New Call Letters For BEN-FM?

[DToTheJ]

You may recall late last week on April Fool's Day, "Ben-FM" was masquerading as "Phil" as a gag. Little did they know, they might be practicing for a new figurehead on 95.7 FM.

This week, Entercom-owned WBEN-AM in upstate New York has started simulcasting on an FM station. Of course, Greater Media is paying Entercom for the use of the WBEN call letters on FM in Philadelphia. Now that the WBEN AM/FM simulcast is in full effect, though, could Entercom terminate that deal and use the WBEN-FM call letters on the FM station? And if that's the case, could Greater Media look for a new identity (okay, maybe "Max Knows Music" won't work in 2011) or just go searching for new calls (WBNN?) to go with the "Ben-FM" branding?

 

[DToTheJ]

Here's the Entercom FM allocation... keep a close eye on this one:
http://www.fcc.gov/fcc-bin/fmq?list=0&facid=9250

 

[qtpieislit]

You may recall late last week on April Fool's Day, "Ben-FM" was masquerading as "Phil" as a gag. Little did they know, they might be practicing for a new figurehead on 95.7 FM.

This week, Entercom-owned WBEN-AM in upstate New York has started simulcasting on an FM station. Of course, Greater Media is paying Entercom for the use of the WBEN call letters on FM in Philadelphia. Now that the WBEN AM/FM simulcast is in full effect, though, could Entercom terminate that deal and use the WBEN-FM call letters on the FM station? And if that's the case, could Greater Media look for a new identity (okay, maybe "Max Knows Music" won't work in 2011) or just go searching for new calls (WBNN?) to go with the "Ben-FM" branding?

Call letter assignments are not temporary. The FCC assignments are permanent until the holder of the assignments decides or chooses to make a change. You cannnot lease call letters. WBEN-AM's signal covers greater Buffalo better than WLKK, so it is unlikely Entercom will abandon 930 in terms of news/talk.

 

[DToTheJ]

Thanks for clearing that up, Sam...

With that in mind, what if Entercom were to offer Greater Media a huge sum of $$$ to relinquish the rights to the WBEN-FM calls?

 

[qtpieislit]

Thanks for clearing that up, Sam...

With that in mind, what if Entercom were to offer Greater Media a huge sum of $$$ to relinquish the rights to the WBEN-FM calls?

Then it could be a done deal. A dealski is a dealski.

 

[w9wi]

Note that in San Francisco, KCBS (AM) is simulcast on KFRC-FM; the KCBS-FM calls are co-owned but in L.A.. -- and they obviously haven't bothered to send them up the coast.

Which shows one of two things:

- Calls don't matter, you can bury the "WLKK Wethersfield" ID & those who think they're listening to WBEN won't notice.

== or ==

- Calls matter, you can't flip WBEN-FM to WPHL-FM (or whatever) because your loyal listeners will think you changed their station.

Take your pick...

 

[BRUSSTAR]

This is a total non-issue. As the previous postor pointed out, there are numerous examples of heritage AMs adding FMs without needing common root calls. Providence's WPRO recently added an off-market FM as well, but the company's legacy in-market Top-40 station has been branded "PRO-FM" for decades. I doubt WBEN Buffalo will care, nor will any listeners.

Plus, the commonplace "In-This-Era-Of-PPM" mentality extant in what's left of the radio industry today indicates on-air marketing and branding of stations to be "unnecessary." The thinking is, as long as it encodes "Ben-FM"-- that's all that matters. While I disagree and think this lazy mode of thinking is dangerously shortsighted, "it is what it is."

 

[MattParker]

Note that in San Francisco, KCBS (AM) is simulcast on KFRC-FM; the KCBS-FM calls are co-owned but in L.A.. -- and they obviously haven't bothered to send them up the coast.

Actually, the KCBS calls were sent down the coast to re-brand KNXT and KNX-FM.

And while the FCC does not issue temporary calls, the holder may "park" calls on a license with the intention of having those calls be temporary.

 

[aindik]

And while the FCC does not issue temporary calls, the holder may "park" calls on a license with the intention of having those calls be temporary.

Sure. But in this case, the Buffalo station (which is not owned by Greater Media) apparently cannot take the WBEN-FM calls away from Greater Media in Philadelphia.

 

[DG02816]

George is indeed correct that news/talk WPRO 630 is simulcast on an out-of-market FM. The FM is licensed to Wakefield-Peace Dale, RI and carries the heritage call WEAN. I'd rather see 790 in Providence reclaim WEAN and the FM, on 99.7, take the current 790 call, WPRV. I would not be surprised were Entercom to ask GM for for WBEN-FM back.

 

[RyanHoward]

Note that in San Francisco, KCBS (AM) is simulcast on KFRC-FM; the KCBS-FM calls are co-owned but in L.A.. -- and they obviously haven't bothered to send them up the coast.

Which shows one of two things:

- Calls don't matter, you can bury the "WLKK Wethersfield" ID & those who think they're listening to WBEN won't notice.

== or ==

- Calls matter, you can't flip WBEN-FM to WPHL-FM (or whatever) because your loyal listeners will think you changed their station.

Take your pick...

If 95.7 would become WPHL-FM, then Channel 17 may have to get new calls, don't they?

 

[Bill_W]

[/quote]

If 95.7 would become WPHL-FM, then Channel 17 may have to get new calls, don't they?
[/quote]

I think Tribune owns the call letters for channel 17 so any use of WPHL would be Tribune's call not the other way around.

 

[fybush]

- Calls don't matter, you can bury the "WLKK Wethersfield" ID & those who think they're listening to WBEN won't notice.

== or ==

- Calls matter, you can't flip WBEN-FM to WPHL-FM (or whatever) because your loyal listeners will think you changed their station.

Take your pick...

In this case, actually, it's both: Philadelphia is a PPM market, so calls really don't matter anymore. 95.7 could change its calls to "WJFQ" tomorrow, and it would make no difference for ratings attribution - if your PPM device is hearing 95.7, it will report 95.7 listening regardless of what the calls on the license say.

But Buffalo is still a diary market, and will probably remain one for a long time to come. And in a diary market, it does still matter what you call yourself on the air. The good news is that Entercom has no doubt already registered "WBEN" as a slogan for 107.7, so at least in theory any listening to 107.7 that's marked down in a diary as "WBEN" will be credited properly either to WLKK (if it's noted as "107.7" or even "FM") or to WBEN 930 (if it's just marked down as "WBEN.")

One would expect that at least at first, a fair chunk of WBEN listening on 107.7 will end up being credited to the AM signal instead, and since the AM and FM lines will be combined anyway, it really doesn't matter.

 

[aindik]

Re the diary crediting listenership to the wrong affiliate:

I remember back when Don & Mike were on 106.7 WJFK in DC and 105.7 in Baltimore, they gave the listeners a not-so-subtle hint that when somebody asks you what you're listening to, tell 'em you're listening to "The Don & Mike Show."

I think the reason for this was that WJFK had signal issues in the northeastern part of the market, which caused some people who found themselves in that part of town to listen to the show on the Baltimore station instead. Of course, ratings for the Baltimore station in the DC market doesn't do CBS Radio any good (even though CBS owned both stations). They wanted all the credit for DC residents listening to Don & Mike to go to WJFK, even if some of the listening wasn't actually being done via WJFK.

 

[nd2023]

92.3 in New York is still WXRK, even though its format was changed to CHR "92.3 Now". CBS could easily bought the WNOW call letters from a religious station in the middle of nowhere.

As for Don & Mike in DC, CBS caused the problem themselves by blasting IBUZ on Mix 106.5 in Baltimore to block out 106.7. There wouldn't be interference if 106.5 didn't have IBUZ.

 

[musichead1029]

92.3 in New York is still WXRK, even though its format was changed to CHR "92.3 Now". CBS could easily bought the WNOW call letters from a religious station in the middle of nowhere.

Yeah, we saw how much the WFNY calls did for "Free FM."

 

[pab]

My favorite example of diaries credited to the wrong station still comes from when we launched WSKR-FM 102.7 (now WWAC "Wild 102.7") and the owner forgot to register the new signal with Arbitron. Our first book we didn't even show up, but somehow WNEW-FM got a 3 rating in the Atlantic City market.

 

[MarcB]

92.3 in New York is still WXRK, even though its format was changed to CHR "92.3 Now". CBS could easily bought the WNOW call letters from a religious station in the middle of nowhere.

The Middle of nowhere? WNOW-FM are the call letters on a Regional Mexican formatted radio station in the Charlotte, North Carolina area owned by Gaffney Broadcasting, LMAd to Davidson Media Group. WNOW (AM) are the calls of a Spanish News/Talk/Sports station also in the Charlotte, North Carolina area owned by the above mentioned DMG.

Yep. Charlotte, North Carolina sure is the middle of nowhere.

 

[aindik]

As for Don & Mike in DC, CBS caused the problem themselves by blasting IBUZ on Mix 106.5 in Baltimore to block out 106.7. There wouldn't be interference if 106.5 didn't have IBUZ.

I'm not sure there was iBuzz back in 2000 or 2001 when I heard what I was talking about earlier. The signal on 106.7 has been terrible in the Maryland part of the market for a long time, probably forever. 106.5 in Baltimore is the reason, but it's not related to HD Radio. It's not interference. It's signal weakness because they have to protect 106.5.

106.7 is not licensed to Washington, DC. It probably couldn't be, with 106.5 in Baltimore. 106.7 is licensed to Manassas, VA.

Today, if you want to WJFK-FM in the Maryland suburbs of DC, you can listen on 94.7 HD-3.

 

[nd2023]

92.3 in New York is still WXRK, even though its format was changed to CHR "92.3 Now". CBS could easily bought the WNOW call letters from a religious station in the middle of nowhere.

The Middle of nowhere? WNOW-FM are the call letters on a Regional Mexican formatted radio station in the Charlotte, North Carolina area owned by Gaffney Broadcasting, LMAd to Davidson Media Group. WNOW (AM) are the calls of a Spanish News/Talk/Sports station also in the Charlotte, North Carolina area owned by the above mentioned DMG.

Yep. Charlotte, North Carolina sure is the middle of nowhere.

I stand corrected. The point is, CBS has the money to buy the WNOW-FM calls from Gaffney if they wanted to. If NYC were a diary market, they would have done so.