Clear Channel/Tampa's FM Conundrum

[DToTheJ]

WFLA recently launched an FM translator in Hillsborough County. As opposed to a full-fledged flip of one of their five major FM music stations, which all appear to be doing well. (I believe someone at Clear Channel/Tampa recently threw that out there.)

Now CBS has announced the launch of "98.7 The Fan" this summer. (Perhaps egged on by said CC/Tampa announcement that their five FM music stations are all doing well?)

So allow me to throw this out there: If Clear Channel decides to flip one of their FM music stations to spoken word, will it be a simulcast of WFLA or "The Sports Animal" WDAE?

 

[MsMusicRadio]

I really hope they don't do it. Seriously. Especially not Mix. That would give Magic the entire AC market and that is not cool

 

[Mike_Hennessy]

My guess would be sports. There are rumblings that talk radio's demographics are aging out of the 25-54 sweetspot. Sports I would imagine doesn't necessarily have that problem. I speak with no special knowledge and claim no great prescient powers, so take that as an interested observer's 2 cents.

 

[badjef]

Personally, I don't think that CC-Tampa has taken the thought of competition in Sports very seriously. If they did, they would have used another HD-x for a simulcast of 620, when 970 jumped on the 97.9 HD-2.

They may have felt the "killer" 620 signal was more than adequate since it was one of the best AMs in the market and that would be enough to carry it. For awhile, it has.

Clearly, the CBS 98.7 announcement will have them rethinking their plans. As we have been reading, with the upgrades of the HD equipment, CC would not be spending the money if they didn't think there would be a ROI. Several more of the new car lines are coming with FM-HD as Standard equipment. This is more worth watching than the summer reruns on TV.

We will have to see what Labor Day has in store.

Remember preparation always precedes the War, and in this case, it is the War of the FM dial.

Jeff in Sa-ra-so-ta!

 

[DToTheJ]

@Jeff: CC/Tampa hasn't taken sports competition in the market seriously mostly because they haven't taken 1010 seriously as a competitor. With the announcement of CBS' new network, plus ESPN defecting from 1040 both happening within 24 hours of the start of this thread, CC may need to make a sports move on FM with all of the competition in the market. However...

@Mike: While sports is a better suited spoken word demo for 25-54, I figured news/talk might be a more convenient option for Tampa, particularly with hurricane season rearing its ugly head each year... Hence why CC may find it hard to decide between news/talk and sports on FM.

 

[badjef]

@Jeff: CC/Tampa hasn't taken sports competition in the market seriously mostly because they haven't taken 1010 seriously as a competitor. With the announcement of CBS' new network, plus ESPN defecting from 1040 both happening within 24 hours of the start of this thread, CC may need to make a sports move on FM with all of the competition in the market. However...

@Mike: While sports is a better suited spoken word demo for 25-54, I figured news/talk might be a more convenient option for Tampa, particularly with hurricane season rearing its ugly head each year... Hence why CC may find it hard to decide between news/talk and sports on FM.

CC has not had any type of competition with "Animal" since it debuted in the 90's on 1250, except when CBS had the Bucs and Cox had the Lightning (ironically, on 620)

1010 is a late comer to the sports talk. That station spent the most of its best time (the last 30 years) as a simulcast of 99.5. It hasn't had anything to carry it past the boasting of "something new coming to 1010". I don't think there ever will because of signal. At 50kw, as Scotty said, " We're running in circles and at Warp 9, we're going nowhere pretty fast".

CC's trifecta of Rays, Bucs, and Bolts leaves the other stations to just talk about the teams and as useful idiots of promoting the competition's next 3 hours of programming leading into the game.

1.)I think CBS will get the Bucs back. I wouldn't be surprised to see them with the Rays, either. The financial health of CC is an issue. Those contracts are going to be steep.

2.)The Rays need the money since the corporate draw from the Trop is not pulling what they need and the owners, on down, bad mouth the stadium and leave blotches on the field instead of a groomed surface as in the other parks, broadcast rights are the next step.

3.)Fox is willing to pay whatever it takes because Sunsports has nothing else and big screen HDTVs are flying off the shelves at Wal-Mart, further hurting attendance.

This is a big stakes game I see getting very much bigger especially with what started in New York with Disney getting visible in the mix.

But, remember cross-pollination is not comfortable at all. CBS owns WTOG but doesn't carry its CBS programming, instead WTSP does. We may see a change there, too.

My feeling is, something is going to break and we are hearing the tree branches cracking.

Jeff in Sa-ra-so-ta!

 

[MsMusicRadio]

So which CC station on FM would be most likely to be flipped?

 

[badjef]

So which CC station on FM would be most likely to be flipped?

Since the 105.9 translator for WFLA came on line, we would have to think they are continuing to look I that direction, initially.

94.5 in Pinellas is already listed: "retransmitting WFLA-AM". But that could change with a letter to the FCC indicating a change to reading: "retransmitting WDAE-AM", since that CP is not yet complete. 94.5 was still "Reach-FM" two days ago when I was up there. (It was also WCFB in HD, on I-275 in St. Pete).

Somebody at CC is either unwilling, or unable, to pull the plug on one of their full market FM signals. There may be financial health issues steering their decision.

Jeff in Sa-ra-so-ta!