Aggregator

“One of the most invigorating parts of this job is when you start seeing data points that were unexpected and force you to re-think a core tenet.”

That’s the opening line from a newly released investor report on U.S. media from MoffettNathanson Senior Analyst Michael Nathanson.

He notes that from his Wall Street perch, MoffettNathanson has long preached the dogma that live sports “are the glue to Pay TV and, as such, will be the least likely content to go over-the-top.”

Umm … that’s proving to be untrue, to some extent. Now what?

Please Login to view this premium content. (Not a member? Join Today!)

The Federal Communications Commission has scheduled an auction in July of 136 FM and four AM construction permits.

Auction 109 will open on July 27, 2021. It will include all of the FM permits that has been included in Auction 106 plus six more.

Auction 106 was postponed last year due to the pandemic and has now been canceled; applications to participate in that auction have been dismissed; so hopefuls will have to file a new application to take part in Auction 109. That window hasn’t opened yet.

Also up for auction in July will be four AM licenses — three in Illinois and one in St. Louis, Mo.

The commission has published proposed bidding procedures for the auction and has asked for comments, due March 15. Read the FCC notice here. And here is list of permits to be offered.

The Media Bureau also has frozen applications to modify any of the vacant non-reserved band FM allotments involved in the auction, as well as proposals to change channel, class, community or reference coordinates for them, and applications that fail to protect Auction 109 FM allotments.

A temporary freeze on AM minor changes that would conflict with the expired licenses of the four AM facilities remains in effect.

 

The post FCC Schedules Auction of 136 FM CPs appeared first on Radio World.

The latest Media Monitors Spot Ten TV report is out, and for the week ending February 7 — inclusive of Super Bowl LV, the biggest advertiser using broadcast TV remains GEICO.

Not far behind it is category competitor Progressive. But, there are two new entrants — and that’s a good sign for a big spring for spot television.

Please Login to view this premium content. (Not a member? Join Today!)

The latest Media Monitors Spot Ten Radio report has been released, and it shows a huge jump in commercial airings by one of the nation’s largest department store brands.

For the week ending February 7, Macy’s finished at No. 7, powered by more than 36,000 radio spots.

That’s the big news of the week, as language learning app Babbel dips behind Progressive.

Here’s the full report:

The AWARN Alliance has elected its 2021 Steering Committee, the organization’s governing body that provides guidance to the AWARN Alliance and its executive director.

The Alliance also clarified its core education, promotion and collaboration mission, while embracing its vision to “save lives and protect communities by leveraging advanced emergency alerting, news and information powered by ATSC 3.0 NEXTGEN TV.”

Please Login to view this premium content. (Not a member? Join Today!)

With Deloitte LLP Vice Chairman Kevin Westcott’s ascension to industry leader of its U.S. technology, media and telecommunications practice, a position opened up at Deloitte.

It needed a leader to specifically focus on telecom, media and entertainment.

Deloitte has found that person.

Please Login to view this premium content. (Not a member? Join Today!)

It’s known around Plattsburgh, N.Y. for offering “everything that rocks.” With a Class A signal, this FM also scrapes the Burlington, Vt., area across Lake Champlain.

Now, this property — with a broadcast tower just down the road from the infamous Clinton Correctional Facility in Dannemora, N.Y. — is being spun.

The seller? It’s none other than Randy Michaels.

The deal is hardly a surprise: The buyer has been operating the station for months.

Please Login to view this premium content. (Not a member? Join Today!)

Who’s on top of RBR+TVBR’s second annual reader Honor Roll? The answer is completely up to you.

Streamline Publishing’s Radio + Television Business Report is pleased to once again acknowledge the individuals in command of local television with the opening of our 2021 nomination window for Broadcast Television’s Best Leaders.

As was seen in 2019 and in 2020, these television industry executives have demonstrated in various ways how to motivate their local and regional teams to success. They are all winners, and will appear in a ranked list based on RBR+TVBR reader voting and the RBR+TVBR editorial board.

These power players represent an industry that’s sprung to action in a time of crisis,
and they deserve full commendation for their leadership today.

VOTE NOW FOR BROADCAST TELEVISION’S BEST LEADERS!

You may cast your vote through Friday, February 26, 2021, at 5pm Eastern Time.

Simply CLICK HERE TO MAKE YOUR VOICE HEARD!

With the biggest media merger in recent months poised to potentially propel its stock price in the coming months, Gray Television has selected the day it will release its fourth quarter and full-year 2020 financial results.

BE SURE TO FOLLOW RBR+TVBR ON FACEBOOK!

Please Login to view this premium content. (Not a member? Join Today!)

BONITA SPRINGS, FLA. — In June 2019, the CBS affiliate serving Southwest Florida was the subject of a RBR+TVBR feature story for one unfortunate achievement: it had been prevented from being received by Dish Network subscribers in a DMA that includes such fast-growing cities as Fort Myers, Naples, Estero, and Marco Island.

And, this retrans impasse had stretched into its sixth month.

Eventually, the locally based TV station owner and Dish struck a new agreement. Alas, that agreement expired — right before Super Bowl LV.

This, once again, put CBS viewers who are Dish subscribers in Lee, Charlotte and Collier Counties in the dark once again.

Please Login to view this premium content. (Not a member? Join Today!)

With much of the company’s executive leadership team still mourning the January 27 death of legendary radio programming pro Bill Tanner, SummitMedia has entered into a fresh — and bigger — agreement for ratings and audience measurement services from the nation’s dominant provider of consumption data.

The Birmingham, Ala.-based radio broadcasting company led by Carl Parmer has inked a new long-term agreement for Nielsen Audio services across SummitMedia’s nine markets.

The new accord incorporates “an expansion and enhancement” of the service level to include Continuous Diary Measurement (CDM).

As such, SummitMedia now has what Nielsen Audio describes as “full, unqualified subscriber access to the monthly CDM currency ratings, TAPSCAN software and Nielsen Scarborough in all markets where available.”

In addition to its home market of Birmingham, SummitMedia’s stations are located in Greenville-Spartanburg; Honolulu; Knoxville; Louisville; Richmond; Wichita; Omaha; and in Iowa. The company was formed in 2013, when Cox Media Group sold to Parmer 24 stations comprised of the Alabama; South Carolina; Hawaii; Kentucky; and Virginia properties.

“We are looking forward to utilizing Nielsen’s measurement and data analytic capabilities to showcase SummitMedia’s value to the advertiser and agency communities,” said Parmer, who serves as Chairman/CEO of SummitMedia. “Consumers’ media habits are evolving at an incredibly rapid pace and having a faster read on audience trends is imperative. Continuous Diary Measurement will enable our teams to react more strategically and quickly.”

Nielsen Managing Director Brad Kelly added, “SummitMedia has placed their trust in us to deliver an accurate and timely read on radio audiences.  Equipped with CDM, SummitMedia’s talented sales pros will be well positioned to optimize revenue and attract new advertisers by delivering better, faster, keener insights to the local radio ad marketplace.”

— RBR+TVBR West Coast Bureau

EUREKA, CALIF. — In the region of California behind the “Redwood Curtain,” National Football League fans largely support the San Francisco 49ers or the Raiders. Still, when it comes to the Super Bowl, everyone with an interest in the NFL — or the commercials in-between the game action — are of interest to just about anyone.

As such, not getting the game due to a retransmission consent “blackout” is a big frustration — one that fueled the ire of a Member of Congress, in addition to pro-MVPD lobby ATVA.

Lo and behold, just before 11am Eastern on Game Day, AT&T and Cox Media Group scored a touchdown for DirecTV subscribers in markets where CMG owns TV stations.

Among those markets: Humboldt County, Calif.; Dayton, Ohio and Seattle.

There, CMG owns the CBS affiliate, home of Super Bowl LV.

In a joint statement, AT&T confirmed that the DirecTV owner and CMG entered into a new multi-year retransmission consent agreement. As such, the prevention of any DirecTV customer receiving a CMG-owned station was immediately lifted.

Had a deal not been reached, viewers in the Seattle and Dayton DMAs with DirecTV as the television service of choice would have been left scrambling for an alternative to watch the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, led by Tom Brady, smother the Kansas City Chiefs 31-9 in Tampa.

Terms of the agreement were not disclosed.

“The parties appreciate consumers’ patience during this negotiation,” the companies said Sunday.

The stations impacted by the retrans impasse and Sunday signing include not only the legacy Cox Media Group stations but also those acquired by Apollo Global Management from Brian Brady’s Northwest Broadcasting and later merged into a new CMG under Apollo majority control.

The stations now back on DirecTV include:

• WSB-2, the ABC affiliate in Atlanta
• WFXT-25, the FOX affiliate in Boston
• WSOC-9, the ABC affiliate in Charlotte, and independent sibling WAXN-64
• WHIO-7 in Dayton, the market’s dominant station and a CBS affiliate
• WFOX-30 in Jacksonville, the FOX affiliate along Florida’s First Coast, and the MyNetwork TV affiliate using WFOX-30.2
• WHBQ-13, the FOX affiliate in Memphis
• WFTV-9, the ABC affiliate in Orlando, and unaffiliated WRDQ-27
• WPXI-11, the NBC affiliate in Pittsburgh
• KIRO-7, the CBS affiliate in Seattle
• KOKI-23, the FOX affiliate in Tulsa, and MyNetwork TV sibling KMYT-41
• FOX affiliate KAYU-28 in Spokane
• FOX affiliate WICZ-40 in Binghamton, N.Y.
• FOX affiliate WSYT-68 in Syracuse
• FOX affiliate KMVU-26 in Medford-Ashland, Ore.
• KPVI-6 in Idaho Falls, Idaho, a NBC affiliate
• KFFX-11 in Yakima, Wash., the market’s FOX affiliate, and simulcast partner KCYU-LD 41 in Tri-Cities, Wash.
• CBS affiliate KSWT-13; Estrella TV, on KSWT-13.2; and NBC affiliate KYMA-11 in Yuma, Ariz.
• KLAX-31 and KWCE-LP 27 in Alexandria, Va.
• WABG (ABC), WABG-HD2 (FOX), WNBD (NBC), and WXVT (CBS), all stations serving the Greenville-Greenwood, Miss., DMA.

The return of all of these stations to local DirecTV lineups on Sunday morning (2/7), after being yanked Tuesday (2/2), came following an all-out assault on Apollo and CMG by the American Television Alliance (ATVA).

“As a result of Wall Street giant Apollo Global Management’s ongoing and egregious broadcast blackout of its Cox Media Group subsidiary stations, fans in players’ hometowns and college towns won’t be able to watch them suit up with their team for Super Bowl LV this Sunday,” the ATVA stated in a communiqué released late Friday.

It noted how viewers in Seattle with DirecTV were threatened from being able to watch two former University of Washington football players now on the Buccaneers roster.

The ATVA also pointed to Alex Cappa, a Bucs Guard who once played at Humboldt State University in Eureka, Calif.

Chalk that up as another frustration point for locals who had to ensure a “blackout” of CMG-owned CBS affiliate KVIQ-14 and NBC sibling KIEM-3 on Suddenlink systems across much of January. That impasse led some in Humboldt County to drop Suddenlink and shift to DirecTV. Then came the DirecTV/CMG impasse.

Across the impasse with AT&T, CMG stuck to its guns — and even offered a statement that is wholly false.

We cannot force AT&T/DIRECTV to keep retransmitting our stations – we are dark because AT&T/DIRECTV has chosen to remove KIEM and KVIQ from its service. We are hopeful that AT&T/DIRECTV will abandon its blackout of our stations to the detriment of viewers in favor of meaningful negotiations that lead to a mutually beneficial deal for all parties. 

In retransmission consent negotiations, both the MVPD and the TV station owner are responsible for reaching a retransmission fee accord that is both prudent and fair to each party.

As AT&T and CMG fought just days after CMG and Altice USA-owned Suddenlink scuffled over a fresh retransmission consent deal, Rep. Jared Huffman spoke up, noting that he’s moving forward with a bill that would go far to end retrans impasses such as these.

“My constituents are tired of these finger pointing exercises where big media conglomerates blame each other while consumers get screwed by blackouts,” Huffman said. “I’m sure there’s some blame to go around, but CMG is the common denominator in the two recent blackouts. At a minimum, that suggests they’re not working proactively to protect consumers. At worst, it suggests they’re using consumers as hostages by letting blackouts happen to maximize their negotiating leverage.  Either way, it’s unacceptable.”

While viewers in big markets such as Seattle and Dayton were in the crosshairs of the potential Super Bowl “blackout,” it is smaller markets such as Eureka-Arcata, Calif.; Yuma, Ariz.; and Greenwood, Miss.; that have seen repeated squelching of signals presently owned by CMG.

In late January 2020, former Northwest Broadcasting stations under Apollo/CMG control were blocked by Dish Network due to a retrans impasse.

That followed a “blackout” by DirecTV of the Northwest-owned stations in October 2019, a reprise of earlier problems between the DBS provider and Brian Brady-led Northwest. In January 2011, the then-Northwest stations were prevented from reaching DirecTV customers in January 2011 and did not return until four weeks later, just in time for the Super Bowl. Then came a new impasse and “blackout,” in late August 2012.

Reporting by Ethan Hunt in Eureka, Calif. Editing by Adam R Jacobson in Boca Raton, Fla.

MORE FROM THE RBR+TVBR ARCHIVES:

Suddenly, Suddenlink Impasse With Cox Ends RBR-TVBR It was hardly expected, considering all of the back and forth rhetoric and typical “it’s their fault” statements between a TV station owner and an MVPD in the midst of heated negotiations during a retransmission consent accord impasse. But,  Altice USA-owned Suddenlink on Thursday restored each of the Cox Media Group stations that had blocked from viewers. Could Suddenlink/CMG Impasse Lead To Congressional Action? Adam Jacobson CMG stations once owned by Brian Brady’s Northwest Broadcasting have been blocked from Suddenlink customers due to a retransmisson consent fee impasse entering its third week. Now, the Member of Congress serving Northwest California is ready to take action on Capitol Hill that could help thwart such disputes — and the consumer harm they create. Apollo-Controlled CMG Caught In a Small MVPD Retrans War RBR-TVBR Despite what station management led by Rob Rohr (pictured) calls its “best efforts,” the dominant TV station serving Ohio’s Miami Valley was “blacked out” by a small MVPD serving a county due north of metropolitan Dayton. There’s a lot more to the story, as the county impacted is the subject of a 2018 FCC action that amended the market for this Dayton TV station.

 

A promotional image of the 635A from an Electro-Voice brochure.

No TV station today would send a crew to a news conference with a 16 mm film camera. Today’s radio reporter would think you were crazy if issued a reel-to-reel recorder before heading out on a story.

Audio and video have seen multiple generations of improvements leading to today’s digital gear. But for many radio and TV crews, one basic item has turned 55 years old and does not appear to be getting replaced.

In October 1965, Electro-Voice Vice President of Broadcast and Recording Equipment Lou Burroughs proclaimed, “The 635 is dead, long live the 635A!”

In a newsletter to customers, Burroughs wrote, “There is increasing demand for a small, lightweight, high-output microphone for stand and handheld use.” Click the image below to read the letter.

In a Broadcasting magazine full-page ad, Electro-Voice mentioned that the original 635 had been in use since 1947. The 635 was designed to be used on a stand: the cable connector was adjacent to threaded stand mount attached to the microphone through a hinge. It was unwieldy as a stick mic. The ad copy for the 635A included what at the time was a marketing boast, “the new 635A will take over as the new standard.” (Click the image to read the ad.)

It turned out to be a prescient line. With so little 1965 technology still in use, the endurance of the 635A is remarkable. Electro-Voice’s Guy Low attributes the longevity of “our most iconic product” in part to its utilitarian, workhorse role.

Burroughs noted what is likely the key to the 635A’s success. “I have one unit that was purposely dropped on hardwood and concrete floors 27 times during tests without altering its frequency response.”

One major market chief photographer referred to the 635A as a “hammer” for its resilience. There are 635As of uncertain vintage lurking in many an audio box, scuffed and perhaps with a dented screen, but still sounding as good as new.

While the 635A does not make as many appearances on entertainment TV as it used to, its presence is a unifying element for news conferences over the last six decades.

In 1967, Stanford University scientists announced a breakthrough in genetic research. At least three 635As were used to capture the sound of the event.

Electro-Voice management has not considered withdrawing the 635A from its catalog, as demand for the original model continues year after year.

“There isn’t necessarily a need for any bells and whistles to be added,” to the 635A, Low said. The original 635A model came in Electro-Voice’s standard fawn beige color and was 6 inches long. Over time, the company added a black color option, the 635L, which is 3.5 inches longer than the original, and the 635N/D-B, which uses Electro-Voice’s neodymium element.

EV 635A published frequency response

Electro-Voice’s Low adds the 635A is attracting a new generation of fans, “We are hearing from kids who are using these mics on stage and studio … and people like them because they are robust and durable and they kind of hearken back to the era when things were built to last.”

Electro-Voice aficionados were a bit concerned in 2006, when the company became part of the German conglomerate Bosch. The American name for microphones, speakers and other audio products was now part of an organization that made RTS intercoms but had many interests, including the aviation, automobile, and security sectors.

Low said little has changed as the parent firm, “lets each brand’s core competencies remain in place.”

Those same technical developments that have affected broadcasting have led to podcasting and home studios. Low added the company’s standard studio microphone, the RE20, is seeing record sales numbers, likely due to demand from podcasters trying to recreate the sound of radio stations, “people imitate what they see.”

Electro-Voice has no official records of how many 635A microphones have been sold in the unit’s 55-year history. But even if Electro-Voice were to discontinue its manufacture, its resiliency and the many thousands likely sold would keep the 635A in use for a long time to come.

Kevin Curran, Ph.D., is a veteran broadcast journalist and member of the journalism faculty at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles.

 

 

The post In Appreciation of the EV 635A appeared first on Radio World.

Its share price hasn’t been this strong since April 2019.

Now, armed with new vigor and ION Media properties in its stable, The E.W. Scripps Co. is busily preparing for a “special investor presentation” with its President/CEO and its Local Media President, among other C-Suite members.

Please Login to view this premium content. (Not a member? Join Today!)

An L-810 LED red obstruction light from Flight Light Inc. is compatible with night vision equipment.

Here’s a note for broadcasters who own their own towers:

The Federal Aviation Administration has known for more than a decade that certain high-intensity red LED-based obstruction lights on communication towers are visible to the naked eye but invisible to those wearing night vision goggles (NVG) in most cases.

The FAA previously issued advisories addressing non-NVG compatible LED lighting systems, but in November 2020 it levied final orders to require manufacturers meet a new specification for certified red LED-based obstruction lights that include Infrared (IR) emitters to make lighting systems more visible to pilots using NVG.

Several light manufacturers have already standardized on the new IR LED lighting, according to experts familiar with the issue.

The use of NVGs and Night Vision Imaging Systems (NVIS) is increasing in civilian aviation to conduct search-and-rescue, emergency medical transport and other flight operations, according to the FAA.

It says certain legacy LED lighting systems fall outside the combined visible and near-infrared spectrum of NVGs, and thus are not be visible to some flight crews. LED-based lighting has largely replaced incandescent technology for red (and some white) obstruction lighting because of its reduced maintenance requirements and extended service life.

Existing non-IR LED tower beacons are grandfathered in, but going forward all certified LED Aviation Obstruction Lighting installed for newly constructed towers or FAA circular updates must be NVG-friendly, according to the FAA.

Broadcasters who own tall towers will need to upgrade to the new certified red LED-based beacons in the normal course of replacing their tower lighting systems, according to the FAA. However, since the new specification ensures the light is visible to pilots operating with night vision goggles, there is risk of a pilot misinterpreting the tower height if a legacy intermediate-level light is replaced with one that meets the new specification unless the top light meets the new specification as well.

“Therefore, if a legacy specification intermediate-level LED-based light is replaced with a light that meets the new specifications, then the top-level light(s) on the obstruction must also meet the new specification to ensure the entire obstruction is visible during the use of night vision goggles,” according to the FAA Advisory Circular issued in November.

Tower consolidator Vertical Bridge recommends broadcasters call their lighting manufacturer and provide them with serial numbers of their red color LED obstruction markers to determine if the pre-existing fixtures on the tower are NVG compatible and are equipped with an IR emitter.

“Knowing that the rule change was coming for several years now, we started upgrading our systems as part of our normal repair and replace program. It’s important that tower owners, including broadcasters, use night vision goggle-friendly lighting going forward,” said Bernard Borghei of Vertical Bridge.

The FAA notes that failure of the IR component merits a NOTAM, a Notice to Airmen, and must be reported even though the LED light may still be flashing.

Any structure that exceeds 200 feet above ground level generally needs to be marked and/or lighted, according to the FAA.

[Related: “Vertical Bridge Remains in Acquisition Mode”]

The post Night Vision Issue Comes to Light appeared first on Radio World.

A drone’s eye view of a Vertical Bridge facility in Brunswick, Tenn.

High demand for tower space from wireless, broadband and data providers continues to drive up the value of communication towers across the United States.

Vertical Bridge, an acquisitive company formed by the former management team at wireless infrastructure company Global Tower Partners, continues to scoop up tower properties. Its purchase of Cumulus Media’s tower portfolio in the second half of 2020 aligned the telecommunication infrastructure company even more closely with broadcast radio.

Vertical Bridge has previously made headlines for its broadcast tower pursuits. iHeartMedia sold more than 400 of its broadcast towers to Vertical Bridge for $400 million in 2014. In recent years the tower consolidator has also announced notable broadcast structure deals to buy or manage tower properties for Townsquare Media, Cherry Creek Radio, Univision and Alpha Media.

Radio broadcasters continue to unlock value in their towers by selling off the assets and generating large amounts of cash. In most cases radio broadcasters lease back antenna space on the towers they sell, according to those familiar with the arrangements.

Selling off towers also means radio broadcasters are left without the worry of tower maintenance and the associated operational expenses. And in the case of Cumulus, the move brings in a large influx of needed cash.

The tower industry is booming with the fast spread of 5G and further TV repack work. Vertical Bridge has been quickly expanding its footprint. It already is the largest private owner and manager of communication tower infrastructure in the United States.

The company, founded in 2014, has approximately 2,000 broadcast towers in its portfolio. In total it says it has more than 290,000 owned and managed sites in the United States, which includes wireless and broadcast towers, rooftops and land parcels. It recently completed a merger with another tower company, Eco-Site, that brought in approximately 600 towers.

The Cumulus purchase was valued at $213 million and included 250 sites in 32 states, according to Cumulus filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The purchase has closed except for a few pending obtaining consent from landlords, according to Vertical Bridge. The remaining assignments are expected to be finalized in the first quarter of 2021.

Cumulus President/CEO Mary Berner said in a press release about the transaction last year that it was a way to “further add to our liquidity and contribute to significant incremental debt pay down.”

The leaseback period between Cumulus and Vertical Bridge is for 10 years, followed by five option periods of five years each, according to government filings by Cumulus.

“The annual lease payment obligation for the assets leased back in the initial closing is approximately $13.2 million, subject to customary escalators,” according to a Cumulus investor note in October.

Urban spread

Those properties were attractive for one very specific reason, said Bernard Borghei, co-founder and EVP of operations for Vertical Bridge — the same reason most tall broadcast sticks interest the company.

Bernard Borghei

“These tower properties were built 40, 50 and 60 years ago. These properties now exist in core urban areas. With the restrictions you have on zoning and permitting towers, these towers exist in locations where no one else can zone to build a tower,” Borghei said.

“These are assets we refer to as zoning protected. Meaning our competition cannot come in and try to build a new tower.”

Some of the former Cumulus tower sites are in the middle of urban areas in Chicago, Philadelphia and Los Angeles, he said, and are attractive to non-broadcast tenants as well.

“And as a real estate company we love the great locations,” Borghei said.

Vertical Bridge, headquartered in Boca Raton, Fla., leases tower space to radio and TV broadcasters, telecommunication carriers and other users of wireless technology.

Borghei believes the terrestrial radio broadcast industry is healthy enough to support Vertical Bridge’s long-term growth.

“Certainly we intersect closely with radio. We think the broadcast industry is on its own healthy. We could see that iHeart, once they restructured, would come out healthy and strong. We have that same feeling about Cumulus. We believe in that market sector and secured what is now the largest broadcast towers portfolio in the country.”

Vertical Bridge is owned by private equity groups including Digital Colony, The Jordan Company and Stonepeak Infrastructure Partners, along with private investment groups like the California State Teachers’ Retirement System. It has lease agreements with many regional radio broadcasters, Borghei said.

“The leaseback agreements help us maintain occupancy, of course. The lease terms are in line with what the tower industry is experiencing on the broadband side as well.”

Borghei said there are obvious advantages for radio broadcasters who sell their tower sites to Vertical Bridge.

“Some of the broadcast companies needed to raise capital. And didn’t want the ongoing maintenance cost of looking after these really tall towers,” Borghei said. “Broadcast towers require time and money to maintain. I think many broadcast companies are optimizing their resources and their engineering teams. And they don’t have to worry about having cap ex allocations in their budgets to maintain these towers.”

The company handles the obstruction lighting, painting, structural inspections and ground maintenance of the towers they own and manage, he said. Vertical Bridge also maintains generators and HVAC systems while keeping abreast of all FAA and FCC regulatory requirements (see sidebar).

Borghei says the company’s pipeline for mergers and acquisitions of broadcast towers remains strong.

“(Vertical Bridge) is keenly interested in further broadcast tower projects to develop. Operating a broadcast tower is quite different than a broadband tower. We understand both. You have to have that understanding to be able to work with different tenants, and especially live broadcast companies.”

The integration of 5G remains a primary focus of Vertical Bridge’s infrastructure plans, Borghei said, including the plans of Dish Network now that that company has been confirmed as the fourth national 5G network. Dish has said it will begin its 5G network buildout in earnest in the second quarter.

“More 5G and CBRS [Citizens Broadband Radio Service] networks are beginning to take hold. It’ll also be interesting to see who comes out and owns what as a result of the C-band spectrum auction. That’s very valuable spectrum, and it looks like Verizon and AT&T are the top two,” Borghei said.

Borghei said the COVID-19 pandemic has done little to slow the growth of Vertical Bridge despite some challenges.

“For us 2020 was a heck of a year. From a business perspective it was a tremendous year from the Cumulus acquisition to closing the Eco-Site merger. And our new build program has been extremely successful. We continue to have a lot of new tower builds and we don’t expect that to slow down in 2021,” he said. “The majority of our new towers are 180 to 250 feet for 5G and 4G densification upgrading to 5G.”

In fact, 5G plays a critical role in Vertical Bridge’s pursuit of tall broadcast towers, Borghei said.

“Broadcasters are typically at the top of the towers but then you have the 400 to 500 feet beneath broadcast available for broadband carriers looking to deploy 5G. And again we own towers in locations where no one else can ever zone a new tower,” he said.

Other major ownership groups making notable deals to sell off communication towers in recent years include Townsquare Media, who sold 43 towers and property to Vertical Bridge for approximately $22.8 million in 2016, and Cox Enterprises, which sold all but one of its towers to InSite Wireless Group in 2015.

[Also read “Night Vision Issue Comes to Light”]

The post Vertical Bridge Remains in Acquisition Mode appeared first on Radio World.

The author is executive director of the National Federation of Community Broadcasters. NFCB commentaries are featured regularly at www.radioworld.com.

This was quite a wild week for news. Radio was asked to respond to events in Washington, the ongoing confusion about vaccination in communities, and the sundry local stories that come up each day. However, a particularly important study on radio should not be missed.

Many community broadcasters focus on volunteer recruitment and offering an assortment of programming. For generations, the reasoning has been “the more, the merrier” — the more voices on the air, the more access you create, the more support and word-of-mouth marketing your station can build. However, with generational change comes a change in thinking. More local stations are focusing on training and giving DJs a baseline of expectations. They recognize the hosts want to sound better, want to represent the station well, and stations are finding a lack of attention to what goes out over the air can damage community relationships and make engagement and revenue much more demanding.

[Read: Community Broadcaster: Distant Tension]

This week, NuVoodoo Media Services revealed its study of 3,500 radio listeners, aged 14–54, on a variety of topics. One area looked at a cornerstone of radio: the DJ. What people said may inform your training, or even get your station thinking differently about your hosts.

Among the more shocking things to come up? Millennials and Generation Z listeners feel stations would be better off without DJs, at least more than their older counterparts. By a lot.

In fact, almost 75% of Gen-Z gives DJs a “Meh,” noting they either have no use or are okay, but don’t add anything to listening. Millennials were slightly better, at 63% who felt the same way. 43% of Generation X audiences found DJs made listening more enjoyable, compared to just 26% of Gen-Z.

NuVoodoo promises to get more into these issues on an upcoming webinar, though to most observers in radio, what’s lending to these perceptions may be quite obvious.

Streaming services, podcasting and micro-content distributed on social media and platforms have changed how we perceive programming as well as listening experiences. Generation X’s formative media experiences weren’t in a world that was nearly as disintermediated. For subsequent generations, faster, shorter and on our terms are baselines, not bonuses. As a result, the days of the DJ with long stories or inane trivia may not be over, but seem destined for limited, older audiences. Surely there may be exceptions, but that seems the forecast.

Community media and local stations have long leaned on unique on-air personalities to foster relationships with audiences. As there are demographic shifts in how people listen to the programming a station puts out, however, we in radio must evolve. Thus, it is the responsibility of a station to think carefully through how hosts use their precious time on the microphone.

Every station or network will come up with their own solutions, but it is certain that many leaders may look at the length of breaks and what is being conveyed during that time. The million dollar question: how can you create that memorable moment for a listener that isn’t a turn-off or take up too much time? Future radio, in this regard, is very exciting.

These issues are more than DJs and personalities, but our community relationships and our bridge-building to new generations of listeners. No one has all the answers yet, but if you are in radio, how millennials and Gen-Z hear you is critical to your success.

The post Community Broadcaster: DJing the Generational Divide appeared first on Radio World.

Sergio Sanchez with an AEQ Olympia commentary unit.

The author is R&D engineer at AEQ and was the technical coordinator for the project described.

This article appeared in Radio World’s “Trends in Codecs and STLs for 2020” ebook.

At times it seems that “media” is everywhere. Smartphones provide immediate content from seemingly every corner humans visit. Drones and small GoPro-style cameras add another omnipresent dimension. The world is awash in multimedia material that can be turned into usable/sellable content.

Designers of new buildings already pack them with media-friendly digital infrastructure. Hoping to take advantage of an opportunity, many owners of aging, media-constrained venues are refurbishing their facilities to take advantage of the growing media world.

Dynamo National Olympic Stadium is the largest multipurpose stadium in Minsk, Belarus. It was reconfigured a few years ago so it could hold not only football matches but also athletics and other kinds of events, making into a venue with an international scope. It was reopened in December 2017, in time to setup for the 2019 European Games.

This international profile is reflected by the attendance of sports journalists from all over the world for live broadcasting. With that expanded mission, Dynamo National Olympic Stadium managers selected AEQ commentary system with 150 positions, each one equipped with an AEQ Olympia commentary unit. This allows more than 150 international TV and radio stations to broadcast events from Minsk simultaneously. Each of those can customize its language, style and media personalities.

[Check Out More of Radio World’s Ebooks Here]

The whole stadium offers Dante-AES67 AoIP multichannel technology provided by AEQ equipment. A powerful AEQ BC2000D audio matrix was installed, allowing for centralization and distribution of all the audio signals produced in the building.

In order for the commentary positions to communicate with the rightsholder stations or RHBs for each event, 150 AEQ Phoenix Stratos audio codecs were installed. Each one is able to establish two bidirectional circuits between the station and the commentary units. One of them is normally used to carry the program and program feedback, while the other commonly operates as a coordination channel.

Banks of AEQ Phoenix Stratos codecs installed at Minsk Olympic Stadium.

Each codec has front-panel controls; however, it would be chaos if each codec operator could take control of the system. Fortunately there is a control software available so AEQ’s ControlPhoenix software application is being used to establish and supervise the up to 300 simultaneous connections that can be established with the 150 audio codecs.

AEQ Stratos is a suitable audio codec for this purpose because:

• It is a dual codec, so the same device can establish the program and coordination circuits.
• It is developed according to EBU N/ACIP standards, so it can communicate with most any third-party codec that may be in a broadcast facility inventory.
• Besides operating with IP networks, it can also establish connections using synchronous ISDN and even V.35 lines, allowing for an alternative path to establish a link.
• Stratos audio codec includes several state-of-the-art audio algorithms, such as Opus, the new standard for broadcast-quality audio communications, as well as legacy codecs for ISDN communications and guaranteed third-party compatibility, such as G.722 or MPEG2.
• It offers both analog and AES/EBU digital input/output connectivity with external synchronization capability, plus ancillary data transport, seamlessly emulating RS-232 protocol over the IP audio stream and GPI/O connections for external signaling.
• ControlPhoenix software provides full remote control of codec installations ranging from one to several hundred Phoenix family devices. Control is possible locally or from anywhere in the world, if so required, using an internet connection. This software application is provided for free with all AEQ Phoenix codecs while a license is only necessary to simultaneously manage more than two devices. It includes call list management, full configuration, real time VU meters, audio alarms, event logging, etc.

Eurovision Sport was the event’s broadcasting partner. Eurovision used the Phoenix Stratos audio codecs in order to send the audio from commentators speaking all the different languages throughout infrastructure.

Some of the most important international sports events held in the remodeled Minsk stadium include the Second European Games and The Match Europe vs. USA track and field competition.

The Second European Game featured 4,000 athletes from 50 European countries competing in 15 sports.

For those games the real-time broadcasting production used a total of 12 OB vans and more than 200 cameras. Seven hundred broadcasting professionals ensured that the signals were properly produced and reached the 190 rights-holding broadcasters around the globe. More than 600 live and nearly 800 recorded coverage hours were produced.

The Match Europe vs USA, conducted in September 2019, gathered 300 world-class athletes who competed in 37 different track and field events.

 

The post AEQ Codecs Deliver International Content From Minsk appeared first on Radio World.

 

With advances in AI and machine learning, as well as the connectivity promised by 5G, the potential for smart speakers to start conversations isn’t far off.

 

The author of this commentary is CEO and founder of AdTonos.

Audio is an innately powerful and personal medium that delivers the soundtrack to consumer lives.

Michal Marcinik of AdTonos

When listeners tune in to their favorite radio stations, they build trusted relationships with presenters — feeling like they’re being spoken to directly. When music is streamed, keen subscribers can access meticulously curated playlists full of meaning and memories. And when a podcast is carefully selected, the audiences’ personal knowledge expands.

As we move deeper into 2021, audio is in the midst of an interactive transformation that will ensure the listening experience is even more personal and engaging.

Spurred on by the increased adoption and acceptance of voice assistants and smart speakers, this presents an exciting opportunity for advertisers to truly connect with listeners at a one-to-one level.

The acceleration of audio interactivity

Listening to audio is no longer a passive activity as consumers are increasingly comfortable integrating their voice assistants and smart speakers into their everyday lives. A Juniper report revealed that consumers are expected to interact with voice assistants on 8.4 billion devices across the globe by 2024, up from 4.2 billion at the end of 2020.

Smart speaker adoption is growing particularly quickly, indicating that users trust the technology and find it beneficial.

Worldwide smart speaker sales reached almost 147 million in 2019 — an increase of 70% on the previous year — and by 2027 the global smart speaker market is projected to be worth an impressive $19 billion. In the U.K., more than a quarter of consumers already own a smart speaker, and this proportion looked set to grow over the 2020 Christmas period, with almost 20% of people planning to gift a digitally connected device. Whether it’s Amazon’s Echo, Google’s Nest or Apple’s HomePod, smart speakers are becoming an accepted feature of the modern home.

Smart speakers and voice assistants can respond — in a conversational manner — to hundreds of different commands, meaning audio is gaining a strong sense of utility for users. Asking Siri for an update on lockdown restrictions or instructing Alexa to play a favorite radio show is no longer a novelty, but a practical and productive use of established technology.

And the audio landscape is set to develop in more complex ways, with a view to provide smart speaker users with greater flexibility, such as booking doctors’ appointments, purchasing event tickets or adding items to shopping lists.

Initiating two-way communication

Audio interactions are still largely initiated by the user, however with advances in artificial intelligence and machine learning, as well as the connectivity promised by the arrival of 5G, the potential for smart speakers to start the conversation first isn’t far off.

We’re already seeing brands experiment with the potential of two-way communication. For example, interaction triggers within audio ads can be inserted into commercial radio content, inviting the listener to respond using a pre-defined voice invocation and initiating the process of interaction between voice assistant and listener.

We developed our YoursTruly technology to do exactly this and deployed it for the first time last year in partnership with Octave, for Omnicom Media Group’s PHD client, Audi.

[Read: “AdTonos Promotes Interactive Audio Ads”]

When played through a smart speaker, the first ad of a commercial break featured a verbal call-to-action, to which interested listeners had the ability to engage with the voice assistant to complete a specific task, such as booking a test drive, before the listener was returned to the live radio station.

Raising the bar for listener engagement

Interactive audio advertising not only allows brands to nurture one-to-one customer relationships and deliver highly engaging advertising experiences, it also delivers valuable measurement data. Brands are able to see precisely how users interacted with their audio messaging and compare campaign results with other digital marketing channels. Additionally, interactive advertising provides publishers with a new way to monetize content, making audio even more attractive as an advertising medium.

Audio is already an incredibly emotive and engaging channel. As adoption of smart speakers and voice assistants escalates, the sense of utility will become more established and new technologies will further enable true two-way communication, welcoming a new age of audio interactivity.

Comment on this or any story. Email radioworld@futurenet.com.

The post Entering the Age of Audio Interactivity appeared first on Radio World.

iHeartMedia and Cumulus Media vet Don Pollnow is heading for Alabama’s capital city to oversee Cumulus’ six Montgomery radio stations. As the new vice president and market manager he’ll have his hands on WMXS(FM), WLWI(AM/FM), WMSP(AM), WXFX(FM) and WHHY(FM).

Pollnow comes over from iHeartMedia where he most recently was market president for Wichita, Kan.. He has been with Cumulus previously, running the Green Bay, Wis., operation.

He has also worked for NRG Media, Renda Broadcasting and LM Communications.

Send your people news to radioworld@futurenet.com.

 

The post Pollnow Moves to Cumulus Montgomery appeared first on Radio World.