Rumor has it they will break the simulcast, continuing the sports format on 92.7. The question is what will happen to 610 AM? The towers do sit on some prime property. Will it remain on the air? We may know next week.
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What will happen to 610 AM?
- Thread starter Mike Sheridan
- Start date
You're right, I got the chance to look in the new building just before they took the old building down. That was built under CBS ownership so who knows what they have in mind.
One of my Ham Radio friends brought up the subject today complaining about places north on I-77 where 92.7 doesn't cover but 610 does.
I can't imagine what they will do with 610 but my guess is BET-Q the sports betting network that is done by Entercom.
Has NC legalized sports betting yet, or is the political/religious climate there favorable for it in the near future?
I doubt it but can they stop someone from doing sports betting on-line which I believe where most of it takes place. So really the station just becomes a promotional vehicle for the website.
The legit US-based betting sites use your IP to determine your location and won't let you bet from a state where the prudes and theocrats have banned it. There are plenty of foreign operations, of course, that will take your money and allow you to wager with it, but there's no guarantee you'll be paid, and if the hosting government decides to shut your favorite site down, you've lost everything you put in and won't have your own government on your side, either.
This isn't likely but David Lingafelt owns several stations in the Hickory area each playing some variation of oldies or classic hits. 63 Big WAYS gets its name from the legendary Top 40 station that used to be on 610, though the music is considerably older than what 61 Big WAYS was known for. What if Lingafelt put Big WAYS on 610?
He'd be kissing goodbye to any advertisers who might pay extra to have their ads run on both the AM and FM sides of the simulcast. They'd stick with the FM, while what would replace them on 610 would be the penny stocks of radio ads -- Progressive, Geico, etc. -- and PSAs. And the ratings would still be in the tank, because most fans of popular music made in the '70s and beyond heard those songs on FM, and the AM nostalgia of the older fans does not extend to AM's audio quality.
Lingafelt currently has advertisers who sponsor an hour of radio programming. Those are advertisers in the Hickory area, though.
There might not be enough support for two stations simulcasting to different areas.
I think Dave has all he can handle with his three stations. Makes no sense to buy a stand alone AM outside of his core market.
btw...Progressive and Geico pays the rate card in many cases.
If the rumors I am hearing are true they are not planning on taking it off the air. Could be a music format. I guess we will just have to wait and listen...
t123
btw...Progressive and Geico pays the rate card in many cases.
If the rumors I am hearing are true they are not planning on taking it off the air. Could be a music format. I guess we will just have to wait and listen...
t123
AM 610 has indeed been removed from the WFNZ logo.
Not quite sure what Radio One could do with 610 unless they also use the 102.5 translator for it. Its going to be difficult to get people to listen to it that weren’t listening to WFNZ already considering it’s on AM and overall nobody is really listening to any of the AM’s in Charlotte other than 1110 and to a lesser degree 610.
Not quite sure what Radio One could do with 610 unless they also use the 102.5 translator for it. Its going to be difficult to get people to listen to it that weren’t listening to WFNZ already considering it’s on AM and overall nobody is really listening to any of the AM’s in Charlotte other than 1110 and to a lesser degree 610.
oh boy!
Currently they are using the 102.5 translator with 610 as the programming is the same on both.
The 102.5 translator is actually rebroadcasting 105.3 HD-2. You can tell 610 is being fed by the STL and 102.5 is being fed by an off air receiver. 102.5 is several seconds behind 610.
I guess they could ask the Commission to allow them to associate 102.5 with 610 and leave the Block on 105.3-HD2. Not sure the advantage of that.
I am guessing they have a plan. Don't know how many folks would be tuning into 610 to hear the Block. It still surprises me that they took the Block off 92.7. Maybe they are thinking about making 610 all digital MA3 HD. The gear is out there. That would be interesting...
t123
I believe they're trying to force WFNZ listeners to move to 92.7. The majority are still listening on 610, and the move to the stronger 92.7 signal hasn't provided the boost they were hoping for.
Having 610 simulcast The Block provides no real benefit, as their target audience is not going to listen to AM. The Block is currently the lowest ranked Urban station, behind WPEG and Streetz. There were times when Streetz beat The Block when they were on 92.7 as well.
But they are FM. The Indianapolis one is a Translator simulcasting an HD channel.
AM is a miserable solution for Spanish language radio as the listeners are much younger and have far less tolerance for AM sound un-quality.
True. I’m just not sure what else we could see, but R1 has been branching out in to different formats lately. Business news maybe? Another sports network affiliation on 610?
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