I know what news is. What is alternative?
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New York April 2024 PPM
- Thread starter Theater of My Mind
- Start date
It is what used to be WNYL Alt 92.3:
What is Alternative Music? Full Explanation With Examples - MG
Have you ever wondered why some songs fall under alternative when they all sound the same? Learn all about the difference in this article.
www.musicgrotto.com
Never because the company that created HD radio wants all the money.
This would cannibalize on WNEW.
I'm with Gregg on this:
If Field and his Audacy Brain Trust (TM) pulled their heads out of their keisters, they'd realize that WCBS/880 is as much a franchise as WINS, and you don't throw away the franchise for a weak sister also-ran. 880 is strong along the coasts of the Long Island Sound, given where they transmit from (High Island). They're weaker in Manhattan and Brooklyn, and get worse the further into New Jersey you get. That is virtually the reciprocal of 94.7's strength and weakness. And AM's on it's deathbed. A few strong stations have been lucky so far, but their luck's running out. So ditch the Hip-Hop jukebox and start simulcasting, then find another FM on the Island (or Westchester, or Fairfield County CT) to LMA an eastern simulcast, and protect the franchise. There must be a way. And ... stop discounting the strength of WCBS's all-news programming and play to its strengths. It can be saved, and it can be strengthened, *IF* they want to take the actions needed to keep that revenue stream flowing.
Or, cut a deal to acquire 98.7 in exchange for unloading 94.7. Again, Audacy, Big Picture.
If Field and his Audacy Brain Trust (TM) pulled their heads out of their keisters, they'd realize that WCBS/880 is as much a franchise as WINS, and you don't throw away the franchise for a weak sister also-ran. 880 is strong along the coasts of the Long Island Sound, given where they transmit from (High Island). They're weaker in Manhattan and Brooklyn, and get worse the further into New Jersey you get. That is virtually the reciprocal of 94.7's strength and weakness. And AM's on it's deathbed. A few strong stations have been lucky so far, but their luck's running out. So ditch the Hip-Hop jukebox and start simulcasting, then find another FM on the Island (or Westchester, or Fairfield County CT) to LMA an eastern simulcast, and protect the franchise. There must be a way. And ... stop discounting the strength of WCBS's all-news programming and play to its strengths. It can be saved, and it can be strengthened, *IF* they want to take the actions needed to keep that revenue stream flowing.
Or, cut a deal to acquire 98.7 in exchange for unloading 94.7. Again, Audacy, Big Picture.
Did you see this?
So even after WINS got the FM simulcast, and the 6+ ratings dropped, WCBS increased revenue.
Contrary to what you're saying, the all-news programming is NOT the strength of WCBS. The new source of the revenue is coming from play-by-play sports. The station has reinvented itself. That revenue isn't attached to an FM simulcast or ratings. It's attached to serving a dedicated audience with exclusive content that isn't available on WINS.
I would normally be the last person to root for another NYC FM to flip to an AM simulcast but it makes the most sense in this case.
First of all there is more future for growth in spoken word formats than music formats on terrestrial radio at this point. WCBS already has the heritage and proven track record with news-talk, and that should be protected.
WINS revenue rose nearly 25 percent after it added the 92.3 FM simulcast. If WCBS 880 could also increase its revenue by even 20 percent with a 94.7 FM simulcast, that would be worth about $6 million. Wouldn't that exceed the value of WXBK's basement-dwelling current format, keeping in mind 'The Block' also has its own set of operating costs right now?
Finally, while reviewing the BIA numbers, all of those top stations are successful on their own merit. There no mention of cluster performance, cost-per-point or any of the other weak excuses put forth here attempting to justify a failing station.
First of all there is more future for growth in spoken word formats than music formats on terrestrial radio at this point. WCBS already has the heritage and proven track record with news-talk, and that should be protected.
WINS revenue rose nearly 25 percent after it added the 92.3 FM simulcast. If WCBS 880 could also increase its revenue by even 20 percent with a 94.7 FM simulcast, that would be worth about $6 million. Wouldn't that exceed the value of WXBK's basement-dwelling current format, keeping in mind 'The Block' also has its own set of operating costs right now?
Finally, while reviewing the BIA numbers, all of those top stations are successful on their own merit. There no mention of cluster performance, cost-per-point or any of the other weak excuses put forth here attempting to justify a failing station.
The creator sold HD off to vulture capitalists, didn't it?
WCBS really does need an FM signal.
94.7 isn't great, but it's better than nothing. KYW is on a class A FM in Philadelphia, although Philly isn't as large in area and population.
As for WCBS's AM signal. I've never noticed it being weak anywhere in the tri-state area. The NJ suburbs end well before WCBS. They go right up the Hudson Valley reasonably well to Albany and are great in Connecticut and on Long Island.
94.7 isn't great, but it's better than nothing. KYW is on a class A FM in Philadelphia, although Philly isn't as large in area and population.
As for WCBS's AM signal. I've never noticed it being weak anywhere in the tri-state area. The NJ suburbs end well before WCBS. They go right up the Hudson Valley reasonably well to Albany and are great in Connecticut and on Long Island.
94.7 is 40kw at 600' just west of Manhattan. It's not great in Manhattan or points farther east, but it's definitely way better than a Class A.
It gets quite poor through some densely populated suburbs in North Jersey, on the Turnpike crossing the NJ Meadowlands, and Route 1-9 that runs parallel to it through North Bergen. That's close to all the AM transmitters that dot the Meadowlands blasting 50kw signals toward the city. The RF levels there overpower nearby tuner front ends while WCBS is located several miles away in the opposite direction on High Island near the Bronx. However, the 94.7 transmitter is perched right on top of one of those Meadowlands towers near where AM 880's signal has its biggest problems.
If news on radio is an automatic tune-out for anyone born after 1980, what's the point of putting it on FM? Just let it continue on AM until the audience becomes too old to sell to Madison Avenue, then flip to brokered programming, foreign language or go dark. Leave 94.7 alone unless there's some other musical format that can connect with advertisers better than The Block does -- and given the hardwired-for-rhythmic nature of much of the NYC populace, the current format on 94.7 might be the safest choice for the foreseeable future.
I have to agree with you there. Besides, a music format will make money even if it's nowhere near what WINS or WCBS make. That would still be better than nothing. I think a WCBS 880 simulcast on FM should only be used as a last resort for Audacy.
I've written this before, but it bears repeating: there's a cost to anything you do, but there's also a cost to not doing it.
IMO, the cost of allowing WCBS to wither is higher than the cost of blowing up a weak sister jukebox. There are a thousand ways to get your Classic Throwback Hip-Hop musical tastes satisfied these days. OTOH there are a limited number of ways to get a classy, accurate, well-delivered recitation of the hour's news, spoken to you as you drive or go about other tasks where you don't have the time or bandwidth to read them on your phone screen. The cost of assuming that the NY Mets are going to be satisfied watching their radio audience go down with the AM ship is also pretty steep. My money's on them informing Audacy, in no uncertain terms, to get them an FM simulcast or there'll be no renewal when the current agreement expires.
IMO, the cost of allowing WCBS to wither is higher than the cost of blowing up a weak sister jukebox. There are a thousand ways to get your Classic Throwback Hip-Hop musical tastes satisfied these days. OTOH there are a limited number of ways to get a classy, accurate, well-delivered recitation of the hour's news, spoken to you as you drive or go about other tasks where you don't have the time or bandwidth to read them on your phone screen. The cost of assuming that the NY Mets are going to be satisfied watching their radio audience go down with the AM ship is also pretty steep. My money's on them informing Audacy, in no uncertain terms, to get them an FM simulcast or there'll be no renewal when the current agreement expires.
But it's NOT withering. It's been reinvented. It's making more money now after WINS got its simulcast. So its clients and advertisers appear satisfied. In the same way that WEPN's clients and advertisers appear satisfied that they're giving up 98.7. (except for the Jets)
If, as you said, the NY Mets told Audacy they wouldn't renew with WCBS unless there was an FM simulcast, they would blow up WXBK immediately. Until then, there's no rush. This decision will be based on clients and advertisers.
A few years back, the Mets ditched their entire radio network, putting all their over-the-air eggs into the 880 basket and basically telling fans outside that blowtorch's range to try streaming or SiriusXM. So the team apparently sees some value to being on AM. Leaving AM completely would require putting together a network again, I would think.
Who "enjoys" listening to the Mets these days?
That’s pretty impressive for WINS to increase billing that much. As I’ve said before, the only mistake Audacy made by flipping Alt 92.3 was not doing it much sooner.
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