Sounds like the sound will be silenced soon:( Very sad

[BobointheH20]

To all...It IS relevant to argue whether that frequency had a 2 share or not. It proves that that signal is viable for a Rock format.

So you are arguing about whether a 50,000 watt frequency is a viable signal for a rock format? Doesn't that go without saying? It should be a viable signal for ANY format, and neither 2 nor 2.5 is anything to brag about, unless the ad revenue beats the numbers, like Q does. Will Bonneville spend money to promote something that might draw a 2? I guess we'll see.

WAQZ wasn't making a whole lot of it's own money, with Stern, without Stern, "Everything Alternative" or otherwise. Most of the ads running were part of a package deal sold by the other stations.

My point was that the listeners don't care about any of that. They'll turn on their radio, hear country and hit the button to something else they have preset, if we who rely on radio for a living are lucky.

 

[InsertNameHere]

So was this move promoted? Did they run announcements for a week saying "move with us on Friday to 97.3" or "The Wolf is moving to 94.9", or did they just flip the switch and leave EVERYONE wondering where their favorite station went?

 

[MarkW]

To all...It IS relevant to argue whether that frequency had a 2 share or not. It proves that that signal is viable for a Rock format. That's all. You can argue the nuances of each format if you'd like, but when that signal cumes 150,000 people, (which it did) that's significant. Now, Bonneville has to promote it. If they don't, that's their fault.

Channel Z hardly had ratings to brag about (weren't they often beaten badly by WEBN in their target of Males 18-34), did not rely on at-work listenership, and had more musical territory to itself than WSWD.

The Sound has significant overlap with Radio 94-1, and some overlap (but not nearly as much) with 96Rock and WEBN. Unlike Channel Z, The Sound relies on at-work, adult listenership. 97.3, at least from its current facilities, does not lend itself welll to that.

At its new home of 97.3 FM, The Sound will be lucky to get a 2.0 share overall. You are right that it's not impossible, but I think it's unlikely. They will likely land in the mid to upper 1's in 12+ and will fail to make the top 10 in Adults 25-54. They will likely be down in the basement with the likes of 96Rock, The Rebel, etc.

Who knows...maybe Bonneville will ultimately purchase 94.1 FM and 92.5 FM, move The Sound to 94.1, and divest 97.3? I imagine Clear Channel wouldn't like that, as it would give Bonneville a pretty good "wall of rock" with which to surround WEBN. Might be a deal breaker for them.

 

[Elephant]

MarkW...The whole reason for this move was that Bonneville did NOT get 94.1 and 92.5. Rumor has it another company will be returning to the market.

Bobo...Obviously the 94.9 frequency (or ANY 50,000 watt frequency) is NOT viable for any format. Remember The WAVE? Susquehanna couldn't make any money on it. MOJO worked, but then was sold out. The SOUND debuted strong, but 94.1 and 96Rock took some of that away. The truth is, 94.9 is a better fit for country because of where the signal goes. 97.3 points most of its signal into the city. It's no wonder WPFB-FM has suddenly moved ahead of WYGY considering it has a strong northern-suburban-rural signal. 97.3 has already PROVEN that it can compete in the Rock genre.

Did either of you not bother to look at the articles I posted? It was #5 18-34 and #2 behind WEBN in Men 18-34. I would say that's pretty good, considering WEBN's heritage. In terms of making money, what is The SOUND billing vs. costs? I would imagine the potential LOSS from a WUBE competitor outweighs what The SOUND could bring in.

Truth is, it may be too late for The SOUND regardless of frequency. 94.1 and 96Rock weren't around when they had their strong numbers. The new owners of 94.1 may be smart to do a SOUND-alike on that frequency.

 

[Kent]

MarkW...The whole reason for this move was that Bonneville did NOT get 94.1 and 92.5.

That's what I've heard, too. The rumor I heard was that Bonneville wanted 94.1 and 92.5, and, if that had happened, The Wolf would have ended up at 94.1. However, there was another partner in the deal who would've ended up with 97.3, and that partner backed out of the deal. Or at least that's the version of the story I've heard.

Rumor has it another company will be returning to the market.

I didn't hear this part of it. Details, please?

 

[MarkW]

The truth is, 94.9 is a better fit for country because of where the signal goes. 97.3 points most of its signal into the city. It's no wonder WPFB-FM has suddenly moved ahead of WYGY considering it has a strong northern-suburban-rural signal.

Agreed.

97.3 has already PROVEN that it can compete in the Rock genre.

Did either of you not bother to look at the articles I posted? It was #5 18-34 and #2 behind WEBN in Men 18-34. I would say that's pretty good, considering WEBN's heritage.

I disagree that what you've posted is "proof" they can compete in the Rock genre. If the station performed so well, why did it undergo so many rebrandings?

Not too many stations in just about any market you visit across the country care very much about Men 18-34. You'll be lucky to find more than two or three.

You WILL find plenty of strong billers who do very well in the ratings with Men 18-34, but the strong billing performance is often attributable to such stations performing well in older demos (e.g. 25-44 or 25-54), too. WEBN is a great example of this, as are WRIF in Detroit and WMMR in Philadelphia. Plenty of Urban stations also fall into that category.

A 5th place showing in Persons 18-34 is not terrible, but not very impressive, either. Obviously their strong male listenership fueled that. It wouldn't surprise me if over 70% of Channel Z / New Rock 97-3's AQH listeners were male. I bet a disproportionately high percentage came from Men 18 - 24, which further dilutes the value of that audience to advertisers.

A 5th place showing in Persons 25-44 would be far more valuable than a 5th place showing in 18-34.

What you don't mention 97.3's billing as a rock station. I bet it was miserable. THAT is what counts in terms of assessing a station's ability to "compete." Why do you think the station rebranded so many times?

In terms of making money, what is The SOUND billing vs. costs? I would imagine the potential LOSS from a WUBE competitor outweighs what The SOUND could bring in.

Agreed.

Truth is, it may be too late for The SOUND regardless of frequency. 94.1 and 96Rock weren't around when they had their strong numbers. The new owners of 94.1 may be smart to do a SOUND-alike on that frequency.

I completely agree. It would be very wise of 94.1 to take advantage of listener confusion not to mention 97.3's inferior signal.

Like I said earlier, the best barometer of how well / how poorly The Sound may do on 97.3 FM is what we witnessed with "Everything Alternative 97-3."

 

[Elephant]

I have no idea what WAQZ billed. If anybody has any Miller-Kaplan info from those days I'm sure we'd love to see it. My point was simply that that signal can pull an audience. That's all. A lot of signals pull big audiences, but not revenues. Apparently that was the problem with The WAVE and other Smooth Jazz stations across the country. If I remember correctly, the station started out as Channel Z to capitalize on the former 107.1 name that had been abandoned. Other imaging changes seemed to be related to Howard Stern's coming and going. Stern gave that station an image. After he was gone, they didn't do much to keep it going becaus CBS didn't care. And Rover was a terrible, terrible replacement for Stern. I know Stern has big shoes to fill, but Rover? Come on.

 

[whatareyou]

As sad as this is I think if any station can succeed (and I use that word loosely!) on 97.3 it will be The Sound. While what happened is very sad, I think the 2 people left will carry on the station. I also believe that Bonneville is not dumb enough to launch a news-talker on 97.3. FM talk won't fly in Cincinnati...clearly the case with Super Talk. Bonneville wants a news-talk in every market they have but I doubt they do it on 97.3. They aren't that eager that they would launch it on a frequency that it would have a definite fail.

 

[MarkW]

And Rover was a terrible, terrible replacement for Stern. I know Stern has big shoes to fill, but Rover? Come on.

AMEN...Rover was brutal! I still cannot believe to this day that CBS tried him in mornings in Chicago on the same station as Steve Dahl. I take that back -- I forgot that clueless hack Joe Hollander was running the ship back then.

I bet Rover pulled the worst morning numbers in the history of the WCKG (which is now defunct, btw).

 

[kentuckymedia]

Bonneville does other formats besides Talk. It just happens to fit their cluster strategy better in certain markets. Washington DC everyone tries to throw on a talk or news station, but Bonneville dominates that arena so well that no one can compete.

Bonneville could shock all of us and do some form of talk on 97.3, but if I were a betting man (Issue 6 would have probably passed) and I feel there is something much, much bigger brewing in Salt Lakes coffee pot.

Bonneville is LOOOOAAAAADDDED! They are a debt free company and have GOLD BARS in their basement. They buy GOLD, literally. That doesnt mean that Bruce can do whatever he wants, he has to run a tight ship that makes them money, so he does have to operate within his means.

Bonneville would ultimately be smart to get 94.1 from whoever buys into the market. If the company is looking to build out its cluster strategy just like they have in Chicago, DC, Seattle, etc. 94.1 fits in overall much better than 97.3.

Someone was saying that there is a company that is interested in coming back to the market. Cox wouldnt be that company, however Entercom isnt expanding and Salem has no desire to be here. Greater Media is an option, they do have money to expand. Radio One could always expand as well. Who really could enter the market with just 2 FM's?

 

[Elephant]

Look for some swaps to happen to bring that company back to town.

Bonneville is NOT getting 94.1 and 92.5, so you can just end that speculation now.

Cox may have some overlap problems owning the radio, TV, and newspapers in the northern part of the market. I would assume that owning the Hamilton Journal and the Middletown Journal - which are daily papers and have impressive circulation - would be a hindrance. They also own some community papers.

I'm hearing that 97.3 will remain The SOUND. I'm not privy by any means, but usually you can get a sense of something from different sources. I'm not getting that. Maybe I'm too old and gray.

 

[kentuckymedia]

Entercom or Salem?

What about Emmis? They own the magazine in town, and that would fit nicely!

 

[gr8oldies]

I'm not convinced Cox will go into a market where they can't be a major player. Just a hunch even with the Sharonville move (if it even happens).

 

[kentuckymedia]

Looks like Bonneville is on the move in Seattle, you think there is something much bigger to play in that decision as well? Entercom had to give them 3 stations in Seattle and 4 in Cincinnati plus a million dollars in exchange for 3 stations in San Fran.

Entercom is stuck in a rut right now, they cant grow and they cant shrink, so who thinks they are coming back to Cincy?

Something tells me First Broadcasting has to be involved somewhere in the bigger chain. Even if it involves Seattle or something

 

[HafDawg]

As for personalities, remember the Sound didn't have any when it first signed on and it pulled good numbers. If rumors are true, there will soon be some voices on the air there. But, if other rumors are true, there will be NOTHING BUT voices there. (Talk...get it?)

I'd just assume it go back to no on-air personalities. Just play music.

 

[Nick Scott]

I moved to WV two and a half years ago and haven't had the chance to listen to The Sound very much. I think I've tuned in two or three times when I have been in visiting family. But from what I remember, it was a great sounding station. I know a lot of friends of mine in the area that love it. Very sad indeed.

 

[fpoole]

That other company possibly interested in re-entering this market would be Jacor...um...Randy Michaels...er...Tribune. He could do it with just two sticks.

 

[microbob]

That's the rumor. It would be a good thing for the Cincy market.

 

[gr8oldies]

Probably not Tribune but Randy's Radioactive LLC if it were to happen.