WBLS Sale Appears Likely

[davideduardo]

CBS I think would rather compete with CHR/Top 40 music than News/Talk/Sports...A LOT more$$ to be made there with all that cume...

... except that the buying metric is rating, not cume. Since rating translates directly to AQH persons, advertisers know how many people hear each spot... and that is how pricing is established.

 

[SonoSational18]

CBS I think would rather compete with CHR/Top 40 music than News/Talk/Sports...A LOT more$$ to be made there with all that cume...

... except that the buying metric is rating, not cume. Since rating translates directly to AQH persons, advertisers know how many people hear each spot... and that is how pricing is established.

With very few exceptions, ratings being equal, a news/talk, all news, or sports station will generally out-bill a CHR station.

 

[SonoSational18]

... and if CBS picks up an FM signal I would fully expect them to simulcast WFAN, WINS, or WCBS. They've made similar moves in San Francisco, Chicago, and Dallas.

 

[recto101]

Here in San Fran were wondering if Cumulus, CC, or Merlin will buy 102.9 FM since its owned by Inner City too!

 

[Barry]

I wonder whether some potential buyers of WBLS may be hesitant due to the potential controversy/negative publicity that could ensue if a heritage R & B station is flipped to a non-urban format. That would be similar to the situation when the NY Times made strong efforts to find a buyer for WQXR that would continue the classical music it had always played.

 

[davideduardo]

... except that the buying metric is rating, not cume. Since rating translates directly to AQH persons, advertisers know how many people hear each spot... and that is how pricing is established.

With very few exceptions, ratings being equal, a news/talk, all news, or sports station will generally out-bill a CHR station.

[/quote]

Take your pick of responses:

a) But they don't generally have higher BCF.
b) Tell that to KIIS.
c) That is only because news talk and related formats have about twice the inventory of a music station. This in part compensates for the considerably higher expenses of spoken word formats.

 

[SonoSational18]

... except that the buying metric is rating, not cume. Since rating translates directly to AQH persons, advertisers know how many people hear each spot... and that is how pricing is established.

With very few exceptions, ratings being equal, a news/talk, all news, or sports station will generally out-bill a CHR station.

Take your pick of responses:

a) But they don't generally have higher BCF.
Percentage-wise, that's probably the case, but a top-rated news/talk station is generally a pretty reliable cash cow..... and much less affected by ratings fluctuations than musiic stations.
b) Tell that to KIIS.
KIIS happens to be one of those exceptions. They have over 30 years of heritage in the format and some strong personalities. 6 out the top 10 billing stations are spoken word. The other CHR in the top 10 (WHTZ) is also a heritage station.
c) That is only because news talk and related formats have about twice the inventory of a music station. This in part compensates for the considerably higher expenses of spoken word formats.
Well eactly... that's one of the things makes the format more attractive.
[/quote]

 

[magicjellybeans]

The last thing we need is to live in the past.

Ok, and once the FM band gets taken over by talk formats that will pretty much be the nail in the coffin for terrestrial radio (assuming you can even consider it still alive today).

Wait... how would successful talk on FM be a nail in the coffin for terrestrial radio? Radio evolves. Always has, always will.

Yeah now the new way to get music is ipod and sirus,so it has evolved! Terrestrial is putting good formats on HD and you cant get that in a car for nothing.

 

[kevinsealy]

It would be a sad state if the new owners of WBLS change the format of this heritage station to something else.

It has been rumored that ESPN was looking to buy an FM outlet here in New York. Suppose they may be going after WBLS?



Thanks,
Kevin L. Sealy

 

[JerseyDude]

No big deal if WBLS changes format.

Both WBLS and WRKS are nothing like they used to be. The only reason WBLS is doing OK in the ratings is because of the Steve Harvey Morning Show. If Steve takes a hit (like he did in the Dec. monthly), 'BLS drops big time. Slow Jam show that comes on at 7pm in a hustle and bustle city (too early). The music during the day is bland. Not fit for NYC.

WRKS isn't much better. Lame, low rated morning show (Tom Joyner). Another lame,low rated syndicated afternoon show (Michael Baisden). Slow Jam show that comes on at 7pm in a hustle and bustle city (too early). An overnight girl with hood-ism (Little Nat). The station is a mess. Music more New Orleans than New York.

Maybe one of these stations should flip.

 

[kilamanjero]

No big deal if WBLS changes format.

Both WBLS and WRKS are nothing like they used to be. The only reason WBLS is doing OK in the ratings is because of the Steve Harvey Morning Show. If Steve takes a hit (like he did in the Dec. monthly), 'BLS drops big time. Slow Jam show that comes on at 7pm in a hustle and bustle city (too early). The music during the day is bland. Not fit for NYC.

WRKS isn't much better. Lame, low rated morning show (Tom Joyner). Another lame,low rated syndicated afternoon show (Michael Baisden). Slow Jam show that comes on at 7pm in a hustle and bustle city (too early). An overnight girl with hood-ism (Little Nat). The station is a mess. Music more New Orleans than New York.

Maybe one of these stations should flip.

WBLS would a true loss, but their problem is their shift from full-service urban contemporary to Urban Adult Contemporary. They could have thrived in their former format well in NYC, but they decided to take on boring Kiss FM. NYC has too large of a black population to ignore them.

 

[davideduardo]

WBLS would a true loss, but their problem is their shift from full-service urban contemporary to Urban Adult Contemporary. They could have thrived in their former format well in NYC, but they decided to take on boring Kiss FM. NYC has too large of a black population to ignore them.

I don't understand why you (apparently) think that Urban AC is less of a service to the African American community than Urban AC.

Urban AC stations in some markets are as much as 98% Black in cume. Urban Contemporary (usually just called "urban") can... and does in some places... have as much as a 50% non-Black cume.

So any true Urban AC could be considered strictly a service to the Black community.

 

[davideduardo]

... that Urban AC is less of a service to the African American community than Urban AC.

That should, of course, be "urban AC is less... than urban contemporary..."

 

[kilamanjero]

WBLS would a true loss, but their problem is their shift from full-service urban contemporary to Urban Adult Contemporary. They could have thrived in their former format well in NYC, but they decided to take on boring Kiss FM. NYC has too large of a black population to ignore them.

I don't understand why you (apparently) think that Urban AC is less of a service to the African American community than Urban AC.

Urban AC stations in some markets are as much as 98% Black in cume. Urban Contemporary (usually just called "urban") can... and does in some places... have as much as a 50% non-Black cume.

So any true Urban AC could be considered strictly a service to the Black community.

There lies the problem, Urban Adult Contemporary equals nearly all black and very limited audience, thus harder to survive in highly competitive, multicultural markets like NYC. Whereas, a full-service, urban contemporary can pull a wider audience (age and racial demographic) and have a better ability to thrive all the while serving that same community. The point nowadays is to serve the community and survive the tremulousness PPM environment.

 

[CTListener]

There lies the problem, Urban Adult Contemporary equals nearly all black and very limited audience, thus harder to survive in highly competitive, multicultural markets like NYC. Whereas, a full-service, urban contemporary can pull a wider audience (age and racial demographic) and have a better ability to thrive all the while serving that same community. The point nowadays is to serve the community and survive the tremulousness PPM environment.

This looks like a spellcheck abomination. I'm trying to come up with the word -- presumably an adjective -- you intended to type here, and failing. What was it?

 

[BobSmolarek]

I don't think you HAVE to keep WBLS with a urban music format. If they would change you would still have urban music on 92.3, 97.1, 98.7, 100.3, 103.5, 105.1, plus some on 102.7 and 101.1. How much urban music do you need when there is no country or current rock stations?

 

[davideduardo]

There lies the problem, Urban Adult Contemporary equals nearly all black and very limited audience, thus harder to survive in highly competitive, multicultural markets like NYC. Whereas, a full-service, urban contemporary can pull a wider audience (age and racial demographic) and have a better ability to thrive all the while serving that same community. The point nowadays is to serve the community and survive the tremulousness PPM environment.

Irrespective of the true meaning of "tremulousness" you need to take a Black perspective here: saying that Urban Contemporary "serves the same community" as "Urban AC" is like saying that a conventional AC serves the same "community" as a CHR. There are, and the cume duplication shows it, many Black listeners who never sample urban offerings... because that format does not serve a great many adult African Americans.

When we look at a variety of other markets that have Urban ACs we find that they often do as well or sometimes better in adult demos than urban stations.

 

[davideduardo]

I don't think you HAVE to keep WBLS with a urban music format. If they would change you would still have urban music on 92.3, 97.1, 98.7, 100.3, 103.5, 105.1, plus some on 102.7 and 101.1. How much urban music do you need when there is no country or current rock stations?

There has been some "urban music" on Top 40 / CHR formats since the 50's, so including 92.3 and 100.3 and their blend of contemporary pop does not address the needs of the African American community in New York City and its MSA. And the watered down urban pop occasionally played on Fresh and CBS-FM hardly serves the Black community at all.

WBLS definitely has a heritage of serving the African American community, and it's likely that any change in its format would produce a significant amount of protest from that community and broader based groups that promote diversity in media ownership and programming.

 

[Jeffrey]

WBLS is legendary in NYC and has served the African American community very well for years. It's demize would be a real shame and clearly not go without protest.

 

[kilamanjero]

There lies the problem, Urban Adult Contemporary equals nearly all black and very limited audience, thus harder to survive in highly competitive, multicultural markets like NYC. Whereas, a full-service, urban contemporary can pull a wider audience (age and racial demographic) and have a better ability to thrive all the while serving that same community. The point nowadays is to serve the community and survive the tremulousness PPM environment.

Irrespective of the true meaning of "tremulousness" you need to take a Black perspective here: saying that Urban Contemporary "serves the same community" as "Urban AC" is like saying that a conventional AC serves the same "community" as a CHR. There are, and the cume duplication shows it, many Black listeners who never sample urban offerings... because that format does not serve a great many adult African Americans.

When we look at a variety of other markets that have Urban ACs we find that they often do as well or sometimes better in adult demos than urban stations.

I am looking at from a black perspective and a better job reaching both the older and younger demographic groups with a full-service rather than a limited 'adult contemporary' urban format. It bridges the gap between the 2 age groups.