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What does it take to move 94.7 the Block to the Empire State Building?

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nd2023 said:
So can WWSK go directional with a null to the west in order to allow WXBK to move to Empire?
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No. It's not contour interference that's the problem as a second adjacent. It's the mere existence of WWSK.

And before anyone says, "just pay them to surrender the license". It won't work. The FCC will keep the allocation alive and put it into a future auction and WXBK would need to protect the vacant allocation. @fybush can explain this in more detail.
 
How about Audacy purchasing 98.7 and selling 94.7? They are after all, still a major radio company, and may want to upgrade their New York cluster.
 
Barry said:
How about Audacy purchasing 98.7 and selling 94.7? They are after all, still a major radio company, and may want to upgrade their New York cluster.
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Audacy doesn’t have the money to purchase stations. That’s why they’re bankrupt. But I wouldn’t mind hearing 98.7 The Block
 
nd2023 said:
Audacy doesn’t have the money to purchase stations. That’s why they’re bankrupt
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Actually, there are an almost infinite number of cases of companies in bankruptcy reorganization that have built new stores or factories or distribution centers or added new products to their line or actually expanded staff.

In the case of Audacy, they have positive EBITDA cash flow and if the bankruptcy administrators are presented with a profitable opportunity that will enhance the company's ability to repay its refinanced debt it is very possible that such an opportunity would be taken.
 
I always ask if there is a way WWSK could agree to allow the WXBK to move to ESB and in turn allow their signal to go more westbound. They would have some signal overlap but most of today’s radios and receivers have enough selectivity to allow it. I can drive past the 94.3 antenna and still pick up 93.9, even though my car stereo soft mutes it a bit. I thought there were waivers that could be agreeed to. Look at 101.1 that is in NYC and Philly. They are co-channel and much closer together.

92.7, 98.3 and 102.3 are grandfathered and 94.3 is only 2 miles east of the 102.3 antenna. I am also confounded as to why 94.7 can’t move to ESB or 1 WTC at this day and age.
 
MVB13 said:
Who would buy 94.7? Beasley?
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I think a case could be made for Family Radio repurchasing it. Back when Family sold it to Cumulus, as I recall they were in poor financial shape. I believe they now have considerable cash on hand, after selling the WFME 1560 AM site for more than 50 million dollars.
I think the primary difference in signal between a station located on ESB, and 94.7 is that the latter has inferior coverage of Long Island. But FR has WFME 92.7 FM, by the Queens-Nassau border, which naturally helps to reduce the extent of that issue.
 
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In honor of Occam's Razor, see post #3 in this thread.
 
Barry said:
I think a case could be made for Family Radio repurchasing it. Back when Family sold it to Cumulus, as I recall they were in poor financial shape. I believe they now have considerable cash on hand, after selling the WFME 1560 AM site for more than 50 million dollars.
I think the primary difference in signal between a station located on ESB, and 94.7 is that the latter has inferior coverage of Long Island. But FR has WFME 92.7 FM, by the Queens-Nassau border, which naturally helps to reduce the extent of that issue.
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There is a lot of redundant coverage with the 92.7 and 94.7 transmitters. That would cost a lot of money for a simulcast.
 
Barry said:
I think a case could be made for Family Radio repurchasing it. Back when Family sold it to Cumulus, as I recall they were in poor financial shape. I believe they now have considerable cash on hand, after selling the WFME 1560 AM site for more than 50 million dollars.
I think the primary difference in signal between a station located on ESB, and 94.7 is that the latter has inferior coverage of Long Island. But FR has WFME 92.7 FM, by the Queens-Nassau border, which naturally helps to reduce the extent of that issue.
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Family Radio had to sell because they wasted all their money telling us that the world would be ending and it didn’t end. So they sold 94.7. Maybe they could buy it back and sell 92.7. Unless they blow more money saying that the world will end again
 
It might be worthwhile to remind people how much Cumulus paid for 94.7 twelve years ago. There was a clause in the sales agreement about the possibility of moving the tower into one of the five boroughs:

$42.5M WFME-FM New York NY (Newark NJ) from Family Stations Inc. (Harold Camping) to Radio License Holding X LLC, a subsidiary of Cumulus Broadcasting LLC (Lewis W. Dickey Jr. et al). $40K cash plus swap of WDVY-FM Stamford-Norwalk CT (Mount Kisco NY). WDVY hypothetically priced at $2.5M in contract; Cumulus will pay extra $8.5M if it can move WFME into one of the five NYC burroughs as a Class A or B1, and an extra $10M is it can move it as better than a B1. If Family is able to resell station and Cumulus gets upgrade, upgrade payment will be reduced by $1M.
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TheBigA said:
It might be worthwhile to remind people how much Cumulus paid for 94.7 twelve years ago. There was a clause in the sales agreement about the possibility of moving the tower into one of the five boroughs:
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Does that clause follow the station since it was sold to Audacy? If Audacy manages to move 94.7 the Block to the Empire State Building, do they owe Family Radio the $10 million?
 
nd2023 said:
Does that clause follow the station since it was sold to Audacy? If Audacy manages to move 94.7 the Block to the Empire State Building, do they owe Family Radio the $10 million?
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It likely followers the seller, not the station.
 
nd2023 said:
Does that clause follow the station since it was sold to Audacy? If Audacy manages to move 94.7 the Block to the Empire State Building, do they owe Family Radio the $10 million?
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No. The clause expired after five years, and Cumulus owned the license for the duration of the clause.
 
NYRadioFan22 said:
Maybe then they'd rebrand it as a new KISS FM?
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At this point, 15(?) years after it became ESPN, I doubt there would be much benefit. Most former WRKS listeners have either forgotten or moved out of the demo. (Or both.)

Besides, when ESPN/Disney bought 98.7, they sold the KISS "intellectual property" to the owners of WBLS, which at that time was part of Percy Sutton's Inner City Radio, along with WLIB and a few other stations (like KBLX in San Francisco). That legal ownership probably moved with the station to Mediaco.
 
TheBigA said:
Not exactly. Disney NEVER bought 98.7. Emmis owned it, and did an LMA to Disney for 12 years.

The deal with WBLS was done by Emmis.
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Yes, you're right, that is the emmis. ("emmis" or "emmes" means "truth" in Hebrew.) My brain wasn't coming up with Emmis as I was typing that.
 
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