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No Sale Looming, ESPN 98.7 expected to pivot to Music

One would think they would have at least hired a sales staff if they were going to run it themselves. They could VT it with out of market talent. But by now someone somewhere would have let the cat out of the bag.
Here we go again...

Emmis is selling the station. Why would they make an investment in hiring a sales staff and voice talent to track? Where are they gonna find said talent? That's right, they don't own anything else, so they have no talent.

A placeholder format (I still think it will be a WLIB simulcast) will be in place on Sept. 1, unless something changes otherwise.
 
One would think they would have at least hired a sales staff if they were going to run it themselves. They could VT it with out of market talent. But by now someone somewhere would have let the cat out of the bag.
You don't hire a sales staff prior to doing a transfer. Nobody will buy an unproven station, and agencies will often wait for 4 to 6 books at least before seeing a need to buy if the format is successful. Local direct will hardly talk to a seller for an unheard of format when they are subject to many daily calls from all kinds of media reps.
 
Bloomberg already has 1130 WBBR that they can just simulcast. They're already doing so in Boston, simulcasting Bloomberg O&O 1330 WRCA over a rented FM station.
But in NYC they have one of the better AM signals. In Boston, WRCA is a definite 3rd class facility.
 
Maybe 1010 WINS FM could move to 98.7 and alternative can return to 92.3 WHERE IT BELONGS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
No matter how many times you say it, it cannot happen. #1 Audacy is at the ownership cap and cannot add another FM. #2. If Alternative was successful and more importantly profitable they would have retained it.

Alternative has NEVER been successful as a format in New York. When "New Rock 101.9"'s 2.7 share in 2012 as a placeholder between the demise of FM News and the sale to CBS to become WFAN-FM is the most successful the format has done in the market, you can't just keep going back to the well unless something drastic happens to change its trajectory. Entercom thought that was going to happen when they launched Alt 92.3 in 2017 on the backs of number of newer artists but they were out-maneuvered by iHeart and record labels who then turned artists like Billie Eilish and Imagine Dragons into pop stars instead.

And three of my six car presets are currently 92.3 HD2, Alt 104.5 Philly, and a local College Alt station in Central Jersey so I was one rooting for the format to succeed this time around. It's just not going to happen.
 
No matter how many times you say it, it cannot happen. #1 Audacy is at the ownership cap and cannot add another FM. #2. If Alternative was successful and more importantly profitable they would have retained it.

Alternative has NEVER been successful as a format in New York. When "New Rock 101.9"'s 2.7 share in 2012 as a placeholder between the demise of FM News and the sale to CBS to become WFAN-FM is the most successful the format has done in the market, you can't just keep going back to the well unless something drastic happens to change its trajectory. Entercom thought that was going to happen when they launched Alt 92.3 in 2017 on the backs of number of newer artists but they were out-maneuvered by iHeart and record labels who then turned artists like Billie Eilish and Imagine Dragons into pop stars instead.

And three of my six car presets are currently 92.3 HD2, Alt 104.5 Philly, and a local College Alt station in Central Jersey so I was one rooting for the format to succeed this time around. It's just not going to happen.
Although it wouldn't be Audacy's alternative station in this situation. 1010 WINS would simply move to 98.7 and Emmis would launch alternative on 92.3
 
Alternative has NEVER been successful as a format in New York. When "New Rock 101.9"'s 2.7 share in 2012 as a placeholder between the demise of FM News and the sale to CBS to become WFAN-FM is the most successful the format has done in the market, you can't just keep going back to the well unless something drastic happens to change its trajectory. Entercom thought that was going to happen when they launched Alt 92.3 in 2017 on the backs of number of newer artists but they were out-maneuvered by iHeart and record labels who then turned artists like Billie Eilish and Imagine Dragons into pop stars instead.
Not to “well actually” but Z100’s time as a de facto Alt would have been the best ratings the format has ever had in NYC. Especially in 1994 and 1995, Z100 was basically an alt-rock station that happened to play some Eurodance, Bon Jovi, and Madonna. They had several books in the 3-4 range in those years, regularly finishing in the #4-7 range, and were #1 with teens multiple times, with a playlist that was 80% alt-rock.

Even the 80’s golds Z100 played in those days tended to reflect what Alts were playing inbetween new songs and not Z100’s past hits from that decade.

I know it was never an official flip and R&R at least kept Z100 on their CHR panel because so much alt-rock was crossing over, but if you look at what they were playing at the time they were basically an Alternative.
 
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Not to “well actually” but Z100’s time as a de facto Alt would have been the best ratings the format has ever had in NYC. Especially in 1994 and 1995, Z100 was basically an alt-rock station that happened to play some Eurodance, Bon Jovi, and Madonna. They had several books in the 3-4 range in those years, regularly finishing in the #4-7 range, and were #1 with teens multiple times, with a playlist that was 80% alt-rock.

Even the 80’s golds Z100 played in those days tended to reflect what Alts were playing inbetween new songs and not Z100’s past hits from that decade.

I know it was never an official flip and R&R at least kept Z100 on their CHR panel because so much alt-rock was crossing over, but if you look at what they were playing at the time they were basically an Alternative.
It didn't matter. The format was a no-effort, little-expense placeholder. The numbers it got were irrelevant.
 
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