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CBS Sports Radio On FM In L.A.: It's Coming
- Thread starter DToTheJ
- Start date
calguy said:
Its actually not a toss up at all. Jack trounces the Wave when it comes to performance within their respective demos, and in billing. Its really not a contest, unless CBS has other plans in respect to their formats and/or competition with these stations.
I would need to be convinced that sports will perform well on FM in Los Angeles. This is a great sports town with many great sports teams, but LA is nothing if not a city with a million distractions and a million other things to do besides follow our teams. I've you've ever lived in the Midwest, you would see how seriously people take sports there. Angelenos don't seem to have the same passion, but I'm generalizing here.
calguy said:
Jack beats The Wave in billings by about 25%, and in 25-54, Jack is about 10 ranker positions above The Wave.
The Wave is declining in 25-54 rank from where it was as smooth jazz, and jack is well off its somewhat traditional top 5 25-54 performance of years past, so both have vulnerabilities but the big biller is Jack.
calguy said:
It's not as much that the Wave is declining... it just has not improved the 25-54 rank over the last few books as smooth jazz. And I'd guess that the staff understands that.
Wait... I'm not sure CBS is ready to put an FM Sports station in Los Angeles.
First, when CBS starts up an FM Sports station, it is an expensive undertaking. They don't just turn on a national satellite service. And that wouldn't be the case, even when they start up the CBS Sports Network in January. For instance, the line-up for the new CBS FM Sports station in Tampa has local shows, nearly around the clock. CBS's FM Sports station in Atlanta hasn't debuted yet. But I'm sure when they're ready, they'll do the same. They wouldn't start up an FM Sports station in LA with mostly network programming.
CBS has made it clear, they'll put the national programming on an underperforming AM but not on an FM, at least not in any important dayparts.
Second, LA has proven it's a pretty bad sports radio market. As David has told us, the 50% of the audience that's Hispanic is mostly interested in soccer. Meanwhile the other listeners in the LA market want nothing to do with soccer. LA already has several AM stations doing Sports, including two, 710 and 570 with fairly good signals, one owned by ABC/Disney, one by Clear Channel. They hardly show up in the ratings. 1330 KWKW, the ESPN Deportes station, also hardly shows in the ratings.
Then you also have the problem of all the good play-by-play franchises already under contract by Disney/ESPN and Clear Channel. In most cities where CBS has launched new FM Sports stations, they already had the rights to some major pro teams for their existing AM stations. They shifted or simulcast those games on FM with the arrival of a Sports FM station. But CBS has no rights to any sports teams in So. Cal.
I'm not convinced CBS is ready to launch an FM Sports station in LA, at least not now. I know David keeps telling us The Wave is underperforming. But 6+ it's still a top 10 station. I think CBS still believes the Wave has some life in it yet, and can improve its 25-54 standing, before they're ready to blow it up.
First, when CBS starts up an FM Sports station, it is an expensive undertaking. They don't just turn on a national satellite service. And that wouldn't be the case, even when they start up the CBS Sports Network in January. For instance, the line-up for the new CBS FM Sports station in Tampa has local shows, nearly around the clock. CBS's FM Sports station in Atlanta hasn't debuted yet. But I'm sure when they're ready, they'll do the same. They wouldn't start up an FM Sports station in LA with mostly network programming.
CBS has made it clear, they'll put the national programming on an underperforming AM but not on an FM, at least not in any important dayparts.
Second, LA has proven it's a pretty bad sports radio market. As David has told us, the 50% of the audience that's Hispanic is mostly interested in soccer. Meanwhile the other listeners in the LA market want nothing to do with soccer. LA already has several AM stations doing Sports, including two, 710 and 570 with fairly good signals, one owned by ABC/Disney, one by Clear Channel. They hardly show up in the ratings. 1330 KWKW, the ESPN Deportes station, also hardly shows in the ratings.
Then you also have the problem of all the good play-by-play franchises already under contract by Disney/ESPN and Clear Channel. In most cities where CBS has launched new FM Sports stations, they already had the rights to some major pro teams for their existing AM stations. They shifted or simulcast those games on FM with the arrival of a Sports FM station. But CBS has no rights to any sports teams in So. Cal.
I'm not convinced CBS is ready to launch an FM Sports station in LA, at least not now. I know David keeps telling us The Wave is underperforming. But 6+ it's still a top 10 station. I think CBS still believes the Wave has some life in it yet, and can improve its 25-54 standing, before they're ready to blow it up.
CBS has the Clippers on KFWB and L.A. is getting an NFL team possibly next year. Also not true hispanics ONLY like soccer. Have you been to Dodger Stadium? The hispanic community loves the Dodgers and Lakers. There is still a big Raider fan base. An FM sports station would thrive here, but programmed right. 570 & 710 are horrible. KLAA is a joke!
BMedina said:
You are correct... there is a portion of the Hispanic community that does follow American sports like basketball and baseball... but they are, in their vast majority, later-generation Hispanics.
First generation Hispanics and Spanish dominant Hispanics overwhelmingly don't understand, like and listen to American football, baseball and basketball. That group is perhaps 60% of all adult Hispanics in the LA area. They won't listen to an English sports station for a variety of reasons, starting with language and ending with the coverage of sports they have no interest in.
A listener explained the mystery of American football to me this way, "They stand around for a couple of minutes, then line up, bend over and then jump on each other. They do this over and over, with lots of commercials in between."
Or... just look at what each baseball game did to the ratings on KWKW before the Dodgers moved. The average 0.8 to 1.1 shares on other days became 0.2 or 0.3 shares when the games were on.
Yeah not talking about recent immigrants. The children who are English dominant are potential listeners. The problem is the sports stations in town (570 & 710) talk too much college football ( due to broadcast rights) which is what mostly Anglos in L.A. care about. You talk USC or UCLA football/basketball & Hispanics will change the station. The NFL is huge in and around big cities (DF,Guadalajara & Monterrey) in México, but many of the legal & illegal immigrants here are from rural Mexican states such as Michoacán & Zacatecas where fútbol rules. Second generation Hispanics in L.A. will listen to sports talk on FM ifdone right. AM is a different story which tends to be 50+ and Anglo. As for KWKW ESPN Deportes 1330 it's signal is not very good & again second generation hispanics (children born in U.S.) won't listen to AM. If the Raiders come back to L.A. and CBS gets the rights & becomes their flagship combined with talking mostly Dodgers & Lakers second generation Hispanics will listen on FM to sports talk in Los Angeles.
Cumulus reportedly eying Merlin FM's in Chicago... Cumulus also purchased an FM in New York... Any sellers in L.A.?
http://sportsrantz.com/media/2012/12/05/cbs-sports-radio-to-score-fm-affiliates-in-top-3-markets/
http://sportsrantz.com/media/2012/12/05/cbs-sports-radio-to-score-fm-affiliates-in-top-3-markets/
I don't see how Cummulus is buying anything larger than a Snickers bar right now given the money problems they're having not to mention the disgraceful way the Dickey's are treating their employees with spying,threats and generally making working for cummulus as enticing as being sent to a Russian gulag.
Bakruptcy may protect Cummulus but for how long? and when they approach investors to join them to make the company larger and pull them out of bankruptcy how can those investors look at what the Dickey's have done with the company and say "yes, this is a company and individuals I want to invest in and do business with".
Bakruptcy may protect Cummulus but for how long? and when they approach investors to join them to make the company larger and pull them out of bankruptcy how can those investors look at what the Dickey's have done with the company and say "yes, this is a company and individuals I want to invest in and do business with".
Oh yeah, and despite his company's financial woes, nice to see that Dickey is still raking in the dough, bet that makes him feel like a big man at the Country Club:
http://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/news/2012/04/09/cumulus-chair-lew-dickeys-total-comp.html
I CAN however see CBS putting their sports radio network on KABC as the station seems to have the same old same old talk programs that are run on mainly right wing stations from coast to coast.
I will say though that if CBS does want to have a home for their sports network in LA & make a big splash they will put it on KOST , much like they did with putting the Sports Hub in Boston on 98.5 FM.
I will say though that they will need to look into having a local morning show by one year in as I just don't see a national show in the morning pulling listeners in, Sports fans are different they want to hear about their local teams and sure they want to hear about them ALL the time but morning drive and afternoon drive in particular are extremely important to grab the local sports fans and get them listening.
http://www.bizjournals.com/atlanta/news/2012/04/09/cumulus-chair-lew-dickeys-total-comp.html
I CAN however see CBS putting their sports radio network on KABC as the station seems to have the same old same old talk programs that are run on mainly right wing stations from coast to coast.
I will say though that if CBS does want to have a home for their sports network in LA & make a big splash they will put it on KOST , much like they did with putting the Sports Hub in Boston on 98.5 FM.
I will say though that they will need to look into having a local morning show by one year in as I just don't see a national show in the morning pulling listeners in, Sports fans are different they want to hear about their local teams and sure they want to hear about them ALL the time but morning drive and afternoon drive in particular are extremely important to grab the local sports fans and get them listening.
DToTheJ said:
This article seems like the same educated guessing that we all do on this board- and there was little in the way of facts. Actually, it seems like a ridiculous conjecture. If KKGO was to be sold to Cumulus or any other broadcaster for that matter, why would Saul Levine have waited until radio properties were at a much lower value than they were 10 years ago? He isn't selling. KXOS will be sold to GRC. We don't have any FMs for sale for Cumulus to scoop up, unless Bonneville suddenly wants to exit the market again. They probably aren't going to be doing that, though, seeing as there is still a possibility that Cumulus flips KLOS to CBSSR and they become the presumptive heirs to classic rock in LA with no competition.
Wonder if this position for a sports sales AE at KFWB was filled yet... :
No Jim Rome, no problem as KLAC has topped KSPN for the first time in years in the latest Arbitron PPM
KLAC-AM (570) 0.7 | 0.7 | 0.9 | 1.1 | 1.2 (Sports) Clear Channel
KSPN-AM (710) 1.8 | 1.4 | 1.3 | 1.2 | 1.1 (Sports) ABC Radio Los Angeles
KABC is at 0.7 Would Cumulus even consider flipping it to Sports with Rome and CBS sportsradio?
KLAC-AM (570) 0.7 | 0.7 | 0.9 | 1.1 | 1.2 (Sports) Clear Channel
KSPN-AM (710) 1.8 | 1.4 | 1.3 | 1.2 | 1.1 (Sports) ABC Radio Los Angeles
KABC is at 0.7 Would Cumulus even consider flipping it to Sports with Rome and CBS sportsradio?
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Two words: Dodger Baseball.
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