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Vacant FM Frequencies in Jacksonville
- Thread starter olmjax
- Start date
check http://www.radio-locator.com they list unused frequencies
I appreciate Otharadioman bringing up this subject because I was under the impression Jax had room for new stations. Before 92.7 was actually sold, I was so hoping an independent broadcaster would have come to town to operate the station in a manner consistent with putting the listener first and caring about quality of content. I wanted that so much for Jax, and it's not to be. When I read about all the frequencies not too long ago, I remained hopeful someone would consider our town as a viable place to do business and to do radio in a way that reflected passion for the medium. I never realized there really wasn't room here.
Lyrics buzzing in my head, I can hear Peggy Lee's sultry voice singing, "Is that all there is,?" sadly it is.
Lyrics buzzing in my head, I can hear Peggy Lee's sultry voice singing, "Is that all there is,?" sadly it is.
Douglas B. said:
and don't mind losing it in todays economy.
I still remember when 106.5 first signed on, people said, "That's gotta be the LAST new sign-on in Jax"...then 105.3 squeaks in...then fringe signals inch closer and closer...
IMHO, that's IT for full-power--or heck, even not-so-full power. (I believe the 92.5 CP for moving into Jacksonville calls for dropping power to 1,550 watts!)
And for anyone who attempts to use an FM transmitter for an mp3 player, or a Ronco Mr. Microphone around here, forget it!
IMHO, that's IT for full-power--or heck, even not-so-full power. (I believe the 92.5 CP for moving into Jacksonville calls for dropping power to 1,550 watts!)
And for anyone who attempts to use an FM transmitter for an mp3 player, or a Ronco Mr. Microphone around here, forget it!
John I guess the thinking has been, a single operator can't compete against groups with cluster radio stations. Cox, CC and Renda all think alike, it's CHEAPER, faster, more! Clear Channels less is more,
means we give less and make more money. The radio industry has made a living from average and it's become the new standard of excellence. Coming in the future, radio's consolodators will find ways to cut more from the product, while maximizing profits.
When I worked for Citadel the company line was, "maximizing profits for shareholders"
Honestly the only way radio will ever change, is when radio's gang of consolidators go bankrupt and stations are sold off to pay back debt. Until then average is the new standard Just look at the airlines, they strive for average, so less is more there too..
With 3 operators controlling everything, your alternatives are satellite or ipod.
I'm personally hoping for pirate radio operators, that will be far more interesting than what commercial broadcasters offer. Maybe shortwave..
means we give less and make more money. The radio industry has made a living from average and it's become the new standard of excellence. Coming in the future, radio's consolodators will find ways to cut more from the product, while maximizing profits.
When I worked for Citadel the company line was, "maximizing profits for shareholders"
Honestly the only way radio will ever change, is when radio's gang of consolidators go bankrupt and stations are sold off to pay back debt. Until then average is the new standard Just look at the airlines, they strive for average, so less is more there too..
With 3 operators controlling everything, your alternatives are satellite or ipod.
I'm personally hoping for pirate radio operators, that will be far more interesting than what commercial broadcasters offer. Maybe shortwave..
Open radio channels are pretty rare these days, except in rural areas. Most of the recent additions to the Jax airwaves are so called Move-ins from other towns. For example, 99.9 came from Palatka and had been a sucessful move in serving Daytona Beach since 1980 before getting moved to the Jax market. Several other stations have moved in from various smaller towns over the years.
The only realistic possibility for adding more stations is a significant change in the FCC's rules. Barring that unlikely scenario, then other stations have to either move locations or frequencies to make more space. Neither happens very often, so while there may be another station added to the local airwaves someday, you shouldn't hold your breath unless you have a lot of cash to dislodge some existing stations.
The only realistic possibility for adding more stations is a significant change in the FCC's rules. Barring that unlikely scenario, then other stations have to either move locations or frequencies to make more space. Neither happens very often, so while there may be another station added to the local airwaves someday, you shouldn't hold your breath unless you have a lot of cash to dislodge some existing stations.
As Pocket mentioned, with 3 operators controlling everything, listeners like myself who are not musically satisfied, need to find alternatives and I certainly have.
In the last post, Kmagrill brought up the FCC and I think the last thing we need is the government to get any more involved with radio than they already are. I still blame them, always with the supposed best intentions, allowing owners to own as many stations they can own in any one market. That bill President Clinton signed in the 90s didn't really do what it was supposed to do. So now, many of us wait, hoping some divesting will take place and independent operators will be afforded opportunity.
With some unique exceptions, independent operators would not be able to survive all by themselves. It’s economic reality, there is strength in numbers and I believe there will be demand for the uniqueness an independent operator can bring but they would need to be a part of a small network. I often think if a station in a small surrounding market can be linked to a large metro low-power station that is sold, the listening footprint is significantly raised, there is additional revenue generated through selling in multiple markets, and talent salary is maximized as they are heard in various markets/stations and draw from ads in each market.
When the future of 92.7 was not known, I had envisioned something different that could have been tried. The Gainesville/Ocala market almost seems ripe for the picking to me because of its close proximity to Jax and some of the unique formats they have. To me, it would have been a step in the right direction to test a simulcast bringing a different format to Jax. It would have been a plus to the listening audience and community. Once lessons were learned, other stations could have been added. Instead, we have stations flipping to formats we already have or seeing signals just leave the area as what happened to 92.7. I don’t know, I just wish things were done differently that brought more choice to listeners. This is a major propblem to the few owning everything in the market. Perhaps in time, markets such as Gainesville will be more connected to a nearby metro area.
I’m impressed with the Gainesville market because they have variety in formats and think how cool it would be to have a mom and pop type network that eventually incorporates that market, Jax, Flagler, Amelia Island and even S.E. Georgia. To me, it’s a win-win for low power stations and it would get us away from the automated jukeboxes. There are too many stations jockeying for a piece of 25-54 and too much reliance on agency billings. For a small network, ad revenue would not be derived from agencies, at least from the onset, but from local sources. I say, get away from all the insanity and be free!. At any rate, there’s a helluva lot of great talent sitting on the sidelines who have a place and can bring some needed excitement back on the air.
Even with alternatives one day being more popular than radio as we now know it, I still believe the independent operators who know and understand the medium, who regard talent as an asset and not a liability, who understand the importance of entertaining and communicating at a local level and who place the listener in the center of the decision-making will have a future need and role. In some respects, the Jax Progressive talker network has strung along some weak stations and it has to bring more economic advantage than operating alone. The same thing can be done with music formats. Anyway, these are some of my ideas. What we have now with so many lifeless stations is a disgrace and it does little to entice people to listen which never made sense to me.
In the last post, Kmagrill brought up the FCC and I think the last thing we need is the government to get any more involved with radio than they already are. I still blame them, always with the supposed best intentions, allowing owners to own as many stations they can own in any one market. That bill President Clinton signed in the 90s didn't really do what it was supposed to do. So now, many of us wait, hoping some divesting will take place and independent operators will be afforded opportunity.
With some unique exceptions, independent operators would not be able to survive all by themselves. It’s economic reality, there is strength in numbers and I believe there will be demand for the uniqueness an independent operator can bring but they would need to be a part of a small network. I often think if a station in a small surrounding market can be linked to a large metro low-power station that is sold, the listening footprint is significantly raised, there is additional revenue generated through selling in multiple markets, and talent salary is maximized as they are heard in various markets/stations and draw from ads in each market.
When the future of 92.7 was not known, I had envisioned something different that could have been tried. The Gainesville/Ocala market almost seems ripe for the picking to me because of its close proximity to Jax and some of the unique formats they have. To me, it would have been a step in the right direction to test a simulcast bringing a different format to Jax. It would have been a plus to the listening audience and community. Once lessons were learned, other stations could have been added. Instead, we have stations flipping to formats we already have or seeing signals just leave the area as what happened to 92.7. I don’t know, I just wish things were done differently that brought more choice to listeners. This is a major propblem to the few owning everything in the market. Perhaps in time, markets such as Gainesville will be more connected to a nearby metro area.
I’m impressed with the Gainesville market because they have variety in formats and think how cool it would be to have a mom and pop type network that eventually incorporates that market, Jax, Flagler, Amelia Island and even S.E. Georgia. To me, it’s a win-win for low power stations and it would get us away from the automated jukeboxes. There are too many stations jockeying for a piece of 25-54 and too much reliance on agency billings. For a small network, ad revenue would not be derived from agencies, at least from the onset, but from local sources. I say, get away from all the insanity and be free!. At any rate, there’s a helluva lot of great talent sitting on the sidelines who have a place and can bring some needed excitement back on the air.
Even with alternatives one day being more popular than radio as we now know it, I still believe the independent operators who know and understand the medium, who regard talent as an asset and not a liability, who understand the importance of entertaining and communicating at a local level and who place the listener in the center of the decision-making will have a future need and role. In some respects, the Jax Progressive talker network has strung along some weak stations and it has to bring more economic advantage than operating alone. The same thing can be done with music formats. Anyway, these are some of my ideas. What we have now with so many lifeless stations is a disgrace and it does little to entice people to listen which never made sense to me.
JohnJax brings up a couple of interesting points, at least one of which I disagree with. The one that I disagree with concerns group ownership. I have been in radio since the 1970s and can very well recall working with the mom and pop stations. Everyone laments those days, but those of us that worked them remember that working for Joe Owner was no fun most of the time (there were exceptions, of course). Many of the stations were poorly run and had no technical resources to back them at all. Owners often sucked everything out of them for years at a time. This was especially true in smaller markets. I can personally recall being laid off from my overnight shift from the number one CHR station (WGGG) when I was a college student, in Gainesville, back in the early 1980s because the owner wanted to save some expenses and they didn't sell spots after midnight. I can't imagine that my $165/week salary and the 1000 Watts of electricity could possibly have justified the decision, but that's what they did. This was before any local FM stations had adopted a pop format and WGGG had about a 15 share at the time and made money hand over fist, but got to keep none of it. After I graduated from college, I worked for a small group that was expanding and I travelled around the country from Fort Meyers to Portland Oregon and everywhere between. I have to admit that I did see some great radio, but I saw a lot more garbage. I mean really bad facilities, broke, disgruntled employees and poorly run stations. Gosh, it was a hard life. Those of you that lament the old days either had an atypical station or you may just not be old enough to remember the bad old days. And by the way, those same owners that wouldn't pay the local staffs, hired those same program consultants from California to make thier stations sound competitive, so I have not seen very much change in formats over the years. One good thing that happened with consolidation was that there was a huge influx of talent and engineering when the Clear Channels and Entercoms of the world took over. Now, before anyone gets offended, I'm not saying that local owners aren't good or that there weren't great local owners back in the day. I just think that the groups, despite their very real problems, have gotten a really unfair rap.
Second, the notion of low power FM stations grouping together is a reasonable one. The problem with commercial stations is that even in small markets, they're worth around a million dollars, and that goes up to 3 or 4 million, very quickly, in a town like Jax. This makes it pretty unlikely that station owners from Gainesville will ever expand into Jax and I cannot really envision any avenue for creating some sort of mutual support network of independent owners. Incidently, excluding LPFMs, Gainesville has only one locally owned station. All of the others are owned by one of a handful of group owners, or the University of Florida.
A logical choice for bringing unique programming to markets like Jax would be LPFMs. Theoretically, LPFMs could be chained together to form mini-groups that would compete by stretching across markets. Unfortunately, a foolish group known as the Prometheus project, supposedly working for LPFMs, played right into corporate radios hands and got the FCC to restrict LPFM ownership down to one from its previous number of 10. This makes it impossible for LPFMs to compete in most larger markets and it makes it much harder to bring programs from one city to another.
The next time the FCC opens up a comments window regarding LPFM, those of you who want more programming diversity should be sure to file comments. Your comments should support changes that make it possible to add new stations, make it possible to own more than one station, and make it possible to compete financially with commercial stations by selling spots instead of just underwriting. You may not like the FCC, but they are the key to the most likely avenue for you to get some new blood into the local airwaves.
Second, the notion of low power FM stations grouping together is a reasonable one. The problem with commercial stations is that even in small markets, they're worth around a million dollars, and that goes up to 3 or 4 million, very quickly, in a town like Jax. This makes it pretty unlikely that station owners from Gainesville will ever expand into Jax and I cannot really envision any avenue for creating some sort of mutual support network of independent owners. Incidently, excluding LPFMs, Gainesville has only one locally owned station. All of the others are owned by one of a handful of group owners, or the University of Florida.
A logical choice for bringing unique programming to markets like Jax would be LPFMs. Theoretically, LPFMs could be chained together to form mini-groups that would compete by stretching across markets. Unfortunately, a foolish group known as the Prometheus project, supposedly working for LPFMs, played right into corporate radios hands and got the FCC to restrict LPFM ownership down to one from its previous number of 10. This makes it impossible for LPFMs to compete in most larger markets and it makes it much harder to bring programs from one city to another.
The next time the FCC opens up a comments window regarding LPFM, those of you who want more programming diversity should be sure to file comments. Your comments should support changes that make it possible to add new stations, make it possible to own more than one station, and make it possible to compete financially with commercial stations by selling spots instead of just underwriting. You may not like the FCC, but they are the key to the most likely avenue for you to get some new blood into the local airwaves.
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