HOW WILL WFAN's MOVE TO 101.9 AFFECT 1010 WINS?

[reelyreal]

Based on what I'm reading, they will sell the station, but keep the rights to the cable distribution of the channel.  Not sure exactly how that will work.

It's a pretty interesting situation, the FCC now allows TV stations to keep their "must carry" status even if they turn in their OTA spectrum to the FCC to be auctioned off.  It's a total win-win for CBS... they keep 2 stations on basic cable and get to keep all of their radio stations, and as a bonus there's no longer a physical transmitter plant to maintain for WLNY. 

[TheBigA]

But the FCC gets more valuable spectrum space that they can sell to the telecom companies.  So the FCC gets what it wants too.

[wirelessinnepa]

The breathtaking thing about this deal is that if CBS doesn't have to divest any radio stations, it could still swap 1010, now having freed up one of the AMs, as the lesser of the AM properties along with cash for the Family Stations FM station on 94.7, WFME. Family Stations has shown a willingness over the years to take a good AM facility in order to get cash for it's operation in return for an FM station of theirs. This way the CBS lineup looks like this:

660 WINS
880 WCBS
101.1 WCBS-FM
101.9 WFAN-FM
92.3 WXRK
102.7 WWFS
94.7 W??? - The new relay for the CBS Sports Network. If this scenario is played out and the CBS Sports Network feed fails to gain traction in the market, CBS is left the opportunity to keep all else the same and launch another music or news format on an FM signal, rather than be "hung" with an AM station with no AM friendly format.

[Scott Fybush]

Based on what I'm reading, they will sell the station, but keep the rights to the cable distribution of the channel.  Not sure exactly how that will work.

It's a pretty interesting situation, the FCC now allows TV stations to keep their "must carry" status even if they turn in their OTA spectrum to the FCC to be auctioned off.  It's a total win-win for CBS... they keep 2 stations on basic cable and get to keep all of their radio stations, and as a bonus there's no longer a physical transmitter plant to maintain for WLNY. 

It may be more complicated than that. In reading through the FCC's lengthy and dense Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on the incentive auction that was released recently, there's nothing explicit about maintaining must-carry for stations that have returned their spectrum entirely.

But by virtue of owning WCBS-TV, CBS still has plenty of leverage to get cable companies to carry "WLNY," whether or not there's any licensed station associated with the "WLNY" programming. They wouldn't even need to carry "WLNY" as a subchannel of WCBS-TV's OTA signal, necessarily.

[recto101]

CBS could consolidate the two all-news stations into one

That was Tried in LA for KFWB and KNX but that failed. KFWB ended up losing their all-news format simply because KNX had the higher ratings in the market.

[recto101]

If WINS and WCBS had equal signals on AM or FM, only one would be all-news.  You had that situation in Chicago when CBS had two all-news outlets, WMAQ and WBBM, both 50 kW non-D AM blasters.  CBS had ownership issues in Chicago, so they chose to blow up WMAQ and replace it with all-sports WSCR.

I think it's possible that both WINS and WCBS could end up on FM.  WCBS becomes an all-news simulcast (like WBBM and KCBS), while WINS goes with a news-intensive talk format.  With equal signals on FM, WINS would no longer be superserving NYC.  If that's ends up being the case, CBS isn't going to run two all-news outlets.  WINS isn't going to 660.  That's going to become the flagship of CBS Sports Radio.

WXRK (92.3 NOW-FM) has long underperformed against Z100 and WWFS (Fresh 102.7) is in a crowded field of stations serving female listeners.

WINS goes with a news-intensive talk format? What do you Mean like Old KGO-AM before December 2011? Or in Some parts of the Nation Air ARNN News and Syndicated talk with the old KGO-AM Frame? That can't work because WINS is more popular than WCBS-AM in NYC. Wins attracts 3.5 Million Listeners in the NYC Market an WCBS gets 2.5-3 Million people. If WINS Flips formats then Cumulus or Clear Channel will come into play and Replicate the WINS format on a Different frequency. Sure I understand CBS has to please Suburban NYC Listeners and preserve their flagship station WCBS-AM All News.

[DavidEduardo]

CBS could consolidate the two all-news stations into one

That was Tried in LA for KFWB and KNX but that failed. KFWB ended up losing their all-news format simply because KNX had the higher ratings in the market.

No.

KFWB went to a talk format as it was being transferred into a trust ownership. CBS "kept" the news format on the bigger signal which it continued to own, and erased it from the station it had to spin to the trust. The result was a significant ratings increase for KNX.

[recto101]

CBS could consolidate the two all-news stations into one

That was Tried in LA for KFWB and KNX but that failed. KFWB ended up losing their all-news format simply because KNX had the higher ratings in the market.

No.

KFWB went to a talk format as it was being transferred into a trust ownership. CBS "kept" the news format on the bigger signal which it continued to own, and erased it from the station it had to spin to the trust. The result was a significant ratings increase for KNX.

KFWB was a 5kw signal while KNX was a 50kw signal for LA I knew that KFWB was put in a trust and it was part of a deal for CBS to Keep KCAL9.

[radioguy39nj]

If WINS and WCBS had equal signals on AM or FM, only one would be all-news.  You had that situation in Chicago when CBS had two all-news outlets, WMAQ and WBBM, both 50 kW non-D AM blasters.  CBS had ownership issues in Chicago, so they chose to blow up WMAQ and replace it with all-sports WSCR.

I think it's possible that both WINS and WCBS could end up on FM.  WCBS becomes an all-news simulcast (like WBBM and KCBS), while WINS goes with a news-intensive talk format.  With equal signals on FM, WINS would no longer be superserving NYC.  If that's ends up being the case, CBS isn't going to run two all-news outlets.  WINS isn't going to 660.  That's going to become the flagship of CBS Sports Radio.

WXRK (92.3 NOW-FM) has long underperformed against Z100 and WWFS (Fresh 102.7) is in a crowded field of stations serving female listeners.

WINS goes with a news-intensive talk format? What do you Mean like Old KGO-AM before December 2011? 

IMHO, that could be the scenario if the two stations end up with equal signals on AM or FM, more likely on FM.  The news simulcast in Chicago and San Francisco will eventually come to New York.  It's inevitable.  CBS won't put WINS out of existence, but it will be reinvented on FM.  When the two signals are equal, that will be the game changer.