And People Wonder Why RXP Is Failing...

[hamNcheese]

I'm sure he meant to say 'hire'

No matter how you spell it..

 

[BACKnUSSR]

Hire another consultant?! Dude, there's no money left up there: people are being fired right and left, salaries are being cut, Emmis is in desperate need of immediate cash to service their debt, and it's only a matter of time before the frequency is sold to ESPN/Disney.

The geniuses running the show at 495 Hudson have running out of ideas, chances, and cash. 101.9 is toast.

They're actually running the show from Indiana.

 

[Brooklyndon]

Hire another consultant?! Dude, there's no money left up there:

The geniuses running the show at 495 Hudson have running out of ideas, chances, and cash. 101.9 is toast.

Well, presumably, they have historical research for the rock market left over from when times were good. You don't have to be a genius to dump the data into excell and age the demos five years. Only problem with that methodology is that it will always underweight the value of gen-y, and overweight the value of the boomers, so emmis would need to ballpark the income numbers. My guess is that with their data for Kiss and Hot, which, again presumably, is current, they could come up with a statistically significant number to help them make their segmentation decision.


Assuming WRXP gets its target segment right, they then have a huge differentiation and communications hurdle to overcome.

If they go gen-y they need to go digital; digital station will be its differentiation. All of the other rock stations in New York are terrestrial, you can't take them on the subway or into many apartments. Digital stations go any, and everywhere, through live streams and morning podcasts. Music liscencing fees make this product less profitable in the short run, but with audience share come economies. Initial barriers to entry are the fixed costs of technology.

If they go gen-x, they an avoid the high start up costs, but have to duke it out with KRock for a small declining market. Differentation is nuanced at best, and I see 0 value proposition for either listeners or advertisers.

If they go boomer, then they are just plain dumb. This demo is at-best less than a decade away from being on social security. Their wealth has evaporated in the last 18 months. But they do at least turn on the radio. Could be a good way to raise cash in the short run.

Perhaps an integrated strategy of flipping classic rock, using the boomer cash cow demo, which is only half retired, for the next five years, and reinvesting the earnings into the technology needed to lock in the gen-y growth demo, which is only half graduated from college, could be a long term strategy to staying afloat.

 

[lalumia]

they go boomer, then they are just plain dumb. This demo is at-best less than a decade away from being on social security. Their wealth has evaporated in the last 18 months. But they do at least turn on the radio. Could be a good

most new stations don't even last a decade; if they get a good decade out of us boomers that would be a major success story

 

[UncleBozzle]

Emmis should just face the facts, blow RXP up, and make it NY's Country station. Wouldn't it be better to score 1.8 to 2.0 in the ratings and own the format? Yet they choose to keep going in a format that is so fragmented in NYC.

 

[Brooklyndon]

Emmis should just face the facts, blow RXP up, and make it NY's Country station. Wouldn't it be better to score 1.8 to 2.0 in the ratings and own the format? Yet they choose to keep going in a format that is so fragmented in NYC.

Well, you raise two interesting points. First, you make the case that rock is fragmented, and I honestly don't know what you mean by that. At first glance, it seems like an irrationalization to make the case that country would perform better than a rock station. Please expand what you mean by ragmented.

Secondly, country is actually already partly served by Fresh 102.7. They play alot of country AC. That means any station going country in New York will have to go really country, and ceed the AC angle, which will cripple billings. 18 months ago perhaps your arguement would have held some water, but not now.

 

[softmachine]

I'm sure he meant to say 'hire'

No matter how you spell it..

...but maybe pick up a Thesaurus just in case.

 

[UncleBozzle]

By fragmented I mean fighting for a small piece of the pie that is being shared by K-Rock, Q-104.3, even PLJ and CBS FM. You would not need to go with an AC presentation....go Top 40 in style. Similar to The Wolf in San Francisco. Lot's of teens are listening to Taylor Swift, Kellie Pickler, and Sugarland. You would not need to set the world on fire to do better than the product that comes from that signal now.

 

[p_herring]

Adama,

Not that I have a fear of 50 cent words but, do you have a point in that essay? I'm not trying to play the usual "radio sucks" cliche but the answer as to why RXP is failing is just so blatantly obvious that I can't believe we even have 7 pages of discussion around it. Their playlist is so all over the place that no listener really feels like tuning in. Granted, a radio station isn't supposed to please the listener's tastes 100% of time, but it should at least be over 50% (something RXP fails at). The classic rock fans will get annoyed at the cookie-cutter post grunge/pop songs (Matchbox 20, Staind, Lifehouse), the indie fans will be annoyed at the "corporate" acts (Aerosmith, AC/DC, Matchbox 20, etc.) while the just plain-old-average guy fans will really get annoyed with these "weird" and "out there" acts (Vampire Weekend, The National, Arcade fire, etc.) With all three types of potential listeners not tuning in, there's not much of an audience left.

Though that kind of "all over the place" playlist might have actually been a prog-into-AOR norm in the 70s, so I might assume that, as with the eternal longing for an old-style Sinatra-to-Seeds Top 40 fantasy, it's misplaced nostalgia emanating from a thoroughly ingrown and divorced-from-the-present version of what such radio "could" be. Unless perhaps there's an allpurpose "magazine format" intent, i.e. if Rolling Stone/Spin/Blender can cover it all thusly and even toss a little Beyonce into the mix without drawing blood, then why not a radio station? Easier said than done.

But the deeper point re the jam radio's in today is: to me, in 2008, said classic rock fans sound like numbskulls. Said indie fans sound like numbskulls. Said plain-old-average guy fans sound like numbskulls. Ergo, the only "rock fans" with expectations from commercial radio anymore are numbskulls. Middle-aged dolts with Juno/Bristol Palin style preggo daughters who seldom refer to a Rolling Stone/Spin/Blender/Idolator/whatever axis because all those 50 cent words make their heads hurt. Everyone else has fled to superior technology; or maybe some kind of NPR/WFMU zone...

First of all, can we work on cutting down the run-on sentences? Using a period here and there will make your writing and argument more clear and concise.

I like your point on the whole "let's run a radio station like a magazine". I totally agree. It's much easier to flip past articles that don't interest than it is for, say a Staind/3 Doors Down/Nickelback fan to sit through a Beyonce song. In terms of the "middle-age dolts" you are referring to, I think you're being a little to stereotypical. Remember, NYC radio stations reach OUTSIDE the five boroughs. There are people with cars w/crappy stereos, who works jobs where their only option is an FM radio. I find it hard to believe there are no modern rock listeners in that audience.

 

[p_herring]

Hire another consultant?! Dude, there's no money left up there:

The geniuses running the show at 495 Hudson have running out of ideas, chances, and cash. 101.9 is toast.

Well, presumably, they have historical research for the rock market left over from when times were good. You don't have to be a genius to dump the data into excell and age the demos five years. Only problem with that methodology is that it will always underweight the value of gen-y, and overweight the value of the boomers, so emmis would need to ballpark the income numbers. My guess is that with their data for Kiss and Hot, which, again presumably, is current, they could come up with a statistically significant number to help them make their segmentation decision.


Assuming WRXP gets its target segment right, they then have a huge differentiation and communications hurdle to overcome.

If they go gen-y they need to go digital; digital station will be its differentiation. All of the other rock stations in New York are terrestrial, you can't take them on the subway or into many apartments. Digital stations go any, and everywhere, through live streams and morning podcasts. Music liscencing fees make this product less profitable in the short run, but with audience share come economies. Initial barriers to entry are the fixed costs of technology.

If they go gen-x, they an avoid the high start up costs, but have to duke it out with KRock for a small declining market. Differentation is nuanced at best, and I see 0 value proposition for either listeners or advertisers.

If they go boomer, then they are just plain dumb. This demo is at-best less than a decade away from being on social security. Their wealth has evaporated in the last 18 months. But they do at least turn on the radio. Could be a good way to raise cash in the short run.

Perhaps an integrated strategy of flipping classic rock, using the boomer cash cow demo, which is only half retired, for the next five years, and reinvesting the earnings into the technology needed to lock in the gen-y growth demo, which is only half graduated from college, could be a long term strategy to staying afloat.

Brooklyndon,

You seem to always be championing the alternative/indie type format. While it would certainly make me happy (as I think K-Rock2 sounds great), that begs of the age-old question: Will Millenials like you and I turn off our ipods/computers and tune into an FM station. The only way I would ever need it is if I find myself in a car for some strange reason (I live in Manhattan) or if I stumble upon a job that will only allow workers to listen to AM/FM radio (not likely). So, basically you have the middle class who works in advertising/artists/enjoys their ipods OR the working middle class who probably don't really understand what all the fuss is about bands like Of Montreal, Vampire Weekend and Arcade Fire. Which begs the question, who would be left to listen to said station?

 

[Brooklyndon]

that begs of the age-old question: Will Millenials like you and I turn off our ipods/computers and tune into an FM station. The only way I would ever need it is if I find myself in a car for some strange reason (I live in Manhattan) or if I stumble upon a job that will only allow workers to listen to AM/FM radio (not likely).

P_Herring, I think you just asked the $64000 question.

My answer is that radio stations need alter their distribution channels in order to penetrate the millenial market. Operating costs, per song licensing fees, are higher for streaming / podcast formats, so margins will be squeezed somewhat, but reach will be global, so overall returns per station will be higher.

By the way, if you think K-Rock2 is good, check out WFNX's top-quality stream. Music is great, and even though they are a Boston station they are running spots for New York companies. The future is now.

http://wfnx.com/images/flashArea_25.jpg

 

[hamNcheese]

By the way, if you think K-Rock2 is good,

Personally I think that should be K-Rock...not '2'

 

[p_herring]

that begs of the age-old question: Will Millenials like you and I turn off our ipods/computers and tune into an FM station. The only way I would ever need it is if I find myself in a car for some strange reason (I live in Manhattan) or if I stumble upon a job that will only allow workers to listen to AM/FM radio (not likely).

P_Herring, I think you just asked the $64000 question.

My answer is that radio stations need alter their distribution channels in order to penetrate the millenial market. Operating costs, per song licensing fees, are higher for streaming / podcast formats, so margins will be squeezed somewhat, but reach will be global, so overall returns per station will be higher.

By the way, if you think K-Rock2 is good, check out WFNX's top-quality stream. Music is great, and even though they are a Boston station they are running spots for New York companies. The future is now.

http://wfnx.com/images/flashArea_25.jpg

I always love listening to 'FNX when I go up to Boston. I think the mix that they, BCN and WAAF can offer rock fans is great. There's not TOO much cross-over between them. BCN is obviously the most boring of the three but I'm sure Infinity keeps it around because it's a heritage station.

I've also noticed that K-Rock2 has been a little streamlined as of late (throwing in more obvious gold cuts) but still sounds much freshes than anything on the NYC dial.

 

[neo11]

that begs of the age-old question: Will Millenials like you and I turn off our ipods/computers and tune into an FM station. The only way I would ever need it is if I find myself in a car for some strange reason (I live in Manhattan) or if I stumble upon a job that will only allow workers to listen to AM/FM radio (not likely).

P_Herring, I think you just asked the $64000 question.

My answer is that radio stations need alter their distribution channels in order to penetrate the millenial market. Operating costs, per song licensing fees, are higher for streaming / podcast formats, so margins will be squeezed somewhat, but reach will be global, so overall returns per station will be higher.

By the way, if you think K-Rock2 is good, check out WFNX's top-quality stream. Music is great, and even though they are a Boston station they are running spots for New York companies. The future is now.

http://wfnx.com/images/flashArea_25.jpg

I always love listening to 'FNX when I go up to Boston. I think the mix that they, BCN and WAAF can offer rock fans is great. There's not TOO much cross-over between them. BCN is obviously the most boring of the three but I'm sure Infinity keeps it around because it's a heritage station.

I've also noticed that K-Rock2 has been a little streamlined as of late (throwing in more obvious gold cuts) but still sounds much freshes than anything on the NYC dial.

Not that it really matters, with the miniscule amount of people with HD Radios and all, but I've always wondered why CBS never threw K-Rock on 92.3's HD2. I mean, the station has been operating for a few years and is ready to go, yet it's never been on HD. Go figure.

 

[pjc1961]

By the way, if you think K-Rock2 is good, check out WFNX's top-quality stream. Music is great, and even though they are a Boston station they are running spots for New York companies. The future is now.

http://wfnx.com/images/flashArea_25.jpg

The correct URL for the WFNX-FM-101.7 Boston, MA audio stream is:

http://wfnx.com/player/new/

 

[deadman]

How about you provide us with proof that RXP is "rocking" NYC. So far, there has been absolutely nothing in the ratings or in any articles published to indicate that RXP is coming anywhere close to "rocking" NYC. In fact, I seem to recall RXP not showing much of an improvement in the PPM's vs. the diaries, which obviously does not bode well for the station.

The phones are lit non-stop and from my NYC source the PPM data is great. The proof will be released soon.

 

[neo11]

How about you provide us with proof that RXP is "rocking" NYC. So far, there has been absolutely nothing in the ratings or in any articles published to indicate that RXP is coming anywhere close to "rocking" NYC. In fact, I seem to recall RXP not showing much of an improvement in the PPM's vs. the diaries, which obviously does not bode well for the station.

The phones are lit non-stop and from my NYC source the PPM data is great. The proof will be released soon.

Wow, the phones are lit non-stop. That's surely evidence that the station is succeeding. Never mind that in a metro area of 18 or so million, even the last-ranked station will have thousands of listeners at any given time.

 

[Brooklyndon]

The proof will be released soon.

What's the timeline on the release this proof you mention?

 

[sdol]

Maybe you should ask all The Weezer fans who won a contest from RXP to perform onstage at The Garden why they aren't listening to RXP???

 

[jiminCT]

Most of the more "aesthetic" (dont know what else to call it) formats (AAA, Jack) have a better chance at suceeding in smaller (Northampton, Portland, ME, Burlington VT) markets where there is "less on the line"...and fewer stations (less fragmentation of the local advertising dollar). Lets face it, the suits that own these radio stations have very little tolerance for risk these days. The idea of a MAJOR FM station in the NYC area with a playlist of Vampire Weekend, New Pornographers etc...would probably scare the higher ups. The crime of NYC radio is that there is such a large market, yet the owners of these stations believe that that they should serve to appeal to the masses...period. This isnt hard to figure out...
Much of the AAA format is out of the realm for most people..sad but true. Yes, even in NYC (and area)...whose citizens are often "presumed" to be more sophisticated than most. We have WRSI up here in the Pioneer Valley...would NYC radio ever support something like that? I doubt it. RXP is proof...