Build an AM...?

[Jack Griffin]

Well, forgiving doesn't come easy in this case but since you brought back some really great memories for me, I think we can work things out. I looked up Pat O'Day and went in search of San Juan Island. And it all came back to me!

My children sent my wife and I on a week's visit to Washington. After spending a couple of nights in Port Angeles, we headed up to Port Townsend, took the ferry across to Widby Island and wandered into Knead and Feed in Coupeville for lunch and then on up to Bellingham to serve as our launch point for a day in Vancouver.

I will get with the attorney Tuesday and put you back in the will with an even more-grand portion than before. You see, I live in the community where Junior Samples (Hee-Haw TV) lived. At least a couple of times a week I stop for coffee at the bright and shiny Quick-Trip which the locals tell me is built on the site of the little Biscuits and Breakfast greasy-spoon where Mr. Samples used to stop to have breakfast after his early morning fishing forays in our lake. And in my possession is the 300 gallon galvanized horse watering tank where Junior kept his secret and exotic collection of live bait. I have just about completed the restoration work and one of these days... it will be YOURS.

Should I leave the tobacco juice stains... or would you prefer that they be removed?

GRC

Living on the leeward side of the big lake
that gives some protection from the surging, foaming flotsam
of Atlanta's urban and suburban sprawl
as it washes up on the base of The Blue Ridge Mountains.

Oh, please leave the stains. Can't take away the patina! ;D

...practically everyone will have found the "next big thing" and that would be Internet Radio delivered by WiMax in cars. Even Sirius/XM will have a battle with that.

Ah, that. Here's the problem (and this includes streaming, too): Broadcasters AND listeners have to pay a third party for them to connect. A third party that's greedy. A third party that's unnecessary for terrestrial radio listening.

Let's look at history for a minute:

One cellular provider (AT&T) dropped unlimited data service, and another (Verizon) just did. A third (T-Mobile) throttles users pretty badly when they exceed data limits. That leaves one more unlimited provider and you can bet it won't be far behind in dropping "unlimited" service.

Sure, WiMax providers (e.g. Clear) are doing unlimited today. But in a few years you can bet they'll follow suit with the cell providers.

One other thing - WiMax rollout to a penetration level that equals current cell service is at LEAST a decade away. Even in areas where WiMax has rolled out (like here) there's a big black hole of service between Seattle and Portland. That too will slow adoption.

 

[LITTLEBOYBLUE]

From what I have observed...the biggest competitor/threat is not satellite or internet.

It is simply the "Line In" button where people connect their own player to the car audio system (and, unfortunately, some don't bother to connect a device ... they just wear the ear buds while driving).

 

[Goat Rodeo Cowboy]

O.K. We've had a bit of comedic diversion. Let me offer another version of the point I am trying to make. We have just completed an "apple vs. oranges" conversation.

I suspect people in Seattle know what a Boeing Stearman is. 1930s design of a entry level training aircraft for beginning military pilots. About the only good thing a pilot can say about the Stearman is that it IS sturdy and strong. After WW II the Stearman emerged as THE UBIQUITOUS VEHICLE for crop dusting. The original issue training version had a 225 HP engine as I recall. After WW II as the agricultural demand for aerial application took off, there were a lot of 450 HP engines available as war surplus and they were easily installed in Stearmans. Great payload carrier. Lousy death-trap for pilots.

In the late 50s the Agriculture Universities in America began designing some prototype replacement aircraft just chocked with safety features. These newly proposed planes were receiving mixed reviews from crusty old duster pilots who didn't want to appear to be "sissies". My favorite quote from the era is attributed to J.O. Dockery who flew and had his own companies on the Arkansas side and the Mississippi side of the river "down in the Delta". When he was asked what kind of plane was suitable for the task he reportedly replied: "Give me enough horsepower... and I can dust with a BARN DOOR."

Yes, if you have or can obtain ONE AM radio station, and you are Pat O'Day, or you have the equivalent of a Pat O'Day in your hip-pocket, you can make ONE AM radio station a real winner. What if you don't have that kind of horsepower to bolt onto your barn door? What happens when you get excited about your Pat O'Day powered AM station and you start wandering into some smaller markets and into nearby states and you are trying to make your 8th or 12th AM station work... you will begin to see the picture my Georgia friend is talking about.

I don't know that my Georgia friend was ever a knock-out "rock star horsepower range" on the air guy when he was younger. He is simply a meticulous craftsman who has some wins in his pocket, and a few not so impressive acquisitions he probably doesn't enjoy talking about.

He has shared his experience (which I repeat from my earlier post): If you acquire a heritage AM station that has not been "messed with" it can be a winner. If you acquire an AM with a messy history, or if you build a brand new one, the odds are stacked against your success dreams.

If you are a listener, sit over here in the cheering section for stations who have or can enlist a Pat O'Day type high-caliber talent. If you are a wannabe station owner or manager you may want to sit over here in the seminar room where guys like Art Sutton now and then share their experience and observations.

You folks out in Seattle have one person who posts from time to time that also has my attention. I am a fan of the views expressed by Bill Wolfenbarger. I don't know much about him, but when I look at his markets, I say "May your tribe increase."

 

[semoochie]

Pat O'Day ran KXA as an Oldies station. How did that work out?

 

[ssndradio]

I wonder how Brian Butler (GSM at KXXO) is doing with his 1120 Construction Permit COL'd for Yelm?

http://transition.fcc.gov/fcc-bin/amq?list=0&facid=160422

Haven't heard too many rumblings about it lately, but it looks like he's got the go-ahead... Seems like KXXO's FM upgrade to South Mountain stalled out (now they've got an app in for Capitol Peak) -- I wonder if they have the resources to put into the AM, or if this is a lone venture? From the pattern it looks like it's dead aimed at Olympia with 10/6 kw directional. Definitely am interested in how Andy is doing with 1520--seems like a lower powered station, on a crammed frequency like 1120, with the costs involved with a DA would be a particularly hard ROI.