Pittsburgh Radio Predictions for 2010

[chipper]

For those of you who love to predict the demise of the Froggy stations get your facts straight before you post. Keymarket and Forever Broadcasting were able to rework their loan terms with their banks. Many operators in 2010 dont have this kind of leverage. They are sitting better than Citidal who went chapter 13. First Media has also done the same. I predict that before the years up Clear Channel will go into default with its lenders. The Pittsburgh CBS FMS have been up for sell for some time. Also the Froggy stations get their market share from the Rural counties around Pittsburgh Washington Westormland Fayette Beaver and Butler. Dumping 98.3 was in their best interest to reduce cost since 104.3 covers Alleghany county for the most part.

 

[Kurt Toy]

More predictions: Someone will launch a conservative women's talk station with a mix of local and syndicated talkers-such as Laura Ingraham and Monica Crowley-and it will be a top 10 performer. Also, WJPA, on its "Cruisin' Sunday Night" show will add British Invasion tracks-usually those that don't get much airplay, but no "Doo-Wa-Diddy-Diddy", "I Want To Hold Your Hand" or "You Really Got Me Going"-to the show's playlist.

 

[CaliRadioGuy]

Snafu, you really think B94 may be gone by the end of 2010?!?! Its ratings don't seem that bad, even though its lagging behind 96.1 Kiss.

 

[Snafu]

Something is up over there that has everyone looking over their shoulders more than normal. Moving Bucket back to Detroit is part of it. Its one of a couple of things:

1) The format isn't making enough money and they're going all sports.
2) They want to save the royality fees and they are plugging KDKA into that frequency.
3) They want another demo and they are plugging a AAA format in there.
4) CBS found the last guy in America with extra change in his pocket and they are selling the FMs to him.

These aren't in any particular order but they are the only plausable explanations.

 

[Parttimer]

Going sports would save significant money on music fees.

 

[cingram]

I don't know who Snafu is, but so far I like his predictions the best.

Here's one I'm sure will come true:

There will be a new FM at 103.1, licensed to Mt. Pleasant, on soon.

C.

 

[Parttimer]

Have you guys made any format decisions on that one? (Music vs info-talk?)

 

[Budda-Bing]

OR . . . all of this talk of format flipping could have been fabricated out of sheer boredom since none of it makes any sense.

 

[Parttimer]

Are you just going to post the same line everywhere?

 

[cingram]

Have you guys made any format decisions on that one? (Music vs info-talk?)

I think I can say without fear of being incorrect that it will be a music format.

Bob reads these boards from time to time. Let him comment, if he so desires.

C.

 

[e-dawg]

Somehow, I don't find Pittsburgh radio station interesting. Two of the commerical frequencies went over to non-commerical religious groups. A NCE station is putting up for sale. 92.9 FM music is not focus and a heritage Urban Formatted station gone forever. What can I say about Pittsburgh radio.

 

[cingram]

I have to confess that I don't find Pittsburgh radio all that interesting, either. I find myself listening to suburban
stations, daytimers, and out-of-market outlets like WVAQ in Morgantown. Of course, format changes are usually
of interest.

C.

 

[RMC-STEVENS]

Have you guys made any format decisions on that one? (Music vs info-talk?)

YES I HAVE! Conducting equipment tests for a bit tonight at 10pm. 103.1

 

[FMWORLDWIDE]

Somehow, I don't find Pittsburgh radio station interesting. Two of the commerical frequencies went over to non-commerical religious groups. A NCE station is putting up for sale. 92.9 FM music is not focus and a heritage Urban Formatted station gone forever. What can I say about Pittsburgh radio.

It never was. Since 1995 or 1999 when there was 2 R&B Stations (WXYZ 860am and 1550 WCXJ) 1 Urban Station (105.9 then 106.7 in Oct. 1996)
2000-There were 2 or 3 (WJJJ 104.7 and WAMO-AM 860)

R.I.P-Urban Radio in Pittsburgh
I can't picture a URBAN Station on the Pittsburgh airwaves in 2010 only thing i can come up with is WLTJ changing to R&B

 

[radiotruth75]

Somehow, I don't find Pittsburgh radio station interesting. Two of the commerical frequencies went over to non-commerical religious groups. A NCE station is putting up for sale. 92.9 FM music is not focus and a heritage Urban Formatted station gone forever. What can I say about Pittsburgh radio.

It never was. Since 1995 or 1999 when there was 2 R&B Stations (WXYZ 860am and 1550 WCXJ) 1 Urban Station (105.9 then 106.7 in Oct. 1996)
2000-There were 2 or 3 (WJJJ 104.7 and WAMO-AM 860)

R.I.P-Urban Radio in Pittsburgh
I can't picture a URBAN Station on the Pittsburgh airwaves in 2010 only thing i can come up with is WLTJ changing to R&B

It will be back at some point.

Everyone talks about how hard it was to sell. Why is it WAMO managed to stay around for what..55 years? Heritage..beyond heritage. WAMO was all over the map musically..morning show changes constantly..jock changes..voice guy changes....no consistency. And they weren't playing the hits!! They were playing garbage! Now one might say all hip-hop is garbage and yes there's a lot out there today, but there's a lot of good music, and WAMO wasn't playing it. Guess it helps to be tied into a big company like CBS or Radio One with programming people from all over the country, because WAMO wasn't doing a lot of things right, and apparently had no direction.

NOW..with THAT SAID....

Had they remained true to something like a good CHurban, Urban, Rhythmic I.E., HOT 97 NY, WBLK Buffalo, WPGC, WKYS; good music, good product, good talent..I could go on and on....they may have found themselves more viable.

There was a definite problem with lack of direction and in the end it hurt them.

The black demo in Pgh is sizable, and will eventually see an outlet in one form or another. An all around Urban which leaned more R&B during the day with some of the big Hip-Hop hits mixed in, BUT more Hip-Hop at night (which is what WAMO used to do), or a good overall Rhythmic is what will work here.

I see the posts on here..from the same people..same wanna be consultants ..bias in many cases..(call it opinionated if you will or logical in some cases)....but call me optimistic and realistic.

Remember this is Market #25....not 225

 

[Parttimer]

Remember this is Market #25....not 225

And maybe the people who really didn't get that were the ones running WAMO.

The last numbers I saw, this market was about 10% African-American give or take a couple of points. To make money, a station needs to superserve that core but also have a wider audience. (My 17-year old white suburban stepdaughter listened exclusively to WAMO.... she listened to 95.7 The Beat exclusively in Tampa Bay when we lived there).

If WAMO was as good as the Urban product that CC and CBS, or Radio One put on in other markets we wouldn't be having this conversation. It could be all current based, maybe an old-school mix at lunchtime (Star 94.5, an Urban AC owned by Cox in Orlando, does a pretty good job with that.. or did at least when I last heard them... they are the #1 station in that market a lot of the time).

If Inner City had bought a real signal instead of 1550 a few years back things might have been different as well.

Bottom line is it would have to be really good, appeal to the core but NOT be exclusively about those listeners, and it would have a chance.

 

[corporateradiosucks]

Last two posts are spot on.

If they would have merged the AM and the FM, they would have drawn far more listeners. And yes, there's good rap and hip-hop and there's bad. Over the past few years, WAMO was pretty much uniformly playing the bad.