to ever go away, payola - - though not without its own halftones - - is much more starkly tinted. If radio gets this one into the rear view mirror, it will likely stay there.
 Analyst: CBS/Univision unlikely
The idea looks good on paper, but Bear Stearns analyst Victor Miller says there are major obstacles to CBS Corp. acquiring Univision. He doesn't think it will happen and that Wall Street has overreacted to the rumor in driving CBS' stock down last week (3/30/06 RBR #63). First, the reasons why a CBS/Univision combination would be great. Miller points to Les Moonves' track record in TV, elimination of network cost redundancies, the ability to control four networks (CBS, UPN, Univision and TeleFutura), retransmission consent negotiation leverage, the ability to launch new Spanish cable nets, better leverage in dealing with Televisa and Venevision on program rights and likely no dilution to CBS shareholders, since it would have to have partners to make the deal work. But that last point is one of the reasons that Miller doesn't think it will happen. CBS doesn't like to give up control, which it would have to do by taking on partners. FCC ownership rules would bar CBS from owning Univision's TV or radio stations, so it would have to have a partner to become the licensee - - and the stations account for about 55% of Univision's revenues. Miller doesn't think CBS would have any interest in owning Univision's record labels, so there goes another 9%. So, it appears that CBS would only really be interested in buying the network TV business, accounting for 36% of revenues. Miller also notes that the expected take out multiple for Univision - - 12.5-14 times EBITDA - - doesn't blend well with Wall Street's current valuation of CBS - - 7.8 times. All in all, he concludes that a CBS purchase of Univision is "Mission Impossible."
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Citizens want to control TV, not government
Watchdog TV Watch hired Russell Research to find out what Americans think about television content in the wake of record fines against television programmers earlier this month. It ways it found that the overwhelming majority do not want the government making decisions about what gets aired, and that there are sufficient tools available for parents to control what their children see. They found that only 12% believe that the government, rather than individual Americans, should have the final say on what goes on TV. To underscore their point, they note that a 2002 Roper poll found that about 20% of Americans believe that alien abductions have taken place. TV Watch Executive Director Jim Dyke said, "When more people believe in alien abductions than think the government should control what adults watch on TV, it puts efforts to have government control television programming in perspective." According to the poll, 87% believe the combination of ratings, the V-Chip and MVPD channel blockers are enough to get the parental job done. The same 87% understand that everyone is likely to be offended by something, sometime, but that this should not be grounds for eliminating a particular program, particularly if a small minority is among the offended. 73% think that it should take more than a single complaint to initiate an FCC proceeding against a particular program.
RBR observation: We find much of what makes it on the air, both on television and radio, to be tasteless and offensive. Many times, what is offended is our intelligence, when we're being bombarded with something designed and tested to hit a lowest common denominator. Sometimes, though, our own sensibilities are offended; sometimes the programming is downright ugly, or pointlessly gratuitous. Sometimes the programming fails to hold our attention. Other times it drives us away forcefully. Regardless, our remedy is the same and it is simple. We change the channel. Even without the many parental tools being built in to the system these days, we would rely solely on the channel before we'd allow the government to get too far into the content approval business.
 Tate settling in at FCC
Deborah Taylor Tate, who for the moment is the FCC's newest commissioner, met the trade press last Friday, and while the session was mainly an informal meet and greet, a little bit of relevant information came out. For starters, she applauded the management style of Chairman Kevin Martin. She said that Martin has a strong relationship with all the commissioners regardless of party affiliation, and has made a habit of reaching out and attempting to build consensus where such a thing is possible. She also indicated that Martin cannot necessarily count on her vote when push comes to shove. Asked if she would be the ally many have said Martin needs, she said, "I hope that we aren't ever voting along political lines." On the topic of indecency, she implied that there is only so much she can do. "There are laws, and rules and regulations," and her job is to enforce what is on the books. She noted that those laws and regulations can be changed - - she did not say how she would like to see them changed. She said overall that she was getting a handle on the complex issues currently before the Commission, often pitting competing stakeholders against one another, and stated several times that the overall job of a commissioner was a balancing act.
RBR observation: On a final note, Tate's 8th Floor office is notable for its previous occupants. Before Tate, it's where Kevin Martin hung his hat, and before that, Michael Powell called it home. RBR asked her if that meant she was on the fast track to the middle chair at the monthly open meeting - - that's where the chairperson sits. She said she didn't think that was too likely. We note, however, in reference to the seating arrangements at the aforementioned monthly meetings, that Jonathan Adelstein happily took the seat previously occupied by - - you guessed it - - Martin and Powell, saying that good things seem to happen to the occupants of that seat. We'd have to think that the mystical power of an entire office suite may trump that of a conference room chair. Anyway, you are now armed with inside information on the supernatural qualifications already being amassed by two sitting commissioners. So if you're in Las Vegas for NAB2006, you may want to see if any of the big casinos are taking wagers on the identity of the next FCC Chairman...
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| Wall Street Media Business Report TM |
An up year for Interep
Interep's stock only trades on the pink sheets these days and the company has long since quit holding quarterly conference calls with analysts. But it has filed its 2005 results with the SEC. Commission revenues for the year were up 2.1% to 80.1 million. "This increase reflected higher national spending for advertising at our client stations during the year offset by the loss of revenues due to the termination of our Cumulus Broadcasting, Inc. and Radio One, Inc. representation contracts," the company said. Operating income before depreciation and amortization rose 12.4% to 27.1 million. On the bottom line, the net loss available to shareholders decreased to 3.5 million in 2005 from 7.5 million in 2004. So, the net loss per share decreased to 31 cents from the previous year's 70 cents.
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Ad Business Report TM
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 More from Miller, Kaplan's
Top 100 advertisers
More from Miller, Kaplan, Arase & Co.'s "Radio's Leading Advertisers" profile of spending by the Top 100 advertisers in U.S. Radio. The study composites data from 732 radio stations and aggregates radio advertiser expenditure data from 33 U.S. markets (including 24 of the top 25) accounting for 60% of U.S. Nationwide spot radio revenues. It also profiles the nationwide spot radio spending trends of leading advertisers alphabetically, by rank, and by station. The Top 50 advertisers in each of 21 formats are also listed. More charts from Q4 '04 data-Number one advertiser Verizon Wireless; Number two McDonald's; Number three Safeway; The AC format and Alternative format. We will continue this in a series.
| View the Charts |
Sears launches Spring marketing campaign
Sears will is launching a fully integrated marketing campaign: Spring Changes Everything, which captures the feeling of renewal, change and new growth and is designed to get customers excited about all that Sears has to offer this spring season. "Because Sears provides everything from the latest innovations in lawn and garden equipment to pretty and feminine spring fashions, Sears has a unique opportunity to be a one-stop destination for springtime solutions," said Joan Chow, Sears SVP and chief marketing officer. Sears brings the campaign to life through broadcast and print, event marketing, in-store signage, mall tours, direct mail, online programs and PR. Creative was developed by Y&R Chicago.
| Read More... |
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| Media Business Report TM |
Time to count the subs
 Since Q1 ended on Friday, Goldman Sachs analyst Mark Wienkes is expecting XM Satellite Radio to report today on its net subscriber additions. He's expecting 600,000 additional subs, down slightly from his previous projection of 620,000. Winkes thinks Sirius claimed about 57% of the satellite radio market share at retail in Q1, compared to 43% to XM, although that moved closer to parity in February and March after the Howard Stern impact decreased. XM usually reports a few days before Sirius, but Wienkes is expecting Sirius to report 710,000 net subscriber adds for Q1.
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| Media Markets & Money TM |
Looks like we have a buyer
According to an SEC filing on Friday, "David W. Checketts informed Citadel Broadcasting Corporation of his resignation from Citadel's Board of Directors effective the same date. An entity that Mr. Checketts controls has entered into an agreement to acquire a radio station in Salt Lake City, a market where Citadel also owns radio stations." Since Clear Channel has to shed a station in Salt Lake City to make way for a duopoly TV purchase, we can make a pretty good guess who he is buying a station from. It'll be KALL-AM, going to Sports Capital Partners for 4.1M. Checketts is part of SCP's ownership team, and his continued relationship with Citadel would have given him an attributable stake in nine radio stations, one over the limit. Now, minus the Citadel reference on his resume, he has room for seven more.
Close encounter of the Erie kind
Broker Michael Bergner tells us that Jeff Warshaw and his second version of Connoisseur Media has closed on what we believe to be the biggest single move of its second incarnation. It's paid 17.35M for a radio six-pack in the Erie PA market. NextMedia was the seller. The four-FM, two-AM cluster includes WUSE-FM, WFGO-FM, WRTS-FM, WRKT-FM, WJET-AM & WFNN-AM. In addition to finding stations to buy, Warshaw has been an active bidder in the last two FCC FM auctions.
Sometimes we Absolutely make an error
Well, who knew that there were two Tom Monahans in the radio ownership ranks? They are both famous, too. There's the one from Detroit who owns the pizza chain, as well as a chain of Catholic-formatted radio stations. Then there's the one in New Hampshire, a real estate developer well-known to several alert RBR readers who assured us that he is not the same as the Detroit Tom. Nor are his stations - - his two AMs in the Manchester NH area running Sports and the other is doing local News-Talk. We regret any inconvenience this error may have caused.
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| Washington Media Business Report TM |
Copps makes plans for Vegas
Michael Copps will make it Democrats two, Republicans one when the NAB heads out for its annual meeting in Las Vegas. Democrat Jonathan Adelstein and Republican Debi Tate had already signed on for the Business, Law & Regulation Conference at NAB2006 in Las Vegas, scheduled for 4/25/06. The session comes right in the middle of the convention, which runs from 4/22/06 through 4/27/06.
Low power lowdown
The FCC has told winning bidders from last summers Low Power TV Auction No. 81 that they're cleared for approach, and may begin taking the steps toward build out. The big winner was Charles C. Townsent III, who picked up nine CPs in nine different and extremely far-flung states - - ranging from Delaware and Maine to California and Alaska and many points in between. Telecom Wireless picked up six. Bid balances were due last Friday, 3/31/06, but winners who missed that deadline have until 4/14/06 per the usual grace period.
| Here are the cleared LPTVs by bidder |
Senate panel approves court cameras
 The Senate Judiciary Committee has passed a pair of bills which could usher electronic journalism tools into the Supreme Court, as well as other federal courts. According to AP, the Supreme Court decision allows electronic coverage unless voted down by a majority of the justices on grounds that it may violate the right to due process of a party to a case. In the case of appellate courts, a three-year trial will be given to a program allowing judges to make an in-or-out decision on a case-by-case basis. The Radio Television News Directors Associations applauded the outcome, which it has been working long and hard to see enacted. RTNDA is working with its membership to contact the rest of the Senate in order to get similar results out of the full membership that it got out of committee.
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| NAB Day Time Planner |
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The following will be attending the NAB.
Call or email to make your
appointment in advance.
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EQUIPMENT
Les Kutasi, Sales Manager; Stainless, Booth #C2447, 215-631-1313, [email protected]
BROKERS
Todd Fowler/David Reeder/Gene Ferry, American Media Services, Bellagio, 843-972-2200, [email protected],
[email protected], [email protected]
Cliff Gardiner,
Clifton Gardiner & Company,
303-758-6900, The Wynn Hotel, [email protected]
Andy McClure/Dean LeGras,
The Exline Company, The Wynn Hotel,
415-479-3484, [email protected]
Frank Boyle, Frank Boyle & Co., LLC, Hilton Grand Vacations Villa,
703/765-8300, [email protected]
Gordon Rice, Gordon Rice Associates,
843-884-3590, Treasure Island, [email protected]
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John L. Pierce, John Pierce & Company LLC, Mirage Hotel, 859-647-0101, cell 859-512-3015, [email protected]
Jamie Rasnick, John Pierce & Company LLC, Mirage Hotel, 859-647-0101, cell 513-252-1186, [email protected]
Dick Kozacko/George Kimble, Kozacko Media Services, The Wynn Hotel, office 607-733-7138, cell 607-738-1219, [email protected]
Elliot Evers/Brian Pryor/
Adam Altsuler/Tim Beach
Media Venture Partners, LLC, 415-391-4877,
[email protected], [email protected]
Larry Patrick/Greg Guy,
Patrick Communications, Bellagio,
410-740-0250, [email protected]
Glenn Serafin, Serafin Bros.,
Aladdin Hotel, office 813-885-6060,
cell 813-494-6875, [email protected]
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| Sales |
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New research shows how winning sales organizations win
According to findings in recent Miller Heiman research, five factors set superstar sales organizations apart from their peers. In response to changing buyer behavior, all sales organizations are struggling with major challenges in discounting, demand for additional services for the same price and talent management. More than three quarters said the buying process has become more difficult year over year. Companies reported:
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| Monday Morning Makers & Shakers |
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Transactions: 2/20/06-2/24/06
Yawn....we think we'll take a little nap. Well, that's what the station trading community did. Two deals. Two AMs involved. Less than 2M dollars spent. Talk to us next week when there's enough action to keep us on the eyes-open side of consciousness.
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Total
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Total Deals
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2
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AMs
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2
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FMs
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0
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TVs
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0
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| Value |
1.75M
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| Complete Charts |
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Radio Transactions of the Week
Louisville AM goes to Davidson
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TV Transactions of the Week
You must be kidding |
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| Transactions |
18M WIFE-FM Cincinnati (Norwood OH) from Rodgers Broadcasting Corp. (David Rodgers) to Blue Chip Broadcasting Licenses Ltd., a subsidiary of Radio One Inc. (O:ROIA) (Catherine Hughes, Alfred Liggins et al). 2M escrow, balance in cash at closing. Duopoly with WIZF-FM and LMA of WDBZ-AM. Station, on 100.3 mHz, is moving from Connorsville IN, Class B, 28 kw @ 276' to Norwood OH, Class A, 3.6 kw @ 427'. [File date 3/9/06.]
1.03M WFOY-AM & WAOC-AM Jacksonville FL (St. Augustine FL) from Shull Broadcasting Co. Inc. (Doug Shull) to Geddings & Phillips Broadcasting Corp. (Kevin Geddings, Kristine Phillips). 50K escrow, balance in cash at closing. Also includes six-month 30K consulting agreement which may be extended at buyer's discretion. Existing duopoly. [File date 3/10/06.]
750K WGBC-TV Meridian MS from Global Communications Inc. (Phyllis Shields Nuckolls) to Robert M. Ledbetter Jr. 100K escrow, balance in cash at closing. Will remain in LMA with WMDN-TV (WMND Inc.) which dates back to 8/1/95. WGBC is NBC affiliate on Channel 30; WMDN is CBS affiliate on Channel 24. [File date 3/14/06.]
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| Stock Talk |
Mixed news, down market
Stocks closed lower Friday on mixed economic news - - when in doubt, sell. The Dow Industrials were off 41 points, or 0.4%, to 11,109.
Radio stocks, however, posted modest gains. The Radio Index rose 1.190, or 0.7%, to 164.620. A lot of that was due to jumps by two stocks. Entravision, which will be the biggest Hispanic media stock once Univision is sold, rose 4.5%. Saga rose 4.1%. Also, Fisher rose 3.4%.
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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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33.82
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+0.05
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Hearst-Argyle
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HTV
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23.36
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+0.04
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Beasley
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BBGI
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12.13
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unch
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Jeff-Pilot
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JP
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55.94
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-0.04
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| CBS CI. B |
CBS |
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23.98
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-0.26
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Journal Comm.
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JRN
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12.40
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-0.01
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| CBS CI. A |
CBSa |
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24.10
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-0.29
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Radio One, Cl. A
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ROIA
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7.48
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-0.11
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| Citadel |
CDL |
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11.09 |
+0.15 |
Radio One, Cl. D
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ROIAK
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7.46
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-0.10
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Clear Channel
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CCU
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29.01
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-0.29
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Regent
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RGCI
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4.61
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+0.18
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Cox Radio
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CXR
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13.42
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+0.15
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Saga Commun.
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SGA
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9.67
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+0.38
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Cumulus
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CMLS
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11.26
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+0.02
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Salem Comm.
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SALM
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15.01
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+0.03
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Disney
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DIS
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27.89
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+0.02
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Sirius Sat. Radio
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SIRI
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5.07
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+0.02
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Emmis
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EMMS
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16.00
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+0.04
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Spanish Bcg.
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SBSA
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5.53
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+0.04
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| Entercom |
ETM
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27.92
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+0.05
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Univision
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UVN
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34.47
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-0.23
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Entravision
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EVC
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9.16
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+0.39
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Westwood One
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WON
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11.04
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-0.01
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Fisher
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FSCI
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44.75
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+1.47
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XM Sat. Radio
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XMSR
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22.27
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-0.14
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Gaylord
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GET
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45.38
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-0.42
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Bounceback
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 We want to
hear from you.
This is your column, so send your comments and
a photo to [email protected]
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Below the Fold
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Ad Business Report
More on Top 100 advertisers
Profile of spending accounting for 60% of spot radio revenues...
Wall Street Media Business Report
An up year for Interep
Only trades on the pink sheets these days...
Media Business Report
Time to count the subs
XM Satellite Radio to report today...
Media Markets & Money
Looks like we have a buyer
David W. Checketts informed Citadel of his resignation...
Washington Media Business Report
Low power lowdown
The FCC has told winning bidders...
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Radio Media Moves
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River flows to Miller
Chris Miller has been named Program Director of Cox Radio's WFOX-FM "The River" Atlanta, effective April 10th. He was most recently PD of CBS Radio's KLTH-FM Portland, OR.
 Dickert back
in Nashville
Steve Dickert, who was part of the Nashville radio scene for more than 30 years, will return to Music City USA as Market Manager for Cumulus Media, overseeing operations at WWTN-FM, WQQK-FM, WNFN-FM, WRQQ-FM, and WSM-FM, and sales at WSM-AM. He succeeds Michael Dickey, who heads to corporate HQ in Atlanta. Dickert was most recently Cumulus' market manager in Flint, MI.
Landry returns
Greater Media announced that Jackie Landry is returning to Boston as General Sales Manager of WMJX-FM, beginning in mid-April. She had been with CBS Radio in Orlando.
BIGresearch taps two
Kim Rayburn and Mark Zobel have joined BIGresearch to assist in the rapid growth of the company. Their hiring coincides with several initiatives, including new media consumption models that enable companies to better allocate marketing dollars (and increase ROI) via clearer understanding of how targeted customers use media. Mark joined BIG after successful stints working with SC Johnson, Frito-Lay and The Scotts Company. Kim joined after senior management roles with Lextant Corporation (design research) as Chief Operating Officer, Fitch Design as President, and Managing Director at Philips Electronics/Philips Design.
 Upped in Boston
Entercom Boston announced the promotion of Ron Valeri to Director of FM Programming, overseeing WAAF-FM & WMKK-FM. He had been PD of WAAF.
Julie Tam joins
MJI Interactive
MJI Interactive announced Julie Tam will be joining the company as a market development coordinator. Tam has worked as an affidavit analyst (RADAR) at Dial Communications-Global Media, sister company to MJI. Tam will be working closely with stations affiliated with MJI's software tools and content services.
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Stations for Sale
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Central Oregon Coast AM
Portland to Eugene Coverage
Northeast Utah Profitable FM
Move-in to Rated Market Possible
Cliff at Clifton Gardiner & Co
(303)758-6900
[email protected]
CA Central Coast Class A
Rated Market. Asking $1.5M
Nevada Class C1
Dual Market. Asking $950K
Brett Miller-MCH Enterprises, Inc.
(805) 237-0952
www.mchentinc.com
9 Station Cluster
Upstate New York
9x cash flow $6.5m
George Kimble - Kozacko Media
520-465-4302
[email protected]
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TVBR - TV News
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Point-counterpoint on video competition
The Consumer Federation of America and Consumers Union were not pleased with the Communications Opportunity, Promotion and Enhancement Act of 2006 put forth in the House of Representative Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet. Jeannine Kenney, senior policy analyst for Consumers Union, said, "The bill not only fails to ensure that consumers will benefit from promised new video competition, it exposes them to the risk of higher cable rates, reduced quality and reduced access to competitive choices offered through the Internet ." She explained that "...telephone companies will be free to redline middle and low-income neighborhoods, denying competition to consumers who most need cable rate relief." Meanwhile, incumbent cable operators will be allowed to "...backslide on their existing obligations to serve the entire community and charge consumers uniform rates across a franchise area." CFA's Mark Cooper further complained about provisions that endanger network neutrality and take the teeth out of the FCC's ability to protect consumers. Taking the opposite view was FreedomWorks, represented by former Texas legislator Dick Armey. It hailed the move to grease the wheels of telcos into the video distribution business, but thought the FCC was granted too much power. "These are questions that directly bear on Internet privacy, regulation, the property rights of Internet Service Providers, and of course, how federal and state laws are enforced," said Armey. "Congress should be wary of granting wide latitude to the FCC on such important issues that fundamentally affect all consumers of technology. Since this is an important issue that touches all Americans, we urge you clarify the scope and breadth of power granted to the FCC under this latest draft."
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RBR Radar 2006
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Radio News you won't read any where else. RBR--First, Accurate, and Independently Owned.
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Diaries aren't going away
Arbitron Radio Advisory Council notes that diaries are going to be around for some time in many markets. So, Council members were also focused on diary ratings quality. The Council was unanimous in agreeing that MRC accreditation is critical before PPM can go forward.
RBR observation: Yes to the Advisory Council for getting all this brooHaHa of recent headlines and massive PR blitz by Cinderella knockoffs in some perspective and setting a focus on reality for the entire radio business dealing with ratings. Ratings for right now and for tomorrow demonstrating the best interest for the total medium. Arbitron also gets the congrats for listening and demonstrating the willing to work with instead of against their clients best interest. This is what your Advisory Council is for and they did their job for ya radio.
03/31/06 RBR #64
Advisory Council puts
MRC hold on PPM
Arbitron Radio Advisory Council insisted that Media Ratings Council (MRC) accreditation is absolutely essential before Arbitron's Portable People Meter (PPM) can be commercially deployed for radio ratings in the US. Arbitron has accepted that position and agreed not to begin using PPM as a ratings currency until it gets the MRC stamp of approval. That could mean that Arbitron's announced plan to launch PPM commercially this July in Houston will be delayed.
RBR observation: But then, Arbitron is far ahead of its would-be competitors in the Next-Generation Electronic Ratings Evaluation Team as far as the MRC is concerned. The Media Audit/Ipsos has just begun the MRC accreditation process, while PPM is well along in Houston. Mediamark Research hasn't yet scheduled a US test which could be used for MRC auditing. This is good common sense thinking and decisions on all sides of this table for Arbitron and the radio business.
03/30/06 RBR #63
California looking at
new alcohol ad bill
S.B. 1180 is getting its hearing in the California legislature making it illegal to advertise any beverages containing alcohol in any manner that encourages consumption by minors. Since that is a difficult standard to define, it would make any ad legal if it is in a media that has a 15 % or less "youth" audience based on industry data.
RBR observation: Trouble - Trouble and more Trouble if this gets a green light for all broadcasters.
03/30/06 RBR #63
Private capital is king
Back in the 1990s, it seemed that every broadcaster wanted to go public - - fill up the company coffers with cash from an IPO, make the founders and all of the long-time managers rich (at least on paper) and expand rapidly by acquiring smaller privately held broadcast companies - - with cash, stock or a mixture of both. But the past few years have been a tough dose of reality.
RBR observation: We said over a year ago that many public company CEOs would prefer to be private and should be looking at ways to make that happen. No one has actually done it yet, because it takes a lot of cash to buy out a company's public shareholders. The CEO would then have a lot more flexibility for acquisitions and growing existing properties, but he/she would also have to deliver on promises made to raise that private equity backing. Those are long-term promises, rather than the quarter-to-quarter game that's played in the public market, but the goals have to be met nonetheless. Rumors persist that Emmis and/or Hearst-Argyle could move to buy out their public shareholders, so we wait and wonder. Going private isn't easy, but it can be done?
03/29/06 RBR #62
Mediamark Research says its device trumps cell phones, PPM
Folks at Mediamark Research are finally speaking publicly, at least a bit, about their entry in what's now a three-way race to be decided by the Next-Generation Electronic Ratings Evaluation Team to select a new ratings system for radio. As we deduced long ago, Mediamark's entry is based on the Eurisko Media Monitor developed by a related company in Europe.
03/28/06 RBR #61
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