Beasley to cover all of SOFLA with one station?

Beasley's Classic Rock WRXK-FM (96.1) Ft. Myers has applied to the FCC for a facilities change that would transmit a Full Class C 100-kW signal on a 1,958-ft. tower (tallest in the state) to cover its current Ft. Myers-Naples market; and Sarasota-Bradenton, Miami-Ft. Lauderdale and West Palm Beach as well. If approved, the new tower would be located on the north side of the Everglades swamp, SSW of Lake Okeechobee. In the Miami market, Beasley would be second adjacent to its own WPOW-FM (96.5) and SBS's WXDJ-FM (95.7).

While every alligator in the 'glades would enjoy perfect reception of the station, advertisers would get a heck of a bang for their buck as well, essentially covering four markets with one ad. We doubt this would all be done JUST to focus on Miami. How would such a station appeal to buyers?

"If they were smart, they'll charge Miami rates and then the next largest market rate MAYBE added on later," postulates Matthew Warnecke, Director, Network and Spot Radio Services, MediaCom National Broadcast. "Miami will be more active on a regular basis than the other markets, so if they charge Miami rates and make it efficient for Miami, and then you get all that extra for free, they'll be better off than they were in terms of profit and loss. If they play it smart and don't get too greedy, they could do some really good stuff. People will buy you more often than they will buy other stations in Miami when they're trying to deliver all this bill. It would seem to me to be smart. If they keep their rates just reflective of Miami for a while and then you see advantage, then they can start raising their rates and start building in some other markets' price structure. The only thing about Miami is it's a huge Hispanic marketplace, and there may not be room for another Classic Rock station there [WBGG-FM Ft. Lauderdale is there]."

The Beasley folks say they will have more on this soon-especially engineering data. Stay tuned.