ABC Radio Group Sale

[k9ez]

Re: Radio Disney

> > WHAT??? WCPT has a very decent signal. They put out the
> > equivalent of 10000+ watts ERP on 850 with a directional
> > pattern south east right to downtown and the south side.
> I
> > was getting them even in the AM radio hell known as the
> > Loop. I have had them quite listenable into Indiana.
> >
> > If you live on the south side of course Radio Disney
> channel
> > will come in better. You are practically in the shadow of
>
> > the towers. ;-)
> >
> Come to Orland Park, Mokena, Tinley Park, Frankfort, and
> you'll understand what I am talking about. WCPT's signal is
> pure crap-ola out here.
>
> Why do you think they air promos making suggestions to
> listeners as to how they can hear the signal better? They
> suggest moving the radio to the window, turning fluoresent
> lights and electrical appliances off, even buying a larger
> radio. Would they do that if they thought they had a decent
> signal?
>
> I have friends who live on the north side of the city(Lake
> View), and they have damned near given up, and listen most
> of the time online.
>

Huh, I have been to those areas and dont have too much trouble. Of course I am in a car away from the floresent lighting et al....

 

[JustinT]

Re: Radio Disney

> Again, the issue is not whether you can "pick it up" but
> whether there is a solid, listenable on any radio signal.
> That means in homes and buildings where 70% of radio
> listening takes place.
>
> I can get KOA in LA at night, but nobody listens to it here.
> Unless there is a signal that overcomes ambient noise and
> man made noise all the time, people goive up on stations.
> This is why I stated that nearly all listenning in metros
> takes place in the 10 mv-m curve, which is well inside the
> "for entertainment only" radiolocator.com red contours.
> While you may "pick it up" elsewhere, there is no regular
> listening of consequence in these areas.

What you say is true. But many of the Boston AMs are set up, as you said previously, to cover what was the immediate metropolitan area in the 1950's. As residents have moved outside of the city, specifically those who have moved to the western suburbs, the signals are not as easy to pick up, yet the listeners are still there.

If the audience is devout enough to a radio station, they will pick it up under less than optimal conditions. The signals of 680 WRKO and 850 WEEI are severely lacking in the western suburbs after dark, and are less than optimal at times even during the day.

But with this issue, how could WEEI have become #1 12+ in the Arbitrons for a while last year? If the listeners are devout enough to a product, they will tune in. Additionally, WEEI targets listeners all over the Boston area; it's not as if KOA seriously cares too much about Southland listenership. Radio Disney may not be a huge draw, but the Red Sox on WEEI certainly are.

Right now, Greater Boston lacks a formatted Spanish-language station, and many Hispanics have begun listening to WNNW 800, a Spanish tropical station in the Merrimack Valley. WNNW's transmitter is about 25 miles north of Boston, and places a very poor signal over the entire area, though the area immediately around the station does have a high percentage of Hispanics. Yet as area Hispanics have no other radio choice, WNNW is making a fairly strong appearance in the latest ratings.

My point: If WMKI were to air intriguing-enough programming, and demonstrated a care and understanding for the target audience, the audience would respond in their diaries.

 

[Rollo-Smokes]

Re: NBC sale.

> > When GE bought the RCA Corporation, and RCA owned the NBC
> > Network, GE was forced to sell one of the NBC divisions.
> If
> > RCA hadn't sold to GE, NBC could have retained both the
> > radio & TV divisions because they were owned before the
> 1975
> > ban on both TV and Radio ownership. GE didn't fall in
> that
> > category, so they had to choose one divison to sell off,
> and
> > it ended up being the radio division. If RCA waited until
>
> > 1996 to sell to GE, who knows if GE would have kept both
> the
> > NBC radio & TV divisions, or do the same thing they did in
>
> > 1986, sell the radio division.>

So, what about the Capital Cities-ABC deal in 1985, when CapCities was allowed to keep the ABC radio/TV combos in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, and San Francisco? Did CapCities/ABC get a waiver from the FCC?

> The GE stations were sold off over a long period piecemeal,
> not as a result of a sale of the total company. Randy
> Bongarten handled the sales, and the stations were let go as
> being non-strategic to the ocmpany.
>
> For example, KNBR went in 1989 while WNBC did not go until
> late 1991. WMAQ was sold in 1987.>

WMAQ, WNBC, and WYNY were sold in 1988 in separate deals: WMAQ to Westinghouse, and WNBC/WYNY and others to Emmis.<P ID="signature">______________
Ya Dig! Sho' nuff! By Any Means Necessary!</P>

 

[davideduardo]

Re: Radio Disney

>
> What you say is true. But many of the Boston AMs are set up,
> as you said previously, to cover what was the immediate
> metropolitan area in the 1950's. As residents have moved
> outside of the city, specifically those who have moved to
> the western suburbs, the signals are not as easy to pick up,
> yet the listeners are still there.

Lots of analysis has been done on signals vs. diary returns. If there is less than a powerful signal, there is very, very, very little diary return.
>
> If the audience is devout enough to a radio station, they
> will pick it up under less than optimal conditions. The
> signals of 680 WRKO and 850 WEEI are severely lacking in the
> western suburbs after dark, and are less than optimal at
> times even during the day.

And I am sure a diary review would show that the listening took place in ZIP codes where the signal is decent.
>
> But with this issue, how could WEEI have become #1 12+ in
> the Arbitrons for a while last year?

TSL.

> Right now, Greater Boston lacks a formatted Spanish-language
> station, and many Hispanics have begun listening to WNNW
> 800, a Spanish tropical station in the Merrimack Valley.
> WNNW's transmitter is about 25 miles north of Boston, and
> places a very poor signal over the entire area, though the
> area immediately around the station does have a high
> percentage of Hispanics. Yet as area Hispanics have no other
> radio choice, WNNW is making a fairly strong appearance in
> the latest ratings.

Hispanics have very long listening spanis, typically 25 hours a week, vs. aobut 17 to 19 for non-Hispanic whites. It does not take many diaries in a small area for a Spanish language station to show in the gbook. WNNW in Lawrence is well inside the Metro, in a county with huge Hispanic population. The results are no doubt mostly in the 5 to 10 mv-m of that signal.
>
> My point: If WMKI were to air intriguing-enough programming,
> and demonstrated a care and understanding for the target
> audience, the audience would respond in their diaries.

The audience could nto respond. Radi Disney is targeted at pre-adolescent kids, who do not get diaries.
>

 

[davideduardo]

Re: NBC sale.

> > > When GE bought the RCA Corporation, and RCA owned the
> NBC
> > > Network, GE was forced to sell one of the NBC divisions.
>
> > If
> > > RCA hadn't sold to GE, NBC could have retained both the
> > > radio & TV divisions because they were owned before the
> > 1975
> > > ban on both TV and Radio ownership. GE didn't fall in
> > that
> > > category, so they had to choose one divison to sell off,
>
> > and
> > > it ended up being the radio division. If RCA waited
> until
> >
> > > 1996 to sell to GE, who knows if GE would have kept both
>
> > the
> > > NBC radio & TV divisions, or do the same thing they did
> in
> >
> > > 1986, sell the radio division.>
>
> So, what about the Capital Cities-ABC deal in 1985, when
> CapCities was allowed to keep the ABC radio/TV combos in New
> York, Los Angeles, Chicago, and San Francisco? Did
> CapCities/ABC get a waiver from the FCC?
>
> > The GE stations were sold off over a long period
> piecemeal,
> > not as a result of a sale of the total company. Randy
> > Bongarten handled the sales, and the stations were let go
> as
> > being non-strategic to the ocmpany.
> >
> > For example, KNBR went in 1989 while WNBC did not go until
>
> > late 1991. WMAQ was sold in 1987.>
>
> WMAQ, WNBC, and WYNY were sold in 1988 in separate deals:
> WMAQ to Westinghouse, and WNBC/WYNY and others to Emmis.

Filing dates... WNBC 2-98, WMAQ 11-87, KNBR 3-89.
>

 

[raccoonradio]

Drudge: 2/6 at 4 pm ABCDisney Announcement

From Matt Drudge's site:
FLASH: SOURCES: ABCDISNEY TO ANNOUNCE SALE OF ITS RADIO STATIONS 4PM ET TODAY...
<P ID="signature">______________

</P>

 

[KMRichards]

CapCities/ABC

> So, what about the Capital Cities-ABC deal in 1985, when
> CapCities was allowed to keep the ABC radio/TV combos in New
> York, Los Angeles, Chicago, and San Francisco? Did
> CapCities/ABC get a waiver from the FCC?

My mind is fuzzy on the details, but I think it was a "transfer of control" rather than an actual sale, which may not have triggered the cross-ownership rules.

Of course, by the time the Disney deal came about, those rules no longer applied.<P ID="signature">______________


</P>

 

[KMRichards]

Re: Drudge: 2/6 at 4 pm ABCDisney Announcement

> From Matt Drudge's site:
> FLASH: SOURCES: ABCDISNEY TO ANNOUNCE SALE OF ITS RADIO
> STATIONS 4PM ET TODAY...

I wonder if Drudge will accurately report that this is not a typical "sale", since ABC/Disney essentially ends up in a joint venture with the winning bidder.<P ID="signature">______________


</P>

 

[mwebster]

Incorrect

KMR, while chastizing others for being "WRONG" in information posted, you have mis-stated the deal yourself: ABC/Disney shareholders get 50% of the new company. Disney (the company) gets cash. Disney management will have nothing to do with the operation of the new company.

From the press release:
Following the completion of the merger, Disney shareholders will own approximately 52% of Citadel Communications and The Walt Disney Company will retain $1.4 to $1.65 billion in cash depending on the market price of Citadel Broadcasting at the time of closing. Citadel shareholders will own the remaining 48% of the combined company. Valued at approximately $2.7 billion, the deal is expected to be completed by the end of the year, subject to regulatory approvals.


>
> I wonder if Drudge will accurately report that this is not a
> typical "sale", since ABC/Disney essentially ends up in a
> joint venture with the winning bidder.
>

 

[allisonmarie]

Re: Incorrect

> KMR, while chastizing others for being "WRONG" in
> information posted, you have mis-stated the deal yourself:
> ABC/Disney shareholders get 50% of the new company. Disney
> (the company) gets cash. Disney management will have
> nothing to do with the operation of the new company.

> Have you seen a list of the ABC/Disney shareholders that will retain 52% of the new companies stock? And how many of them own shares in both companies? And how many of them will sit on the board of the new company? That would be an interesting read I'm sure! We shall see!


> From the press release:
> Following the completion of the merger, Disney shareholders
> will own approximately 52% of Citadel Communications and The
> Walt Disney Company will retain $1.4 to $1.65 billion in
> cash depending on the market price of Citadel Broadcasting
> at the time of closing. Citadel shareholders will own the
> remaining 48% of the combined company. Valued at
> approximately $2.7 billion, the deal is expected to be
> completed by the end of the year, subject to regulatory
> approvals.
>
>
> >
> > I wonder if Drudge will accurately report that this is not
> a
> > typical "sale", since ABC/Disney essentially ends up in a
> > joint venture with the winning bidder.
> >
>

 

[PTBoardOp94]

Re: Incorrect

> Have you seen a list of the ABC/Disney shareholders that
> will retain 52% of the new companies stock? And how many of
> them own shares in both companies? And how many of them will
> sit on the board of the new company? That would be an
> interesting read I'm sure! We shall see!

Citadel is privately owned, so no people can hold stock in both companies (not really true, since technically the handful of people who own Citadel are stockholders in Citadel.)

All Disney shareholders should get some sort of ABC/Citadel stock.

 

[KMRichards]

Re: Incorrect

> All Disney shareholders should get some sort of ABC/Citadel
> stock.

I stand by my choice of words: "essentially ends up in a joint venture with the winning bidder", since the new company is co-owned between Disney shareholders and Citadel shareholders.

You may all quibble as much as you like (Webster, you're particularly good at that, and proved it again ...congrats). At least I didn't run around claiming that Radio Disney and ESPN Radio was part of the deal.<P ID="signature">______________


</P>

 

[PTBoardOp94]

Re: Incorrect

> I stand by my choice of words: "essentially ends up in a
> joint venture with the winning bidder", since the new
> company is co-owned between Disney shareholders and Citadel
> shareholders.
>
Uh...not even close.

joint venture - Definition

"A contractual agreement joining together two or more parties for the purpose of executing a particular business undertaking. All parties agree to share in the profits and losses of the enterprise."

Source

It is not a joint venture because Citadel will be responsible for all future programming decisions, profits, and losses. Usually in a joint venture, executives and project leaders are shared. Not in this case.

I would call it more of a spin-off, with Citadel buying half the company in the process.