Leasing a signal

[trying2getn]

Hello everyone, need your expertise. I am currently doing research on signal leasing of a full stick FM signal in the market. So two questions:

1. How much would a group lease a full stick FM signal for?

2. Would a company like CBS or Clear Channel consider leasing out one of their struggling signals in this market?

Thanks in advance for your help.

 

[VERITAS DE VOCE]

Just opining, but why would a conglomerate like one of the incompetent...er...uh...big boys in the market lease a signal when they have buyers standing in line? All they do is direct them to the FCC and "Caveat Emptor" (let the buyer beware for those of you scoring at home).

I can see this in smaller markets, but not sure about the majors. Sounds just WAAAAAAAAAY north of a mortgage payment, though. Hope I'm wrong if you are interested, Getn.

 

[little1]

Define struggling. Because odds are where some stations may be struggling ratings wise, that's not always true revenue wise. So you'd have to convince one of the groups that you can pay more than they're already generating with that signal. And, of course, make it so attractive of an offer that it overcomes the loss of 'sweat equity'/name recognition/brand awareness that a station has built up.

Because let's say you convince Citadel to lease you the Twister. You not only have to pay them whatever that station is billing, that also means that the back-end staffing (buisness. traffic, production, engineering, etc) will now only be split 2 ways (WBAP/KSCS) instead of 3. So that's going to 'cost' Citadel, and you'll need to overcome that.

Then, what's the length of the lease? the last thing I'd want to do is lease it to you for a short term and then have you fail and I'm getting the twister frequency (for example) back. Cause at that point, I've fired the jocks, trimmed the traffic and production and promotions people that were working for that station, etc etc...

Like I said, the last thing a Citadel would want is to take a Twister off the air (or fill in your idea of 'struggling' here) and a couple of months later get the signal back and either have to reconstitute the format, or find a new format to program there...

 

[Steve Eberhart]

Highly unlikely any FM license holder would do this at any kind of financial equation that would be even remotely be possible for someone.

However....if you'd like to lease 1190 AM, my understanding is the fee is $50,000 per month.
The problem with that is one would have to have a pretty big bankroll to begin any operation. For that fee, you essentially get to feed your audio to their transmitters. In other words, you must create your own studio and office, staff it, sell it. Unless you had something really really innovative planned, it would take months, if not years, to recoup the investment and begin turning a profit, and that would be only if it became successful from a revenue standpoint. Could it be done, yes. Is anyone willing to throw their cash around like that - apparently not, no takers at last check.

ESPN has leased some time on 1190 to run baseball playoffs. I think they'd be in a position to lease it and make a go of it fulltime by putting ESPN 103.3 on it to get it on a bigger signal in the market. They already have the staff and programming in place and it would put them on a more level playing field with the Ticket if they were to do that...plus they could split-cast when they have games to broadcast without pre-empting their talk shows...or could run two different games ($$)....tell me why that doesn't make sense.

 

[Robert Bass]

plus they could split-cast when they have games to broadcast without pre-empting their talk shows...or could run two different games ($$)....tell me why that doesn't make sense.

Other than it's not really legal per FCC regulations?

R

 

[newsmark]

You might have more luck convincing a broadcaster to lease a digital subchannel to you. I doubt there's much of an audience to make that profitable now. But you could get in now while it's cheap.

Robert, I'm confused. What's not FCC-legal about ESPN leasing a second signal for a separate program sometimes and a simulcast other times? Of course, the licensee is still ultimately responsible for what goes on the air, but it's basically the same as running an informercial, isn't it?

 

[milton77]

E-mail me, I can lease you some time on 89.7...

 

[davideduardo]

You might have more luck convincing a broadcaster to lease a digital subchannel to you. I doubt there's much of an audience to make that profitable now. But you could get in now while it's cheap.

Robert, I'm confused. What's not FCC-legal about ESPN leasing a second signal for a separate program sometimes and a simulcast other times? Of course, the licensee is still ultimately responsible for what goes on the air, but it's basically the same as running an informercial, isn't it?

If we are talking AM here, the content on the digital (HD) signal must be the same as the analog signal. For the moment, there are no additional "HD2-like" AM channels, so an AM is out. An FM could LMA its HD2 channel, just like an entire station can be LMAed. But then you have to run it, and, in addition, pay the lease fee which would compensate the licensee for loss of potential profit and such.

 

[txchipk]

Hello everyone, need your expertise. I am currently doing research on signal leasing of a full stick FM signal in the market. So two questions:

1. How much would a group lease a full stick FM signal for?

2. Would a company like CBS or Clear Channel consider leasing out one of their struggling signals in this market?

Thanks in advance for your help.

Leasing a Cedar Hill FM probably isn't likely to happen right now. Certainly, the rimshots can be had. Liberman already leases out KZMP-FM 104.9 full-time; I can't imagine it wouldn't be hard to do the same to their KTCY 101.7. Salem's KWRD-FM 100.7 is mostly paid programming.

I imagine it won't be long before a full signal does as well. CBS already leases most of the weekend on KLLI 105.3 and KRLD 1080. We've seen with TV becoming much more fragmented stations giving up and just selling out. It would have been hard to believe 15 years ago, once-proud WFAA would have been reduced to selling segments on its 9AM "GMT" show and reduced to nothing but infomercials on weekend afternoons unless ABC has a sporting event (when ABC has no Sunday sports, 10:30AM-5PM Sundays is non-stop paid programming and infomercials). What's to say radio won't be reduced to the same as it becomes more fragmented?

 

[Steve Eberhart]

plus they could split-cast when they have games to broadcast without pre-empting their talk shows...or could run two different games ($$)....tell me why that doesn't make sense.

Other than it's not really legal per FCC regulations?

R

Robert, I'm not sure what regulation you are referring to. It is completely legal to do a "Lease Mangement Agreement" (often referred to as an "LMA"). That is basically taking over the entire operation of the radio station, essentially running it like you own it, paying a fee to the license holder, and retaining all revenue, and hopefully profit. It's done in many places on AM's and FM's.

 

[radi0chik]

E-mail me, I can lease you some time on 89.7...

Or email me and I'm sure we could get you some time on 87.9 ;D

They'll need the money to fight off the FCC fines!!!

 

[CW]

plus they could split-cast when they have games to broadcast without pre-empting their talk shows...or could run two different games ($$)....tell me why that doesn't make sense.

Other than it's not really legal per FCC regulations?

R

Robert, I'm not sure what regulation you are referring to. It is completely legal to do a "Lease Mangement Agreement" (often referred to as an "LMA"). That is basically taking over the entire operation of the radio station, essentially running it like you own it, paying a fee to the license holder, and retaining all revenue, and hopefully profit. It's done in many places on AM's and FM's.

Steve, if I read it correctly, what Robert was alluding to was the Split-broadcast, not a LMA....one program on left channel and another on right channel...Stereo was NOT allowed by Part 73 for that reason...a stereophonic broadcast consists of ONE program with two channels of audio....not two distinct programs...(Left channel English and right channel another language of the same program could get by being legal...since its the same program...but a talk show on left channel and football game on right channel is not)..
HOWEVER, the FCC doesnt seem to do anything about it as KSHN in Liberty does it every high school football season...Everyone on the Houston list and those on the professional mail lists agree its illegal...but they keep doing it...

 

[little1]

I imagine it won't be long before a full signal does as well. CBS already leases most of the weekend on KLLI 105.3 and KRLD 1080.

But most stations make the bulk of their money on 6a-7p M-F. Most advertisers (especially agencies) don't consider weekends in the mix when making their buying decisions.

So then it becomes a financial consideration for the station. If you can sell an hour for anywhere from 500 to a thousand or more an hour, and you CAN NOT sell that much worth of spots in that same hour...

As a programmer I think it's cutting your own throat, (because, for example if I was listening to Russ on Friday PM drive, then get in the car next on saturday afternoon and here some mortgage show, I'm flipping- then when I get in the car next again (like Monday morning maybe) the station isn't on Jagger, it's on music or the musers or whatever I ended up flipping to...

 

[Robert Bass]

Robert, I'm not sure what regulation you are referring to. It is completely legal to do a "Lease Mangement Agreement" (often referred to as an "LMA"). That is basically taking over the entire operation of the radio station, essentially running it like you own it, paying a fee to the license holder, and retaining all revenue, and hopefully profit. It's done in many places on AM's and FM's.

I was referring to the split-signal idea, assuming you meant two different games being broadcast on the same station, simultaniously. If that's not what you meant, my bad.

R

 

[VERITAS DE VOCE]

E-mail me, I can lease you some time on 89.7...

Times not so great for Chris? ... thought Power was doing better than looking for vagabond radio ;D

 

[Neil56]

It stinks when they put baseball on 1190 at night. The nighttime signal is unlistenable in Fort Worth. It looks like game six of the ALCS will be on KFXR tomorrow night since the Mavs are playing. Why don't they put it on 620 like they used to?

At least I'll be able to listen to KOA out of Denver when the World Series starts.

 

[omega]

I see if difficult for a FM station to want to lease theirs signal but for sure for mayeb 80 grand a month you should be able to get a decent AM signal.

 

[txchipk]

I imagine it won't be long before a full signal does as well. CBS already leases most of the weekend on KLLI 105.3 and KRLD 1080.

But most stations make the bulk of their money on 6a-7p M-F. Most advertisers (especially agencies) don't consider weekends in the mix when making their buying decisions.

I just wonder if over time, this doesn't move into regular hours. As I said in my original post, we already see this starting on the TV side. I'm not sure 5 years ago people would think WFAA, KHOU Houston, WXIA Atlanta, etc. would have hour long "local product placement" shows weekday mornings. As radio becomes more fragmented to satellite, internet, etc. do local radio stations just follow what local TV stations have done in increasing the amount of infomercials into non-overnight hours? We've seen, so far in the 2000s, a rapid elimination of local programming nights and overnights (overnight jocks axed for automation, voice tracking, or syndicated fare; 7PM-Mid shifts getting filled more and more with syndicated shows -- Tesh, Delilah for ACs, Lia for country, various quiet storm type shows for adult R&Bs, etc.). I don't know if it is much of a stretch to see talk outlets sell those hours like they do on the weekends at some point.