There's a lot of speculation about changes coming to WBCN. One rumor is continues to be sports talk. That's probably not a bad move. I think if they were smart, they would get the Andelman Brothers away from WTKK and offer them morning drive. They would be quite funny and intelligent. BCN could also tap the resources of BZ Tv and radio sports people as well as folks over at NESN and Comcast Sports Net. It could be quite an interesting station and give EEI some good competition if programmed correctly.
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Changes Coming to WBCN
- Thread starter dhoule
- Start date
Today's Herald (Inside Track) says they heard from "Someone Who Knows" that they may go to
NOW. They do quote station "suits" and the likes of Chachi LoPrete denying such changes
(saying among other things it would just cannibalize from their sister station WBMX) and they also
mention sports talk was considered, since CBS already has rights to Bruins and Pats--but they
couldn't pry Ordway from Entercom. Still, who knows?
http://bostonherald.com/track/inside_track/view.bg?articleid=1162104
Under sports they could have some CBS talent (or others) host shows, and possibly get ESPN
affiliation (let's face it, more power than 890/1400)
NOW. They do quote station "suits" and the likes of Chachi LoPrete denying such changes
(saying among other things it would just cannibalize from their sister station WBMX) and they also
mention sports talk was considered, since CBS already has rights to Bruins and Pats--but they
couldn't pry Ordway from Entercom. Still, who knows?
http://bostonherald.com/track/inside_track/view.bg?articleid=1162104
Under sports they could have some CBS talent (or others) host shows, and possibly get ESPN
affiliation (let's face it, more power than 890/1400)
didn't they just move toucher and rich to mornings if they flip now wont that be a waste?? now i believe they should flip to now and move wbmx in a different direction much like fresh in nyc,chicago now washington dc well we will see what happen wont we?
J
JoshuaC
Guest
Seems logical to try the CHR route. CBS is doing it elsewhere and as far as I hear they aren't exactly hiding the fact that Alternative doesn't mean much for them anymore. You look at WBMX which seems to be getting by at half the power of WBCN who, despite its "heritage" and its weak competition, can't seem to stop the slide. You could try to take on Kiss with the bigger signal, then scrap WBMX and try some form of Alternative Rock on 98.5... or get out of the alt/active-rock business altogether?
Sports Talk may be interesting, probably successful. I just can't see it happening... not really sure why. I guess it's a testament to WEEI that one feels it more likely someone could knock Kiss off it's pedestal than an FM sports talk beating out an AM Sports Talk.
Sports Talk may be interesting, probably successful. I just can't see it happening... not really sure why. I guess it's a testament to WEEI that one feels it more likely someone could knock Kiss off it's pedestal than an FM sports talk beating out an AM Sports Talk.
MassMusicMan
Banned
Ooh, this thread for the 10th time! Yay!
No reason why Toucher and Rich can't be the morning show on a CHR. Adolfo's stunts are far more interesting than whatever Matty usually drones on about. All T&R have to do is interview guests that chicks care about instead of guests that guys care about. If they're as good at radio as their position hosting a morning show in Boston should indicate, they should be capable of creating that kind of show. And if they're not, you have them play 8 records an hour, which is twice as many as Matty plays.
CBS can't screw this up. Make WBCN a hit station NOW.
No reason why Toucher and Rich can't be the morning show on a CHR. Adolfo's stunts are far more interesting than whatever Matty usually drones on about. All T&R have to do is interview guests that chicks care about instead of guests that guys care about. If they're as good at radio as their position hosting a morning show in Boston should indicate, they should be capable of creating that kind of show. And if they're not, you have them play 8 records an hour, which is twice as many as Matty plays.
CBS can't screw this up. Make WBCN a hit station NOW.
Interesting stuff. The umm... other radio information website dug up the following domains that CBS has registered involving the 104.1 frequency. CBS owns a successful hot AC on 104.1 in Cleveland that doesn't seem to be involved in any of these, but they also own a struggling Jack FM on 104.1 in the Twin Cities.
1041NowFM.com
Play1041.com
Fresh1041.com
1041TheFan.com
1041TheTicket.com
1041VirginRadio.com
Country1041.com
1041TheRiver.com
Channel1041.com
The hot AC format of "Virgin Radio" in Montreal and Toronto would go head-to-head with WBMX, the "Country (frequency)" positioning is already used by WKLB, and "The River" is already WXRV.
Seems to me like the CHR-leaning names and the sports-leaning names (in fact, "The Ticket" was the name for the never-launched WBOS all-sports format) could be in the cards for WBCN.
1041NowFM.com
Play1041.com
Fresh1041.com
1041TheFan.com
1041TheTicket.com
1041VirginRadio.com
Country1041.com
1041TheRiver.com
Channel1041.com
The hot AC format of "Virgin Radio" in Montreal and Toronto would go head-to-head with WBMX, the "Country (frequency)" positioning is already used by WKLB, and "The River" is already WXRV.
Seems to me like the CHR-leaning names and the sports-leaning names (in fact, "The Ticket" was the name for the never-launched WBOS all-sports format) could be in the cards for WBCN.
maybe rock music in general is just in a lull? these things go in phases...one day rock music is top of the charts the next new wave chr is...my guess is that WBCN will stay WBCN maybe with a few tweaks and changes but nothing drastic.
JoshuaC said:
WBMX doesn't have "half the power" than WBCN, or a smaller signal than "Kiss".
They're about the same (equivalent) power, but the transmitters are in different locations. WBCN and "Kiss" transmit from the Pru, and WBMX transmits from the FM-128 tower at the Newton/Needham line.
If you're listening closer to downtown Boston, of course WBCN and "Kiss" would appear stronger than WBMX where you are because you're closer to their transmitters, but WBMX covers at least the same distance outside of town.
Eli Polonsky said:
You are right about that! In fact, I always found that the FM-128 Tower FMs hit the western suburbs and central ma better than WBCN on the Pru...As far as the rumor goes...I'll believe it when I hear it....although anything is possible I guess...
Time Traveler said:
For what it's worth, CBS seems to be going fairly rhythmic with NOW, and judging from the locations of remotes and the atmosphere of the station website, it certainly seems like they are going for a young, urban audience. And in that case, WBCN's downtown Boston transmitter would provide an advantage over the FM-128 stations - even though WXKS-FM is right next to them "from high atop the Pru" (or so Kiss' circa 2000 legal ID went).
DJbobo said:
I'm confused - Boston, Cleveland, and Minneapolis are the only places where CBS owns stations on the 104.1 frequency. Do you mean that CBS would be buying these decoys for a market where they are about to make a change and there is a 104.1 MHz station not owned by CBS?
It seems as if CBS is making a concerted effort to target Clear Channel specifically.
Perhaps I'm wrong on this, but in the markets where they're choosing to flip, Clear Channel's top 40's appear to be the dominant ratings winners. Could it be a perceived inability on Clear Channel's part to want to engage in full-on competition. With their oft-reported cuts, and downsizing, maybe CBS sees a vulnerability that they can exploit?
That being the possible scenario, I could definitely see them adjusting Mix to target one end of the female demo, and taking WBCN in another direction to target Greater Media's Magic. Or, vice-versa. Obviously, they're not making the inroads on the male end with WBCN that they'd like. I haven't actually seen the numbers, but someone I know says that the 6+ PPMs aren't very good right now (of course what does 6 really mean? Is it like 12+ is for those in non-PPM markets?) And it seems...until the industry really gets a handle on how the PPM #s can be exploited to their benefit, we're going to see a lot of format adjustments, and talent shuffling. Knee-jerk reactions...some of which may work out. Others, prove to be huge mistakes.
From a personal perspective, I would hate to see WBCN go away. It (along with WCOZ) was a major factor in my decision to do this for a living. It would be sad to see it go.
It will be interesting to see what happens.
Perhaps I'm wrong on this, but in the markets where they're choosing to flip, Clear Channel's top 40's appear to be the dominant ratings winners. Could it be a perceived inability on Clear Channel's part to want to engage in full-on competition. With their oft-reported cuts, and downsizing, maybe CBS sees a vulnerability that they can exploit?
That being the possible scenario, I could definitely see them adjusting Mix to target one end of the female demo, and taking WBCN in another direction to target Greater Media's Magic. Or, vice-versa. Obviously, they're not making the inroads on the male end with WBCN that they'd like. I haven't actually seen the numbers, but someone I know says that the 6+ PPMs aren't very good right now (of course what does 6 really mean? Is it like 12+ is for those in non-PPM markets?) And it seems...until the industry really gets a handle on how the PPM #s can be exploited to their benefit, we're going to see a lot of format adjustments, and talent shuffling. Knee-jerk reactions...some of which may work out. Others, prove to be huge mistakes.
From a personal perspective, I would hate to see WBCN go away. It (along with WCOZ) was a major factor in my decision to do this for a living. It would be sad to see it go.
It will be interesting to see what happens.
Buying a lot of "decoy domains" that hint at a format change that ultimately prove to be false is S.O.P. these days. The folks at the stations read these boards (not just Radio-Info, but many boards) too...and they know that other folks at other stations do, too. They're all lurkers, but they're there...and if they can fool someone into trying to anticipate a strategy that turns out to be a fake, more power to 'em. All's fair in love, war and ratings.
FWIW, the conventional wisdom is that stations go to the Needham/Newton towers if they're primarily concerned about coverage in the suburbs and/or focusing more on drive-time listeners, because those towers have a good 400ft height advantage over anything downtown. Stations primarily trying to reach an urban-living or -working audience go to the Pru because the location and high wattage go a long way to overcoming building penetration problems and multipath issues.
Obviously this is a rule of thumb, it is not a hard-n-fast rule since many other factors dictate where a station goes; thanks to separation requirements, not all Pru stations can move to Needham and vice-versa. Some can, but not all.
WBCN moving to sports re-ignites one of the more intriguing speculations in Boston - who's gonna be the first FM sports outlet? While I think it's inevitable I do wonder who'll have the stones to go for it. Logic would argue that it could be a huge threat to WEEI's dominance in the sports media world, but listeners are not logical people...and Entercom could easily counter by putting WEEI on 93.7, or even 97.7, if they felt really threatened. And one wonders if CBS moves WBCN to sports, will they suddenly ink the deal to keep the Bruins after all?
Similarly, WBCN departing the rock format could mean a major opportunity for WFNX to shine. No doubt much to the chagrin of many on this list. :
FWIW, the conventional wisdom is that stations go to the Needham/Newton towers if they're primarily concerned about coverage in the suburbs and/or focusing more on drive-time listeners, because those towers have a good 400ft height advantage over anything downtown. Stations primarily trying to reach an urban-living or -working audience go to the Pru because the location and high wattage go a long way to overcoming building penetration problems and multipath issues.
Obviously this is a rule of thumb, it is not a hard-n-fast rule since many other factors dictate where a station goes; thanks to separation requirements, not all Pru stations can move to Needham and vice-versa. Some can, but not all.
WBCN moving to sports re-ignites one of the more intriguing speculations in Boston - who's gonna be the first FM sports outlet? While I think it's inevitable I do wonder who'll have the stones to go for it. Logic would argue that it could be a huge threat to WEEI's dominance in the sports media world, but listeners are not logical people...and Entercom could easily counter by putting WEEI on 93.7, or even 97.7, if they felt really threatened. And one wonders if CBS moves WBCN to sports, will they suddenly ink the deal to keep the Bruins after all?
Similarly, WBCN departing the rock format could mean a major opportunity for WFNX to shine. No doubt much to the chagrin of many on this list. :
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