breaking BRW 103.3 to amp format, 60s-70s-80s to hd2

[fmradio1]

A couple of points...

FWIH, billing has been a problem for a long time. Even with the musical tweaks, billing lagged behind it's ratings. 6+ doesn't tell the story. 25-54's were not good. Something needed to happen.

Everyone is focusing on AMP taking on Kiss and that Mix should have been the station sacrificed. Why? They have decent cume as is, and younger (yet still adult) demos. Touching that would be insane. If anything, with AMP tangling with Kiss and Jam'n, it allows Mix to focus a little more pop/rock, skew a little older, and take on Magic. 106.7 has been struggling with becoming more contemporary. Mix can tangle with them for the older female listener.

At the end of the day, AMP doesn't have to beat Kiss. Not even close. It just needs to be a preset for the demo. Once it's established, it's cume will be higher (by quite a bit...just watch) and (obviously) the demos will be younger than when they were classic hits. Agencies will eagerly buy that. And that's the whole point.

 

[Mrtraveler01]

How much do you guys want to bet that CC will flip 101.7 to oldies when they get a hold of WFNX?

 

[JustinT]

How much do you guys want to bet that CC will flip 101.7 to oldies when they get a hold of WFNX?

But Oldies/classic hits is already directly served in the market by WROR. I'm thinking Jack FM.

 

[pqgeorge]

How much do you guys want to bet that CC will flip 101.7 to oldies when they get a hold of WFNX?

I wouldn't be surprised at all. It would make sense. It wouldn't hurt by bringing back a few of the WODS on-air jocks and copious streaming services. The audience would be there for the taking!!! We shall see.......

 

[fmradio1]

I wouldn't be surprised at all. It would make sense. It wouldn't hurt by bringing back a few of the WODS on-air jocks and copious streaming services. The audience would be there for the taking!!! We shall see.......

What audience? 55+? CC doesn't want that. Like WODS, they would have to compete with WROR, which has a better overall signal than WFNX. Right now CC has a lot invested in 1200 in the way of local hosts & producers, along with the big national shows. 101.7 will give Talk 1200 a better signal and with no music rights fees. I'd be shocked if 101.7 and 1200 aren't simulcasting in a few weeks.

 

[brlmedia]

i see the new AMP facebook page has its share of positive and negative comments..

 

[leegart]

The HD-2 stream of the old WODS has a lot of double repetition of jingles and occasional dead air spots. Anybody watching the computer?

 

[danikayser84]

If 101.7 does go to a simulcast of Talk 1200, when/if the simulcast is split, does anyone see 1200 going Fox Sports or Urban or being sold off?

 

[Retro]

When they tried this with WHTT, they didn't blow up an established heritage radio station to do it, they were up against a much more loosely run Kiss 108, and Jam'n 94.5 didn't exist. and they STILL failed. This will go down as a massive blunder.

WZOU(Zoo) was already on the air for a few months when WHTT came on.

No, WHTT "Hit Radio" was on the air in early '83. WZOU didn't come on the scene until '84.

 

[blackgold]

Oh, just great! WODS blows up its oldies format and goes top 40 CHR! This is gross!

 

[nd2023]

It's interesting how "103.3" was a national trending topic on Twitter at noon today. First time I ever saw a frequency as a trending topic on Twitter.

 

[Bakers_Bookstore]

From Signpost:
When they tried this with WHTT, they didn't blow up an established heritage radio station to do it, they were up against a much more loosely run Kiss 108, and Jam'n 94.5 didn't exist. and they STILL failed. This will go down as a massive blunder.

Just a little history lesson. In the 80's CBS was looking to go to an oldies format in boston like they had in NY. Back then WHTT was the only property CBS owned in Boston. (pre-Westinghouse purchase of CBS)

There was some NY corporate poltics involved and WHTT was blown up but instead of going to oldies a coup occurred at Black Rock and the loser was sent to Boston with a format designed to fail...the format failed...and when it did the loser in the corporate battle was fired and WODS was born.

The long transition to oldies had nothing to do with WHTT "failing" as a CHR, it had to do with CBS trying to establish an oldies format nationally. Yesterday's demolition of WODS, which IMHO could be called a Heritage Station, has everything to do with demographics getting too old to be attractive to advertisers.

Unfortunately the change to CHR was done at the expense of some very talented professionals that certainly could make a CHR format a ratings and advertising leader.

Let the debate begin!

 

[pjc1961]

From the RAMP newsletter of 6/28/12 regarding the players involved in the musical changeover to CHR:

The launch of 103.3 Amp Radio will be led locally by CBS Radio Boston VP of Programming Mike Thomas, working closely with CBS Radio VP of Top 40 Programming Michael Martin, who tells RAMP, "Get ready, Boston... game on!" Martin profusely thanks his longtime cohort "Jazzy Jim" Archer, APD/MD of [edit: rhythmic leaning CHR] KMVQ (99.7 Now)/San Francisco who has been working tirelessly behind the scenes getting Amp Radio's music mix sounding just right. "Jazzy has one of the best set of music ears in the country," says Martin, "and I can't think of a better person to help us piss everyone off."

Link to 6/28/12 RAMP newsletter here. (Fortunately it's the first item. WAAF re-upping with Greg Hill is item #2.)

 

[Fenway1912]

WHTT reminds me of one song that they just played hourly when they were born

It was the 80's

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NW7VnHnX3LQ

When they tried this with WHTT, they didn't blow up an established heritage radio station to do it, they were up against a much more loosely run Kiss 108, and Jam'n 94.5 didn't exist. and they STILL failed. This will go down as a massive blunder.

WZOU(Zoo) was already on the air for a few months when WHTT came on.

No, WHTT "Hit Radio" was on the air in early '83. WZOU didn't come on the scene until '84.

 

[only1moore]

Very interesting....

I don't think that this will work out too well. WXKS and WJMN have been very dominant for years. Most kids these days don't even scan the radio anymore. They have their presets that they've known for years and the iPod.

The most changes will probably be seen on WJMN. They have been Top40/R for a while now and they will either have to move back to being more urban or remain the same and take a chance on losing some audience. The pirates on 87.7 are long gone, but that doesn't mean that that audience will listen to JAM'N which plays Bieber in high rotation now. Problem with going to Urban is that you start losing advertising dollars. Let's face it, Urban format is not as lucrative as Top-40 and I highly doubt that the urban/hip-hop format would draw a higher audience on 94.5.

The only hope here is that this may possibly reduce the power rotation on WXKS/WJMN.

I wouldn't count on Clear Channel tweaking WJMN anytime soon, since they tried that all "Hip-Hop and R&B" route before. They seem to like the idea of doubling up on two Top 40s in markets where they own stations, regardless of direction. All you have to do is to look no further than New York City (WHTZ and WKTU), Tucson (KRQQ and KOHT), Portland (Oregon) (KKRZ and KXJM), Seattle (KBKS and KUBE), Austin (KHFI and KPEZ), Raleigh (WDCG and WKSL) and Miami (WHYI and WMIA).

Another factor is that Boston doesn't have much of a large African-American population (6.4%) or Hispanic population (7.2%), which makes it more difficult to bring a Urban format to the market at this point. However, if one were to be launched in Boston it must be executed right and connect with the community.

 

[nd2023]

There was a hip hop station in Boston, Hot 87.7. Perhaps they could buy the intellectual property and put it on 101.7.

 

[DToTheJ]

The HD-2 stream of the old WODS has a lot of double repetition of jingles and occasional dead air spots...

And I bet the "new" WODS is not even a commercial-free station to boot. I used to be a regular listener of the "Oldies Radio" streams out of Dallas and Detroit but it was pointless since they started taking breaks on those stations - one of the reasons I escape from traditional radio stations in the first place! Doesn't make sense...

By the way, do we have a tally yet on how many commercial-free songs AMP 103.3 is starting out with? That's usually a mandatory bit when CBS launches a new pop station.

 

[onair]

By the way, do we have a tally yet on how many commercial-free songs AMP 103.3 is starting out with?

4,000 songs in a row. And did you notice Kiss108 is doing "commercial free on the 4th of July" ... sounds like someone is nervous.

 

[NHRadio]

You DO know that was a pirate, right?

There was a hip hop station in Boston, Hot 87.7. Perhaps they could buy the intellectual property and put it on 101.7.

 

[raccoonradio]

Peter George was on the (old format) WODS facebook and said the new stream, which was dead air for hours, is "no 60s, some 70s, lots of 80s" and he felt it was bland. No jocks of course...just "hey we put the old WODS on for you, on HD!" But is it worth it..?