Maybe it's finally time for WYSP to ...

[radiophiler]

... switch the simulcast of KYW from its HD-2 channel to its primary channel.

Bonneville is making real inroads, increasing the 25-54 numbers of its All-news and news-talk outlets by switching them to FM.

Or, maybe it's time to put WIP on FM.

I'm a resident of a suburb that borders directly on Philadelphia's city line. I'm amazed when I travel into the city the amount of interference I get with 1060's signal. Just when I want to tune in to catch a traffic report to determine whether I should take I-76 or one of the river drives, 1060's signal becomes unlistenable in between the skyscrapers.

I have Sirius, but I continued to listen to KYW's traffic reports because they occur regularly on the 2s, rather than listen to the traffic reports on the satellite. The ones on Sirius pop up irregularly every four minutes, but you have to listen through info for Boston that alternates on the same channel.

However, Sirius has a reliable signal in center city because of its repeaters. That's more than you can say about 1060. And the traffic info is now coming from the same source: Metro/Shadow (you can even hear the same traffic reports on Sirius and KYW).

And now I'm going to agree with Julius on something: KYW's change to pre-taped news segments in the late evenings and weekends is also causing me to tune elsewhere. Reason: They're leaving out the current temperature. Twice recently I've listened at :14 or :44 to catch the forecast and current temperature to hear this: "It's partly cloudy on Independence Mall, going down to 68 tonight." No current temperature! For comparison, I quickly switched over to Sirius to catch its Philly weather on the traffic channel, and at least they're giving the hourly airport temperature at the end of every traffic report.

Come on KYW. You're the only reason I listen anymore to AM or FM radio. Keep this up and I may have no reason to listen.

 

[aindik]

Bonneville is making inroads putting news on FM in Washington, D.C. There are no AM stations in DC that cover the whole market the way CBS's 610, 1060 and 1210 can cover the Philadelphia market. By the time Washington, D.C. needed AM stations, New York, Philly and Baltimore had already taken all the good signals. Combine that with the westward expansion of the population center and you have a market where no AM station can really rate well.

Philly is different. Most of the Philadelphia market can get 1060 on their clock or car radios.

What do you propose to put on 1060 if you're going to put news on 94.1?

 

[radiophiler]

Does anyone know what the FCC rules are about simulcasting full or part time in a market the size of Philadelphia?

When Eagles games are on 94.1, you could still get headline news, traffic and weather on 1060. Also, use 1060 for long-form news coverage when it happens: When the President makes his state of the union, for example, put it on one frequency and put the regular news format on the other.

One other thing I forgot in my original post: Does elevating the music/marketing director to program director without naming new people to the music and marketing positions, and STILL not doing anything with the morning show on 94.1 seem like a temporary situation to anyone else? If I were the rock staff and jocks at WYSP, I'd be a little concerned. If not a simulcast of KYW, I think the frequency is still vulnerable for a complete format flip - and I don't mean to classic or pure active rock.

With MMR, MGK, RFF and XPN, YSP may be the odd-man out when it comes to rock in Philly.

 

[aindik]

Does anyone know what the FCC rules are about simulcasting full or part time in a market the size of Philadelphia?

When Eagles games are on 94.1, you could still get headline news, traffic and weather on 1060. Also, use 1060 for long-form news coverage when it happens: When the President makes his state of the union, for example, put it on one frequency and put the regular news format on the other.

How does putting the same station on two frequencies with overlapping coverage, for all but five hours a week for 16 weeks, make more money than what they're doing now, even with WYSP's anemic ratings?

 

[eyg2181]

Does anyone know what the FCC rules are about simulcasting full or part time in a market the size of Philadelphia?

When Eagles games are on 94.1, you could still get headline news, traffic and weather on 1060. Also, use 1060 for long-form news coverage when it happens: When the President makes his state of the union, for example, put it on one frequency and put the regular news format on the other.

One other thing I forgot in my original post: Does elevating the music/marketing director to program director without naming new people to the music and marketing positions, and STILL not doing anything with the morning show on 94.1 seem like a temporary situation to anyone else? If I were the rock staff and jocks at WYSP, I'd be a little concerned. If not a simulcast of KYW, I think the frequency is still vulnerable for a complete format flip - and I don't mean to classic or pure active rock.

With MMR, MGK, RFF and XPN, YSP may be the odd-man out when it comes to rock in Philly.

no offense to XPN, but YSP is better.

 

[radiophiler]

How does putting the same station on two frequencies with overlapping coverage, for all but five hours a week for 16 weeks, make more money than what they're doing now, even with WYSP's anemic ratings?

A: It eliminates the on-air and marketing staffs for WYSP. Once upon a time, CBS decided to make 1210 an oldies station along with WOGL. Some dayparts were simulcast, some were separate.

Admittedly, that's the big question: If CBS were to take an AM format, WIP or KYW, and put it on WYSP, what would it do with the remaining signal?

I'm also still looking for anyone who knows if there are, and if so what are the FCC's rules of an AM and FM in the same market simulcasting the same programming? Are there any restrictions?

 

[amfmsw]

WTOP Washington, DC and WBT Charlotte simulcast. Until recently, WTKU simulcast at the shore. There's a lot of 'em.

 

[DG02816]

I could see putting the WIP format on 94.1 and using 610 to fill the holes KY has....

 

[UncleBozzle]

Maybe it's just time for WYSP to realize that Philly has rock covered with MMR, RFF, and MGK. Going to a more Metal format only caters to a niche...not gonna get them the numbers they need. Anything they switch to has to protect OGL. So it can't be an ac and it can't be a Jack type format. Perhaps they go with a Hot A/C, or even try to compete with XTU and half their rating. Just a thought.

 

[WTUX]

There are numerous areas in the Delaware Valley where KYW's signal has problems. As suggested in one post, putting the KYW programming also on 94.1 and when the news warrants, putting long-form on one station and leaving the traffic and weather updates on the other certainly makes sense.

We have rock pretty much covered in Philadelphia now, along with country, AC and Urban.

 

[DToTheJ]

Maybe it's just time for WYSP to realize that Philly has rock covered with MMR, RFF, and MGK... Anything they switch to has to protect OGL. So it can't be an ac and it can't be a Jack type format. Perhaps they go with a Hot A/C, or even try to compete with XTU and half their rating. Just a thought.

Maybe WYSP can switch to a "Fresh" format - hey, they've had thoughts about doing it before - as evidenced by the registration of the fresh981.com URL. The ironic thing is WOGL is doing so good these days, CBS might have shot themselves in the foot to follow through with that plan.

The question is, if CBS flips 94.1 to a format to eat away at WBEB, will it, too, eata way at WOGL's precious cume and share?

I'm sure CBS has several talented people on their roster that they could supplant as jocks on a "Fresh" station. Maybe even a few here in Philadelphia. But not Angela Mason. She was horrible filling in for Harvey Holliday this week. She has way too much energy for a "Fresh" Format. Any by the way, what's the point of telling your listeners you're a redhead - you're on the radio!

 

[aindik]

WTOP Washington, DC and WBT Charlotte simulcast. Until recently, WTKU simulcast at the shore. There's a lot of 'em.

Are any of those simulcast in areas where, for the most part, both signals are listenable?

WTOP is now on 103.5 FM in Washington. Its only other simulcast is 103.9 in Frederick, MD. I don't think there is any signal overlap there.

Even with the former WTOP simulcast, on 1500 AM 107.7 FM and 820 AM (now simulcasting talk programming with the calls WWWT, WWWT-FM and WWWB), there was no overlap there, either. 107.7 is a rimshot in Warrenton, VA, available only where 1500 is not, and 820 AM is all the way in Frederick, MD.

 

[aindik]

The question is, if CBS flips 94.1 to a format to eat away at WBEB, will it, too, eata way at WOGL's precious cume and share?

CBS doesn't seem to have a problem airing both a "Fresh" AC and an Oldies station in New York. Fresh 102.7 skews younger than CBS-FM, and Fresh is almost exclusively female-skewing.

 

[PhillyWatch]

Though didn't B101 buy up the rights to the "fresh" moniker?

 

[SoulCrusher]

If WYSP is going to continue broadcasting Eagles games, they should pick a format that is conducive with that type of programming. So I think that counts out any Adult Contemporary formats. Classic Rock is a bad idea, as Greater Media has it covered with WMGK and WMMR which is about 75% old school rock anyway.

Are we saying WYSP should go "Metal"? Not at all. Hard Rock from the last two decades is more like it. They're missing the boat on new music, because with MMR and RFF playing only 20 Currents each there's a nice window of opportunity for them - they should spin at least 40 Currents. Korn, Slipknot, Mudvayne, System Of A Down, Disturbed, Godsmack, Sevendust, Tool and Metallica should all be among the core acts on the station. They could also mix in MOR acts like Foo Fighters and Linkin Park for the sake of familiarity. Anyone who says that a format like this won't work in a major market should look at Orlando and WJRR. That, my friends, is what an Active Rock station should sound like. No, it doesn't have the deepest playlist out there and doesn't have tons of surprises, but it represents the format well. I don't understand YSP's reluctance to try this format for two reasons: Right now they're consistent ratings losers to Greater Media's stations AND Radio 104.5, and because with the lack of a popular on-air personality and an extremely generic sound (think WMMR, only safer) things won't be improving any time soon. At this point, it's simple: CBS can choose to mix things up and expand on WYSP's pre-"Free FM" reputation as a rock station with an edge, or they can remain at the back of the line as far as rock stations go in Philly.

 

[StemCell]

Came back from OC today, JSE is the station to watch, with its new revamp to an Active/Alternative hybrid. New slogans and great music from what I heard for a few hours today. Either RFF or YSP should follow suit.

 

[Soon Yi CIV.V]

Why does everyone think the Eagles games have to stay on WYSP? It's not like CBS doesn't have any other stations in the market. And it's not like they don't have a buncha billboards on which to advertise the new radio home of the birds. I have no reason to think Philadelphians who want to listen to football on the radio are too stupid to locate it on another frequency.

That having been said, I agree that CBS needs to throw in the Rock towel at WYSP. I never imagined the station could do more damage to itself than Stern did when he left, but I can't remember a good move they've made in all the ensuing time. Well, returning to Rock was a good move but they didn't make that move until the market was saturated with it...a trend they started by moving away from it in the first place!

Look, this market pretty much has everything covered. For as much as people like to complain, this is a very decent market. Almost every imaginable format that can be supported on a commercial station here is being programmed on a commercial station here. Aside from taking a chance on whatever happens to be the next available fad format, the only thing to do is improve on something that's already being done.

If CBS wants to make a change on WYSP, I think they have to go with some form of Adult Contemporary. They're certainly not going to destroy B101 but they don't need to. They need just enough of the audience to make 94.1 more profitable than it is now.

Here's a fun idea:

• Go all-Christmas on Halloween.
• Wait three weeks and on the day B101 goes all-Christmas, unveil a new Hot Adult Contemporary format, relying heavily on Top 40 titles from the late '80s through the early '00s...but with that necessary sprinkling of '70s as well.
• Don't be afraid to throw in some old-ass Amber, Arrested Development, Everything But the Girl, Jane Child, Real McCoy, Soul For Real, SWV, TLC, 98º... Hell, even the Spice Girls. (Just as "Oldies" has to change, so does AC. Going heavy on Top 40 titles from when such a desirable demo was in high school and college has got to be a good thing.)
• If it doesn't work, wait six months and screw yourselves by going back to Rock.

By the way, this is a good way to get some desirable listeners without doing much damage to the ones they already have on WOGL.

 

[wprt949]

They need a strong morning show on 94WYSP and they will do fine


ac on 94.1 will never happen

 

[Soon Yi CIV.V]

Fresh 94.1 sound familiar to anyone?

ac on 94.1 will never happen

Well, since it's pretty widely known that CBS has already in past considered AC for 94.1 FM, would you care to offer any facts or even observations to back up the assertion that it will never happen? Or is this just a prediction?

 

[Rockin Rob]

If WYSP is going to continue broadcasting Eagles games, they should pick a format that is conducive with that type of programming. So I think that counts out any Adult Contemporary formats.

Not so fast. For the longest time (during the 90's heydays) KVIL/Dallas (a lite AC station) was the flagship for those stinkin' Cowflops... errrr, Cowboys.