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Future of WLIR
- Thread starter epete
- Start date
> What format do you think WLIR will become on 9/15/05? Any
> guesses?
>
I do not believe the WLIR music format will change much. My own belief is that they are becoming "Jacked", in terms of automation. One of my thoughts is that they've cut some sort of deal to create a network, or perhaps even XM or Sirius to simulcast over Satellite. I wouldn't be surprised if at least one of the other two TMO stations simulcasts the latest rendition of WLIR. My guess is that The Bone is the format at the most risk since its more cookie cutter than the rest.
I have noticed some branding changes. The WLIR, The Bone and Party brands were all changed to a very specific new look for TMO Radio. The WLIR brand colors have changed but the font on LIR looks the same. It appears that they are going the way of the big boys like Clear Channel and Infinity, trying to give the overall ownership name additional visibility. Branding is rarely an accident, so the missing red and black colors of WLIR while the website is under construction may be a sign.
> guesses?
>
I do not believe the WLIR music format will change much. My own belief is that they are becoming "Jacked", in terms of automation. One of my thoughts is that they've cut some sort of deal to create a network, or perhaps even XM or Sirius to simulcast over Satellite. I wouldn't be surprised if at least one of the other two TMO stations simulcasts the latest rendition of WLIR. My guess is that The Bone is the format at the most risk since its more cookie cutter than the rest.
I have noticed some branding changes. The WLIR, The Bone and Party brands were all changed to a very specific new look for TMO Radio. The WLIR brand colors have changed but the font on LIR looks the same. It appears that they are going the way of the big boys like Clear Channel and Infinity, trying to give the overall ownership name additional visibility. Branding is rarely an accident, so the missing red and black colors of WLIR while the website is under construction may be a sign.
> > What format do you think WLIR will become on 9/15/05? Any
>
> > guesses?
> >
>
> I do not believe the WLIR music format will change much. My
> own belief is that they are becoming "Jacked", in terms of
> automation. One of my thoughts is that they've cut some sort
> of deal to create a network, or perhaps even XM or Sirius to
> simulcast over Satellite. I wouldn't be surprised if at
> least one of the other two TMO stations simulcasts the
> latest rendition of WLIR. My guess is that The Bone is the
> format at the most risk since its more cookie cutter than
> the rest.
>
> I have noticed some branding changes. The WLIR, The Bone
> and Party brands were all changed to a very specific new
> look for TMO Radio. The WLIR brand colors have changed but
> the font on LIR looks the same. It appears that they are
> going the way of the big boys like Clear Channel and
> Infinity, trying to give the overall ownership name
> additional visibility. Branding is rarely an accident, so
> the missing red and black colors of WLIR while the website
> is under construction may be a sign.
>
If you notice the "Under Construction" pages for the three stations, the images for Party and Bone both simply say "TMORadio -- CAUTION CAUTION -- UNDER CONSTRUCTION", while the image on the WLIR page says "WLIR - Coming Soon New and Improved Streaming! -- CAUTION CAUTION -- UNDER CONSTRUCTION." I think that WLIR's format will probably be the only one of the three to survive. The question is, how:
-- On 107.1 and on the Internet
-- On the internet only
-- On 98.5 or 105.3 and on the internet
Also, it may be possible that one of the three stations (WBON?) will change their call letters to WTMO. According to radio-locator.com, those call letters are not in use. You would have to think that Morey would want to keep the "heritage" WLIR and WDRE calls, but WBON would be expendible if there is no "Bone" station.
Also of note, if you go to TMORadio.com, the antenna locations that it shows for all 3 stations (Yaphank?) are significantly further west than they currently are. I know they have had a construction permit for at least WLIR to move it further west. It could be that this move will coincide with the Re-launch on Sept. 15.
>
> > guesses?
> >
>
> I do not believe the WLIR music format will change much. My
> own belief is that they are becoming "Jacked", in terms of
> automation. One of my thoughts is that they've cut some sort
> of deal to create a network, or perhaps even XM or Sirius to
> simulcast over Satellite. I wouldn't be surprised if at
> least one of the other two TMO stations simulcasts the
> latest rendition of WLIR. My guess is that The Bone is the
> format at the most risk since its more cookie cutter than
> the rest.
>
> I have noticed some branding changes. The WLIR, The Bone
> and Party brands were all changed to a very specific new
> look for TMO Radio. The WLIR brand colors have changed but
> the font on LIR looks the same. It appears that they are
> going the way of the big boys like Clear Channel and
> Infinity, trying to give the overall ownership name
> additional visibility. Branding is rarely an accident, so
> the missing red and black colors of WLIR while the website
> is under construction may be a sign.
>
If you notice the "Under Construction" pages for the three stations, the images for Party and Bone both simply say "TMORadio -- CAUTION CAUTION -- UNDER CONSTRUCTION", while the image on the WLIR page says "WLIR - Coming Soon New and Improved Streaming! -- CAUTION CAUTION -- UNDER CONSTRUCTION." I think that WLIR's format will probably be the only one of the three to survive. The question is, how:
-- On 107.1 and on the Internet
-- On the internet only
-- On 98.5 or 105.3 and on the internet
Also, it may be possible that one of the three stations (WBON?) will change their call letters to WTMO. According to radio-locator.com, those call letters are not in use. You would have to think that Morey would want to keep the "heritage" WLIR and WDRE calls, but WBON would be expendible if there is no "Bone" station.
Also of note, if you go to TMORadio.com, the antenna locations that it shows for all 3 stations (Yaphank?) are significantly further west than they currently are. I know they have had a construction permit for at least WLIR to move it further west. It could be that this move will coincide with the Re-launch on Sept. 15.
> > My own belief is that they are becoming "Jacked", in terms
> of
> > automation.
>
> Would this explain the recently added sweeper "Go Jack
> yourself" that started airing mid summer?
>
I always felt that the sweeper was taking a shot at the Jack format and automation. Would be quite hypocritical if that's what they wind up doing, in their own genre.
I hope we see a couple of the TMO jocks at BLI replacing Reno and Matt. There are some good fits there.
> of
> > automation.
>
> Would this explain the recently added sweeper "Go Jack
> yourself" that started airing mid summer?
>
I always felt that the sweeper was taking a shot at the Jack format and automation. Would be quite hypocritical if that's what they wind up doing, in their own genre.
I hope we see a couple of the TMO jocks at BLI replacing Reno and Matt. There are some good fits there.
> What format do you think WLIR will become on 9/15/05? Any
> guesses?
>
Well as an insider, and one of the TMO jocks that did get fired, the future of WLIR is BLEAK!!! The current LIR format will be eliminated and a brand new format that I never heard of will be put in place. The format is called neo breeze. It is an ipod with beetoven to buble, natalie merchant to sinatra. A basic menagerie of music copycatting WEHM. The Bone will become an ultra soft WBAB, and Party 105 will be a "hits" station (top 40 of sorts). Just wait until September 15th, you will see that this post is 100% right. Enjoy it while it lasts, if you can.
> guesses?
>
Well as an insider, and one of the TMO jocks that did get fired, the future of WLIR is BLEAK!!! The current LIR format will be eliminated and a brand new format that I never heard of will be put in place. The format is called neo breeze. It is an ipod with beetoven to buble, natalie merchant to sinatra. A basic menagerie of music copycatting WEHM. The Bone will become an ultra soft WBAB, and Party 105 will be a "hits" station (top 40 of sorts). Just wait until September 15th, you will see that this post is 100% right. Enjoy it while it lasts, if you can.
> > What format do you think WLIR will become on 9/15/05? Any
>
> > guesses?
> >
> Well as an insider, and one of the TMO jocks that did get
> fired, the future of WLIR is BLEAK!!! The current LIR
> format will be eliminated and a brand new format that I
> never heard of will be put in place. The format is called
> neo breeze. It is an ipod with beetoven to buble, natalie
> merchant to sinatra. A basic menagerie of music copycatting
> WEHM. The Bone will become an ultra soft WBAB, and Party
> 105 will be a "hits" station (top 40 of sorts). Just wait
> until September 15th, you will see that this post is 100%
> right. Enjoy it while it lasts, if you can.
>
What's the point of having 105.3 become CHR when BLI just about 15 miles west is the #1 CHR with a 50,000 watt signal whose 60 dBu contour encompasses most of 105.3's 50 dBu contour. BLI already has a dance mixshow on Saturday nights. It might be good if Party 105 becomes a dance-leaning CHR (that means, never play the boring version of DHT's Listen To Your Heart), but I like the current format best. I heard Party 105 last night on tropo, and I will be sad if it goes away.<P ID="signature">______________
17-year-old radio geek
Location: Princeton Junction, NJ
AIM: KewlDude471</P>
>
> > guesses?
> >
> Well as an insider, and one of the TMO jocks that did get
> fired, the future of WLIR is BLEAK!!! The current LIR
> format will be eliminated and a brand new format that I
> never heard of will be put in place. The format is called
> neo breeze. It is an ipod with beetoven to buble, natalie
> merchant to sinatra. A basic menagerie of music copycatting
> WEHM. The Bone will become an ultra soft WBAB, and Party
> 105 will be a "hits" station (top 40 of sorts). Just wait
> until September 15th, you will see that this post is 100%
> right. Enjoy it while it lasts, if you can.
>
What's the point of having 105.3 become CHR when BLI just about 15 miles west is the #1 CHR with a 50,000 watt signal whose 60 dBu contour encompasses most of 105.3's 50 dBu contour. BLI already has a dance mixshow on Saturday nights. It might be good if Party 105 becomes a dance-leaning CHR (that means, never play the boring version of DHT's Listen To Your Heart), but I like the current format best. I heard Party 105 last night on tropo, and I will be sad if it goes away.<P ID="signature">______________
17-year-old radio geek
Location: Princeton Junction, NJ
AIM: KewlDude471</P>
J
JoshM
Guest
> > > What format do you think WLIR will become on 9/15/05?
> Any
> >
> > > guesses?
> > >
> > Well as an insider, and one of the TMO jocks that did get
> > fired, the future of WLIR is BLEAK!!! The current LIR
> > format will be eliminated and a brand new format that I
> > never heard of will be put in place. The format is called
>
> > neo breeze. It is an ipod with beetoven to buble, natalie
>
> > merchant to sinatra. A basic menagerie of music
> copycatting
> > WEHM. The Bone will become an ultra soft WBAB, and Party
> > 105 will be a "hits" station (top 40 of sorts). Just wait
>
> > until September 15th, you will see that this post is 100%
> > right. Enjoy it while it lasts, if you can.
> >
> What's the point of having 105.3 become CHR when BLI just
> about 15 miles west is the #1 CHR with a 50,000 watt signal
> whose 60 dBu contour encompasses most of 105.3's 50 dBu
> contour. BLI already has a dance mixshow on Saturday
> nights. It might be good if Party 105 becomes a
> dance-leaning CHR (that means, never play the boring version
> of DHT's Listen To Your Heart), but I like the current
> format best. I heard Party 105 last night on tropo, and I
> will be sad if it goes away.
>
I agree. It's going to be a tremendous mistake because WBLI has an amazing signal reach that Party just cannot have. Those frequencies were not designed to have optimal reach and are more "smaller market stations," if they must be independent, but would probably be best as simulcasts from other markets.
Anyway, that aside; I have no clue what TMO books for those stations, but I imagine that there is a crunch for money because of the fierce competition in radio. While dismissing the jocks and staff is the cost effective move now, like in any company, those savings only last for two years at most, at which point, it doesn't offset low numbers anymore.
The cluster of stations that they owned were good stations and had potential. Party105 was a GREAT dance station with a lot of energy and beat when it was running. While I never listened to the Bone, I know people that loved the hard rock they played on there. And WLIR, in its two forms since moving completely to 107.1, has been a unique station for that market.
The problem with switching formats, IMO, is that they are no longer the "unique" station anymore. If Party goes to CHR/Top40, it will have to compete with WBLI, which just won't happen - WBLI is way too big. If WLIR goes to this "neo-breeze" format, it will compete with WEHM. And the Bone, who knows, there's ALREADY WBAB and WRCN. It's just not going to fly. The market out there is way to flooded with other stations. And what's the incentive to listen to a station that has no personalities on it. If it's a toss-up between jocks or no jocks, as much as I hate blatering, I'd still like to listen to the station with the jocks. It's helpful to know what song is on, what itme it is, and the small things like that, which after all is what radio is about.
There's nothing worse than being #3 on someone's presets. The goal is to be #1. There's no way that's going to happen, I'm afraid to say...
> Any
> >
> > > guesses?
> > >
> > Well as an insider, and one of the TMO jocks that did get
> > fired, the future of WLIR is BLEAK!!! The current LIR
> > format will be eliminated and a brand new format that I
> > never heard of will be put in place. The format is called
>
> > neo breeze. It is an ipod with beetoven to buble, natalie
>
> > merchant to sinatra. A basic menagerie of music
> copycatting
> > WEHM. The Bone will become an ultra soft WBAB, and Party
> > 105 will be a "hits" station (top 40 of sorts). Just wait
>
> > until September 15th, you will see that this post is 100%
> > right. Enjoy it while it lasts, if you can.
> >
> What's the point of having 105.3 become CHR when BLI just
> about 15 miles west is the #1 CHR with a 50,000 watt signal
> whose 60 dBu contour encompasses most of 105.3's 50 dBu
> contour. BLI already has a dance mixshow on Saturday
> nights. It might be good if Party 105 becomes a
> dance-leaning CHR (that means, never play the boring version
> of DHT's Listen To Your Heart), but I like the current
> format best. I heard Party 105 last night on tropo, and I
> will be sad if it goes away.
>
I agree. It's going to be a tremendous mistake because WBLI has an amazing signal reach that Party just cannot have. Those frequencies were not designed to have optimal reach and are more "smaller market stations," if they must be independent, but would probably be best as simulcasts from other markets.
Anyway, that aside; I have no clue what TMO books for those stations, but I imagine that there is a crunch for money because of the fierce competition in radio. While dismissing the jocks and staff is the cost effective move now, like in any company, those savings only last for two years at most, at which point, it doesn't offset low numbers anymore.
The cluster of stations that they owned were good stations and had potential. Party105 was a GREAT dance station with a lot of energy and beat when it was running. While I never listened to the Bone, I know people that loved the hard rock they played on there. And WLIR, in its two forms since moving completely to 107.1, has been a unique station for that market.
The problem with switching formats, IMO, is that they are no longer the "unique" station anymore. If Party goes to CHR/Top40, it will have to compete with WBLI, which just won't happen - WBLI is way too big. If WLIR goes to this "neo-breeze" format, it will compete with WEHM. And the Bone, who knows, there's ALREADY WBAB and WRCN. It's just not going to fly. The market out there is way to flooded with other stations. And what's the incentive to listen to a station that has no personalities on it. If it's a toss-up between jocks or no jocks, as much as I hate blatering, I'd still like to listen to the station with the jocks. It's helpful to know what song is on, what itme it is, and the small things like that, which after all is what radio is about.
There's nothing worse than being #3 on someone's presets. The goal is to be #1. There's no way that's going to happen, I'm afraid to say...
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