Audacy Introduces Emma To Seattle (KSWD Flips to Hot AC)

[fybush]

And to amplify on Val's excellent response: because DTV allows for channels to be much more closely spaced than they had to be in the analog era, the TV spectrum no longer needed to extend all the way up to channel 69 (806 MHz), which allowed for two phases of auctions that raised billions of dollars to pay for the DTV transition. In the first phase after the analog shutdown in 2009, all stations that had been on or above channel 52 (700 MHz) were "repacked" to lower channels, and in the second phase a few years ago, the spectrum from channel 38 (614 MHz) to 700 MHz was also cleared off, so that now all TV stations operate on RF channels between 2 and 36.

 

[bobdavcav]

So, even if all stations are between 2 and 36 now, it still looks like they exist all the way up to 69 on sets that don't have access to cable, right? That's kind of hard to get my head around.

 

[fybush]

So, even if all stations are between 2 and 36 now, it still looks like they exist all the way up to 69 on sets that don't have access to cable, right? That's kind of hard to get my head around.

Since the start of digital TV, stations use "virtual channels." The channel number displayed on the TV is just an address that can point to a signal being broadcast on any RF channel.

The advantage here is that stations have a lot more flexibility in their transmission arrangements, and can still maintain their familiar brands for longtime viewers.

It doesn't matter whether you watch KING on ATSC 1, or on ATSC 3 over a different transmitter on a different channel - it's still "channel 5" on both signals, and translators can use the virtual channels, too.

 

[speer360]

HD Radio isn't hard at all. You just tune through the HD channels the same way you tune through the FM channels. Very easy.

You, me, none of us on the board to Normal Users. To what is easy for us, makes zero sense to average consumer.

Tuning to whatever frequency on FM and having to figure what the "1 2 3" means on the screen is the least of the worries, they got what they wanted when they tuned to the channel.

I have watched multiple people attempt to tune a in-car HD radio, some super tech savvy and they don't even know what they are doing.

 

[bobdavcav]

In my world, despite all the promotion about HD that analog did in its first several years, I know of very few people that use it. Outside of radio geeks like us, I can think of only three examples where I have heard HD in the wild:
1. The Uber driver I had that was listening to the BBC World Service on KUOW-HD3.
2. A different Uber driver who was listening to Warm's HD2. This was in early December when the main had already gone Christmas.
3. When we went up to Seattle in 2022, we tuned in the occasional HD because hitting the seek button on the car radio also went to HD channels. We didn't have our Seattle presets in the car radio anymore because even if our old car had enough presets for both Seattle and Portland, we got rid of that car in October 2020 and bought a new one that had HD.
I do believe the Neilson study I saw about a month ago that said broadcast radio is still the #1 most preferred audio medium based on what Uber drivers are listening to, but it's the analog radio that has existed for years, not HD.

 

[boombox4]

You, me, none of us on the board to Normal Users. To what is easy for us, makes zero sense to average consumer.

Tuning to whatever frequency on FM and having to figure what the "1 2 3" means on the screen is the least of the worries, they got what they wanted when they tuned to the channel.

I have watched multiple people attempt to tune a in-car HD radio, some super tech savvy and they don't even know what they are doing.

Understood, but if they can tune a radio, they can tune through HD channels. It's just like tuning through the FM band from channel to channel. But that's if it's an actual radio, and most cars have flatscreen, icon based soundsystems.

And I think most car dashscreens are icon based, like your phone's screen is. I know that the Pandora app on my phone is icon based. You hit the icon for the music channel you want. Or scroll through the screen full of icons. One of the issues with car systems is that you can't take your eyes off the road when driving, so unless you're looking for a wreck, you're not going to be scrolling through icons.

I'm sure that's at least one of the reasons people don't tune around through the HD2's and 3's. And if they are unaware what is offered on the HD2's and 3's (the only way to know is research them online -- and many FM websites don't even have info on the HD2's and 3's) is if you actually tune through the channels to see what's offered.

I'm not sure about the FM station apps. I know a lot of stations have apps. I've just seen the station websites and web players. The few that have HD2's they don't seem to have them accessible. I would think the station's app screen isn't much different.

And I don't think your average radio listeners anymore tune around to see what's on the FM band.... it's use your favorite preset or bluetooth your phone's music internet stream.

 

[TexasTom]

You, me, none of us on the board to Normal Users. To what is easy for us, makes zero sense to average consumer.

Tuning to whatever frequency on FM and having to figure what the "1 2 3" means on the screen is the least of the worries, they got what they wanted when they tuned to the channel.

I have watched multiple people attempt to tune a in-car HD radio, some super tech savvy and they don't even know what they are doing.

The first sentence of your comment is relevant to so many threads here -- as we all debate and discuss various issues involving broadcast radio (and, to a lesser extent, television), the simple reality is that just by being here we show a very distinct way that we are different from most other people: we still give a darn about radio. That's increasingly rare.

But that interest in radio does give us an incentive to figure out how to use a tuning system that might be initially confusing. For someone who doesn't care much about radio, they're likely to hit that confusion and just give up, because they don't have any big reason to bother to figure it out.

 

[bobdavcav]

Understood, but if they can tune a radio, they can tune through HD channels. It's just like tuning through the FM band from channel to channel. But that's if it's an actual radio, and most cars have flatscreen, icon based soundsystems.

And I think most car dashscreens are icon based, like your phone's screen is. I know that the Pandora app on my phone is icon based. You hit the icon for the music channel you want. Or scroll through the screen full of icons. One of the issues with car systems is that you can't take your eyes off the road when driving, so unless you're looking for a wreck, you're not going to be scrolling through icons.

I'm sure that's at least one of the reasons people don't tune around through the HD2's and 3's. And if they are unaware what is offered on the HD2's and 3's (the only way to know is research them online -- and many FM websites don't even have info on the HD2's and 3's) is if you actually tune through the channels to see what's offered.

I'm not sure about the FM station apps. I know a lot of stations have apps. I've just seen the station websites and web players. The few that have HD2's they don't seem to have them accessible. I would think the station's app screen isn't much different.

And I don't think your average radio listeners anymore tune around to see what's on the FM band.... it's use your favorite preset or bluetooth your phone's music internet stream.

I disagree that tuning even a car radio is anymore complicated than any other radio. As I said a few posts ago, my parents don't use HD, despite my mom's car having it. When I was in the car with them two summers ago, they used the seek function while we were in Seattle and came across the HD channels, but haven't ever used them locally. I am sure if HD was promoted better and had more content people wanted, more people would tune in. I almost forgot about the Uber driver I had almost a year ago who was listening to Pride Radio, I'm guessing via KXJM's HD2.

 

[ZooMan7777]

HD Radio has never properly been implemented in my opinion. Most broadcast companies just see it as a throwaway method of broadcasting some irrelevant format that if you put it on a main channel probably gets a 0.2 share in Nielsen. There are ways you can monetize it, such as using an HD channel as an extension to your AM/PM drive hosts; broadcasting a more talk/podcast format, it could be broadcasted, then released as an on-demand on Audacy or iHeart or the Podcast app on iPhone devices (and whatever app Android devices use, I don't use Android so I'm not sure lol) Other HD channels could be reserved for AM simulcasts because AM should've died a slow death 25 years ago, move most/if not all of them to FM HD. KIXI and KKNW are doing the right thing and broadcasting on HD2/HD3 on KQMV and KRWM.

 

[TheBigA]

HD Radio has never properly been implemented in my opinion.

All great ideas. Contact the folks at xPeri. They own the trademark on the technology. They're the ones who are supposed to get it installed in devices. They instead put the cart before the horse and charged radio stations to install it on the transmitter side before anyone had receivers. That's why things are the way they are.

 

[e-dawg]

Has anyone look at the ratings for this current format? The numbers went down and Warm is beating them at the moment. Dumb move Audacy

 

[TheBigA]

Has anyone look at the ratings for this current format? The numbers went down and Warm is beating them at the moment. Dumb move Audacy

It takes time to build an audience. They're beating KPNW, and they flipped 8 months ago with live & local talent. Audacy is just playing music.

The fact that anybody is listening is a victory at this point.

 

[ZooMan7777]

Tuned in during a day meeting, it sounds like they're picking up the slack where Star 101.5 left off. Wouldn't surprise me if they tried to get a few of the old staff in there at some point. Curt Kruse and Jen Pirak are doing podcasts and they could try to get Jill Taylor out of retirement, albeit I don't think she's interested in coming back to a day to day.

 

[fordranger797]

Tuned in during a day meeting, it sounds like they're picking up the slack where Star 101.5 left off. Wouldn't surprise me if they tried to get a few of the old staff in there at some point. Curt Kruse and Jen Pirak are doing podcasts and they could try to get Jill Taylor out of retirement, albeit I don't think she's interested in coming back to a day to day.

If I recall, 94.1 was mainly voice tracked towards the end of its run as a soft AC. Either way, Audacy seems content with it (but I think adding some local talent would be a smart move).