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At What Point Will 94.7 WFME Be Sold?
- Thread starter DToTheJ
- Start date
In his newsletter today, Tom Taylor seems to double down on the notion that CBS wants to put the FAN on FM and keep 660 for network sports:
So that takes us back to the question, what would they sell? I can't believe it would be WINS or WCBS-AM. And it wouldn't be one their current FM's, that would obviously make no sense. That only leaves... WLNY TV 55? But CBS just bought it, and conventional wisdom points to the TV property being more valuable to keep than radio. Is it really?
Tom Taylor said:
So that takes us back to the question, what would they sell? I can't believe it would be WINS or WCBS-AM. And it wouldn't be one their current FM's, that would obviously make no sense. That only leaves... WLNY TV 55? But CBS just bought it, and conventional wisdom points to the TV property being more valuable to keep than radio. Is it really?
TheBigA said:
CPB's 2001 list verifies you, A--only NYC stations getting CPB money were WNYC and WFUV (listed under "Bronx"):
http://www.cpb.org/aboutcpb/financials/funding/state.html?year=2011&state=New+York
To acquire another FM, CBS has to unload one AM station. No way will it be 660 or 880. I agree with Tom Taylor that CBS wants 660 for the new CBS Sports Radio Network. That leaves 1010. Be aware that WXRK (CHR 92.3 NOW-FM) is CBS' lowest rated FM and that WFAN currently simulcasts on 92.3 HD-3. That would minimize listener confusion to simply move FAN to the 92.3 analog signal.
WINS has the weakest signal of CBS' AMs but is the most profitable. It's a hard decision, but the future for spoken word formats is FM and moving WINS to FM as a news-intensive talk station is a potentially good long term move. If anyone can put together a station with NY centric news and talk, its CBS. As I mentioned in an earlier post, the WINS news infrastructure is what this station will be based on.
Another board has said spoken word on FM won't work in New York, that its been tried before and failed every time. IMHO, it's all in the programming and the execution. CBS or anyone else should not be discouraged by the Merlin debacle.
WINS has the weakest signal of CBS' AMs but is the most profitable. It's a hard decision, but the future for spoken word formats is FM and moving WINS to FM as a news-intensive talk station is a potentially good long term move. If anyone can put together a station with NY centric news and talk, its CBS. As I mentioned in an earlier post, the WINS news infrastructure is what this station will be based on.
Another board has said spoken word on FM won't work in New York, that its been tried before and failed every time. IMHO, it's all in the programming and the execution. CBS or anyone else should not be discouraged by the Merlin debacle.
How do you guys think the AC format would do on 94.7 FM?
radioguy39nj said:
How would it minimize listener confusion when the majority of listeners don't even know 92.3 HD-3 exists? If CBS is insistent on bringing the CBS Sports Radio Network to New York, they may just bring it to 92.3FM, displacing 92.3 Now to an HD sub or abandon it entirely, and leave 660 AM alone. Right now, WFAN on 660 AM is a cash cow. As such, CBS should be in no hurry to fix what isn't broken.
radioguy39nj said:WINS has the weakest signal of CBS' AMs but is the most profitable. It's a hard decision, but the future for spoken word formats is FM and moving WINS to FM as a news-intensive talk station is a potentially good long term move. If anyone can put together a station with NY centric news and talk, its CBS. As I mentioned in an earlier post, the WINS news infrastructure is what this station will be based on.
Another board has said spoken word on FM won't work in New York, that its been tried before and failed every time. IMHO, it's all in the programming and the execution. CBS or anyone else should not be discouraged by the Merlin debacle.
Well then, how about NBC's 97.1FM WNWS debacle? Or CBS's FM Talk @ 102.7 on WNEW debacle? What about CBS's second FM spoken word attempt, the Free FM debacle on then 92.3FM WFNY-FM? Or what is now shaping up to be the WEPN-FM New ESPN New York 98.7FM debacle?
I'm going to go out on a limb here, contradict many of the brilliant radio executives and media conglomerates, and say that I do not believe that the future of FM is spoken word formats. Especially when the spoken word format is one of national syndication.
The New York market has REPEATEDLY REJECTED the concept EVERY TIME. And the only reason programmers do this in other markets is that it is a cheap way to keep content flowing through the transmitter while earning revenue. Much cheaper than hiring people to work airshifts and license music. Yes, it gets an audience, but so too would any other properly executed format.
Kevin said:
Kevin, what are you talking about? ???
Opening my fortune cookie:
CBS surely does have a tough choice *if* WBAI can mend its dysfunctions sufficiently to agree *and* Family Radio is selling 94.7 *and* CBS wants to play. (The articles I've seen suggest the amazing dysfunction at WBAI includes internal inconsistency as well as stalemate. It appears from the posting of one side of the WBAI stalemate that the failed proposal was to reject renewal of the Wall Street lease to seek a cheaper location *and* to “immediately seek technical advice on possible options for relocating WBAI’s antenna from the Empire State Building” – which costs the station over $500,000 a year – “to a lower-rent location without losing signal strength or reach.” (http://nyc.indymedia.org/en/2012/08/119921.shtml) Both sides' positions seem absurd. It makes no logical sense that I can see for *any* radio station, much less a non-profit far-left one, to have a studio on Wall Street. However, looking for a location cheaper than ESB with the same signal reach, unless I am sadly mistaken, would be a very quick search, since I don't think any such place exists.)
If such a swap should fall upon the table (WBAI to 94.7, CBS gets 99.5), then maybe CBS might duck the WINS/WCBS issue by simply selling 660 to its sports network partner Cumulus to run CBS Sports Network there, put WFAN on 99.5, and keep well-billing WINS and WCBS as is at least for now? I really wonder if CBS is prepared to ditch either WINS or WCBS for an untried format when they bill as well as they do (both in the Top 10 billing stations in the nation, both higher than WFAN). (And when the billings fall off, 92.3 is still there to use.) High-billing WFAN to FM may also be a risk to some degree, but it appears that the sports teams want FM in their renewals, and the demographics that follow sports are somewhat younger than all-news listeners, I believe. (And I do believe that if the swap with WBAI and WFME doesn't happen, WFAN to 99.3 is at least an even money bet.) Plus most of the all-news stations that have landed on FM of late (leaving Merlin's programming abominations aside) aren't exactly burning up the ratings. CBS' WNEW-FM is 28th; KROI Houston has a 1 share; WYAY is at a .8. Of course, I would love to know how much of the WBBM rating is attributable to WCFS listening; ditto KCBS/KFRC. If those big-city stations have moved much of the listening of those established stations to FM, then maybe CBS might take a shot at moving WINS as is to FM.
Of course, nobody (including CBS) knows at this point what's gonna happen.
CBS surely does have a tough choice *if* WBAI can mend its dysfunctions sufficiently to agree *and* Family Radio is selling 94.7 *and* CBS wants to play. (The articles I've seen suggest the amazing dysfunction at WBAI includes internal inconsistency as well as stalemate. It appears from the posting of one side of the WBAI stalemate that the failed proposal was to reject renewal of the Wall Street lease to seek a cheaper location *and* to “immediately seek technical advice on possible options for relocating WBAI’s antenna from the Empire State Building” – which costs the station over $500,000 a year – “to a lower-rent location without losing signal strength or reach.” (http://nyc.indymedia.org/en/2012/08/119921.shtml) Both sides' positions seem absurd. It makes no logical sense that I can see for *any* radio station, much less a non-profit far-left one, to have a studio on Wall Street. However, looking for a location cheaper than ESB with the same signal reach, unless I am sadly mistaken, would be a very quick search, since I don't think any such place exists.)
If such a swap should fall upon the table (WBAI to 94.7, CBS gets 99.5), then maybe CBS might duck the WINS/WCBS issue by simply selling 660 to its sports network partner Cumulus to run CBS Sports Network there, put WFAN on 99.5, and keep well-billing WINS and WCBS as is at least for now? I really wonder if CBS is prepared to ditch either WINS or WCBS for an untried format when they bill as well as they do (both in the Top 10 billing stations in the nation, both higher than WFAN). (And when the billings fall off, 92.3 is still there to use.) High-billing WFAN to FM may also be a risk to some degree, but it appears that the sports teams want FM in their renewals, and the demographics that follow sports are somewhat younger than all-news listeners, I believe. (And I do believe that if the swap with WBAI and WFME doesn't happen, WFAN to 99.3 is at least an even money bet.) Plus most of the all-news stations that have landed on FM of late (leaving Merlin's programming abominations aside) aren't exactly burning up the ratings. CBS' WNEW-FM is 28th; KROI Houston has a 1 share; WYAY is at a .8. Of course, I would love to know how much of the WBBM rating is attributable to WCFS listening; ditto KCBS/KFRC. If those big-city stations have moved much of the listening of those established stations to FM, then maybe CBS might take a shot at moving WINS as is to FM.
Of course, nobody (including CBS) knows at this point what's gonna happen.
4 Times Square is comparable, and when the Freedom Tower is done, it'll be even higher than Empire. However, I don't think WBAI can move there because it's closer to Wilmington Delaware. WBAI can move to 4TS, 8 city blocks further from Wilmington.
Why would those morons at Pacifica want to get rid of a great signal just because the rent is too high at Empire? Maybe they should just sell it to someone who can program a format that makes money. And perhaps keep WBAI on 99.5-HD2 and give out HD radios at the Occupy Wall Street protest.
Why would those morons at Pacifica want to get rid of a great signal just because the rent is too high at Empire? Maybe they should just sell it to someone who can program a format that makes money. And perhaps keep WBAI on 99.5-HD2 and give out HD radios at the Occupy Wall Street protest.
Theater of My Mind said:
In that case, he needs to credit a local columnist who first came up with that notion.
There is some speculation that 101.9 could be on offer... Tom Taylor wrote about it in today's TRI.
It was liberal talk and on a station that was a heritage Rock station, twice! Imagine how differently Jack-FM would have been treated if it had gone to 92.3 instead of 101.1.TheBigA said:radioguy39nj said:CBS or anyone else should not be discouraged by the Merlin debacle.
CBS has their own experience with talk on FM. It wasn't good.
Jeff in Sa-ra-so-ta!
TheBigA said:
Or KCBS' FM in San Francisco, which has made a significant change in long term rank and 25-54 demos.
Other than those two, the brand new Atlanta WYAY, and Radio One's still very new Houston effort in a market that has not supported or had the format, how many FM all news stations have there been in the last few years?
Giacomo Siffredi said:
Whoa. The NIS episode in New York was decades ago, before FM had even become a dominant medium in any demo outside of 12-34?
The CBS hot talk effort was a misguided attempt to capture the Spirit of Stern all day by attracting 18-34's. However, 18-34's don't like talk much... whether they liked Stern or not. There was no format hole there, and the effort was doomed.
The WEPN switch has to be judged by two standards... normal radio metrics like billing and ratings... and the image enhancement and branding for the ESPN mark. Like sister operation Radio Disney, ESPN is a lot about making ESPN ubiquitous in the sports area... so saying it is an impending debacle is just absurd.
[/quote]I'm going to go out on a limb here, contradict many of the brilliant radio executives and media conglomerates, and say that I do not believe that the future of FM is spoken word formats. Especially when the spoken word format is one of national syndication.[/quote]
From KSL to KIRO to KQED to WTOP to WSB to WOKV to WIBC and dozens more cases, the future is now. FMs have replaced AMs or been added to them. When the original AM format was strong, albeit aging, there was pretty uniform success. And more are coming.
The imaging direction is all that is different between those stations migrating to the FM dial. Whether they test the waters with translators or a couple of month transition, leaving the AM station to some other type of format and owner afterwards, or just remaining with the imaging of the existing AM, just adding the FM counterpart as in "1010 WINS, now on FM at 105.5 in Brooklyn" - hypothetically, guys.DavidEduardo said:
It is happening and the pace has picked up.
Jeff in Sa-ra-so-ta!
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