What other stations could flip?

[1sttimecaller]

For the sake of getting off the 106.5 bandwagon for a minute, what is the next station in NEO headed to a flip?

I'm not suggesting there will be one anytime soon, just asking for pure speculation and fun.

My money is on 107.3, and I'd go country and hire Mantel.

 

[Rusty Muck]

There's always 92.3 ... but that pesky "Radio 92.3" has been delivering better ratings than they ever had as K-Rock, darn it!

 

[vjm]

107.3 just flipped a few months ago, from smooth jazz to adult album alternative.

 

[johnbasalla]

As of 12/31/2010, WNWV - 107.3 FM changed format exactly one year and a couple of weeks ago.

 

[Morpheux]

Cleveland is somewhat of a slow market when it comes to music progression. I expect there to be more play list tweaking from the likes of WQAL,WMJI and especially WZAK if my hunch is correct regarding the new direction of 106.5

Will they be called Power 106.5? Seems a lil too obvious to be right.

 

[wprt949]

steve harvey on power 106.5

 

[Rusty Muck]

Cleveland is somewhat of a slow market when it comes to music progression. I expect there to be more play list tweaking from the likes of WQAL,WMJI and especially WZAK if my hunch is correct regarding the new direction of 106.5

Will they be called Power 106.5? Seems a lil too obvious to be right.

Heck, why not call it "Power 106 WPHR?" It's obvious that the WPHR-FM calls will soon be available.

Talk about the ultimate retro move.

 

[SonoSational18]

If Cleveland were a "keeper" market I'dd look for 92.3 to flip to sports like its sisters in Detroit and Pittsburgh. However, I don't see CBS making any changes. It has a moderately successful niche, it's inexpensive to operate, and serves as a flanker for WNCX.

 

[CleveFan]

I wonder if WNCX could make some adjustment, after it seems their audience is going down during the last few months in PPM. Perhaps "The Fish" would also likely go under some type of change.

 

[nightfly61]

How 'bout go back to the old WZZP? ZZZZZZIP 106?
I could see WZAK polishing themselves a bit, from the bad processing, playing more current CHR based R&B & upping the pitch on the entire station to make it bounce.
Other than that, since this is just for fun, turn WNCX back into WGCL & make WMMS Big Band Nostalgia.("We Make More Swingers!")

 

[SonoSational18]

I wonder if WNCX could make some adjustment, after it seems their audience is going down during the last few months in PPM.

Wondering out loud if it's the new morning show hurting them
[/quote]Perhaps "The Fish" would also likely go under some type of change.
[/quote] Highly doubtful. "The Fish" is basically the only format Salem runs anwywhere on FM. It's doing well as a niche format.

 

[Rusty Muck]

If Cleveland were a "keeper" market I'dd look for 92.3 to flip to sports like its sisters in Detroit and Pittsburgh. However, I don't see CBS making any changes. It has a moderately successful niche, it's inexpensive to operate, and serves as a flanker for WNCX.

Why would CBS even try something like that, given that they clearly want to get out of Cleveland and have made it their intention for the past three years?

 

[almaniac27]

If Cleveland were a "keeper" market I'dd look for 92.3 to flip to sports like its sisters in Detroit and Pittsburgh. However, I don't see CBS making any changes. It has a moderately successful niche, it's inexpensive to operate, and serves as a flanker for WNCX.

Why would CBS even try something like that, given that they clearly want to get out of Cleveland and have made it their intention for the past three years?

Not to be snarky, but that's why he started his post with "IF".

 

[AntDog152]

steve harvey on power 106.5

Considering that Harvey's hometown is Cleveland, his show would work really well here. His show could draw in both the younger audience of Rickey Smiley and the older black audience from the TJMS. If they wanted to get another big name, they could work a deal with WPWX in Chicago to simulcast Sam Sylk in PM Drive.

 

[Rusty Muck]

If Cleveland were a "keeper" market I'dd look for 92.3 to flip to sports like its sisters in Detroit and Pittsburgh. However, I don't see CBS making any changes. It has a moderately successful niche, it's inexpensive to operate, and serves as a flanker for WNCX.

Why would CBS even try something like that, given that they clearly want to get out of Cleveland and have made it their intention for the past three years?

Not to be snarky, but that's why he started his post with "IF".

Oops... I missed that. It's all good.

 

[Capulet]

format flip data

What most who post and read here fail to realize is every format change and exisitng niche modification is predicated by cash flow. Ask LeBron what that word means.

Unfortunately on line trade publications and other sites that quote arbitron do not provide the real data on why a format is deemed doomed. All ( well almost all ) of the commercial operations across the US subscribe to market spending data compilation services. When published and accessed that data is usually held as secret tighter than the location of Obama's birth certificate.

If some of the more astute bloggers here could access that info the speculation predictions
would look a bit different than what we read here today ( 1-2-11 ).

 

[Rusty Muck]

format flip data

What most who post and read here fail to realize is every format change and exisitng niche modification is predicated by cash flow. Ask LeBron what that word means.

WNWV, during their last year as smooth jazz, was billing badly. That alone bled over to a wholesale changeover within the airstaff (including the PD, AMD and PMD hosts), as well as emasculating cuts within their sister AM station, WEOL/930, where only one employee is full-time and no news department exists. Even their sister stations in Sandusky did a better job at billing than WNWV!

Not that the AAA format is the second coming, but the smooth jazz format is and has been dying nationwide. WNWV had no choice BUT to change. The PPM arrivals simply provided a nice cover.

Unfortunately on line trade publications and other sites that quote arbitron do not provide the real data on why a format is deemed doomed. All ( well almost all ) of the commercial operations across the US subscribe to market spending data compilation services. When published and accessed that data is usually held as secret tighter than the location of Obama's birth certificate.

I can't blame anyone for doing that. If internals were leaked to the public, good luck for the poor salesman for a "doomed" station to try to land any clients (who wouldn't hesitate to deal with a rival station).

If some of the more astute bloggers here could access that info the speculation predictions
would look a bit different than what we read here today ( 1-2-11 ).

That I won't argue with one bit. The 6+ ratings posted on R-I and other sites mean nothing. That's a beauty contest intended by design to be neutered as much as possible. Specific demos and billing data are where its' at.

And again, we need to see what format emerges on 106.5 tomorrow morning ( 1-3-11 ).

 

[OhioMediaWatch]

As far as this "astute blogger" is concerned, I get very limited snippets of local ratings.

Even if I got every single bit, there's no way I could do more than just throw some darts at a wall and see what it means. Ratings can be sliced, diced and pureed six ways to Sunday (or in this case, Monday morning), and that analysis could mean exactly squat.

It's one reason I very rarely do any ratings posts as OMW policy.

I also don't have more than very general, spotty information on billing (usually tips like "that station's billing has dropped through the floor in the past few months"), so I don't really go after that, either. As noted, this information is generally guarded with close to Fort Knox-style security.

What's left? General observations, predictions, extrapolation of industry and local trends, and speculation, generally.

I make this rather clear, and have been in the current format change cycle at 106.5...and repeat often that I Could Be Wrong.

 

[musicman44]

waks 96.5 fm top 40, wmms 100.7 rock, wmji 105.7 classic hits are owned by the same radio company who owns wmvx 106.5 the lake aduts hits mix. clear channel communications radio. you cant punch yourself in the face. ratings are out and wdok and wmvx tied with a 8.0 for the month of december. doing christmas music was a great way to lead into a new format flip. good job guys. 8.0 is the best wmvx has had in the ratings book since it was wltf lite rock 106 and 1/2. all clear channel did was wake up cbs radio, radio one and wnwv v 107.3. i can see v 107.3 going to the hot ac format by the end of the year. radio one will stay the same and all the cbs radio station 92.3, 98.5, 102.1 and 104.1 is going to do is adjust their playlist. by the march ratings cleveland radio will know how it is doing.

 

[Rusty Muck]

waks 96.5 fm top 40, wmms 100.7 rock, wmji 105.7 classic hits are owned by the same radio company who owns wmvx 106.5 the lake aduts hits mix. clear channel communications radio. you cant punch yourself in the face. ratings are out and wdok and wmvx tied with a 8.0 for the month of december. doing christmas music was a great way to lead into a new format flip. good job guys. 8.0 is the best wmvx has had in the ratings book since it was wltf lite rock 106 and 1/2.

I'd have to look at the internals, but judging by the beauty contest figures (if one logically can do so) WMVX looks to have done better AFTER the three-way Ho-Ho-Ho battle between WMVX, WDOK and The Fish began.

In fact, the initial thought I had (and this was fairly evident during the original thread after WMVX adopted "Mixmas") was, why would WMVX be blown up if the rest of the internal structure of Mix 106.5 - including the local DJ lineup - was kept? Then it went back to normal on December 27 (promos for Mix even aired during the local spot breaks on WMMS/WTAM's coverage of the Browns game the day before), only to be blown up completely two days afterward.

For keeping this a secret to the general public, they get an A+.

all clear channel did was wake up cbs radio, radio one and wnwv v 107.3. i can see v 107.3 going to the hot ac format by the end of the year. radio one will stay the same and all the cbs radio station 92.3, 98.5, 102.1 and 104.1 is going to do is adjust their playlist. by the march ratings cleveland radio will know how it is doing.

WNCX's playlist has been unchanged since 1990. I doubt that will ever be adjusted.