Industry News

Telestream, known for its file-based media workflow orchestration, media streaming and delivery technologies, has brought to market the latest version of Wirecast, its live production and streaming platform.

“The new version is filled with features that users have asked for as Wirecast continues to be relied on for remote production and live streaming as well as a capture source for further postproduction and editing,” the company says.

Wirecast’s Rendezvous peer-to-peer remote conferencing and multi-site production feature now includes a back-channel chat feature enabling behind-the-scenes messaging between hosts and guests. “Replicating an on-set comms network, it helps keep programs organized and professional with no surprises during live events,” Telestream claims.

For Wirecast Pro, the new Shot ISO feature allows users to independently record any shot to disk including Rendezvous shots, audio-only shots, or any user-generated shots.

The latest version also supports Secure Reliable Transport (SRT) output using the Caller
method with either x264 or Apple H.264 encoding. SRT is an open-source video transport
protocol that enables the delivery of high-quality and secure, low-latency video across the
public Internet.

The release contains several new features and updates as requested by the user
community. These include ProRes encoding on Windows, for both ISO recording and record
to disk; performance and efficiency improvements for playback of PNG animations, and
restoring the ability to easily bring audio from any application into Wirecast on a Mac.

At the same time, an updated Blackmagic SDK adds new resolution options and improves capturing at certain resolutions. Additionally, Rendezvous connection improvements provide users with better reconnection if Rendezvous guests are disconnected.

A new online event on April 1 will provide a spring convention feel to radio and pro audio professionals who want to learn about new products and technology and network with colleagues and manufacturers.

Future plc, the parent company of Radio World, has announced the Pro Audio & Radio Tech Summit, a free one-day online show produced jointly by Mix magazine, Pro Sound News and Radio World.

The event will feature a virtual exhibition floor, panel presentations, live chat and numerous media presentations showcasing technologies and trends in both radio and pro audio, on two separate session tracks.

“It’s been a challenging year across all entertainment and technology markets, but also a transformative one,” says Paul McLane, editor in chief of Radio World.

“We’ve seen changes in workflow, changes in how we collaborate, and rapid changes in distribution of all media. But users and manufacturers have stepped up, often in creative ways, to ensure that talented people have the right tools to produce quality audio and broadcast content. We plan to explore the state of the industry and highlight some of the trends and success stories from across the country.”

The event will use the vFairs virtual events platform, which provides attendees with an impressive convention-live user interface and facilitates interaction and networking.

The Pro Audio Track will feature sessions on remote production, the multipurpose house of worship studio, the rise of immersive music, audio networking technologies, and improved audio for education.

The Radio Track will feature sessions on hybrid radio, Android Automotive, AoIP, virtualization, streaming, and trends in transmission. These topics will be of interest to any radio broadcast manager or engineer who manages technology or uses it to advance their careers and business missions.

Learn more and register here.

The post Pro Audio & Radio Tech Summit Announced appeared first on Radio World.

A dramatic new transmission tower that stands above Istanbul, Turkey, includes 100 liquid-cooled Rohde & Schwarz FM transmitters.

The manufacturer said it was picked to provide FM infrastructure at the striking Camlica Tower by transmission service provider Kule Verici Tesisleri Isletim Ve Teknolojileri A.S. “after many other companies claimed the transmission challenge was impossible to achieve.”

[See Our Who’s Buying What Page]

R&S quoted the project management as citing transmitter efficiency and a small footprint as one of the reasons for choosing its model.

The visually striking TV/radio tower, about 1,200 feet high, is on a hill overlooking the city. According to news reports the structure replaces numerous older transmission towers, and features restaurants, observation decks looking out over the Bosporus Strait, and exhibits. It is expected to be a major tourist attraction.

See more photos of the structure.

Send news for Radio World’s Who’s Buying What coverage to radioworld@futurenet.com.

The post R&S Celebrates Istanbul Tower Project appeared first on Radio World.

The battle of the QSRs is on at Spot TV, the latest Media Monitors Spot Ten TV report shows.

While McDonald’s remains a top 5 advertiser, Wendy’s is revving up its activity.

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RBR+TVBR OBSERVATION

It’s funny what a simple Google search will yield. Seeking airchecks from WHTZ “Z100” in New York, the famed Top 40 station, from thirty years ago, we stumbled across an article in The New York Times from July 28, 1991.

Upon reading it in its entirety, it was remarkable to notice just how similar today’s Top 40 radio issues are to back then.

Dude … that’s just sad. Hasn’t the recording industry and radio station owners and operators learned anything from those “dark days,” perhaps a bit more bleak due to the nearly year-long COVID-19 pandemic?

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Quick: At what time of the day does most U.S. radio listening take place? It’s not the traditional drive time hours, despite what you might think.

That’s the topic of a new blog post by Pierre Bouvard of Westwood One, who says misperceptions among ad buyers about radio listening can hurt those companies.

[Read: Determining How Many Ads a Station Needs to Run to Get Results]

“Some advertisers only buy drive times thinking they are getting most of AM/FM radio’s audience,” he writes —understandable given radio’s strength in vehicles.

But in truth 39% of AM/FM radio listening occurs during drive times, “a stark difference in perceived and actual AM/FM radio listening.” Middays actually are the most listened to time period.

The highest share of time spent among adults 25 to 54 is middays, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., with 26%, though the morning and afternoon drive times certainly are also strong. Bouvard notes that middays are helped by the fact that their defined time slot is five hours long.

“There is also a major disconnect about weekend listening. Advertisers perceive only 12% of all listening occurs during the weekend. The Nielsen reality is 21% — bigger than morning drive.”

He concludes that the common advertising rule to “only buy drive times” is actually myth that is “dangerous and harmful to advertiser sales growth,” missing 60% of the AM/FM radio audience, reducing reach and harming advertiser sales “lift.”

He also says that despite the pandemic, the share of AM/FM radio listening by daypart is very stable.

Read the post.

The post Drive Time Ain’t the Only Time appeared first on Radio World.

Looking for the little green gecko?

He’s not here right now. However, how would you like to translate your latest copy into Spanish, Mandarin Chinese or Hmong?

The leading advertiser at broadcast radio for the final week of January 2021 may be of help.

As shown below, Babbel is the No. 1 brand using Spot Radio, according to the latest Media Monitors report. And, it is in the lead with a commanding 68,084 spots — slightly more than the current COVID-19 related CDC campaign.

Meanwhile, it is not GEICO but Progressive that has the auto insurance category lead at spot radio.

Otherwise, more brand consistency is present, with Bank of America and sister brand Merrill each in the latest Spot Ten Radio report.

In recent years, tuning to Channel 32 in Columbus, Ohio, on any TV with a digital antenna attached to it would have yielded the Movies! affiliate, with the Weigel Broadcasting diginet siblings Heroes & Icons and Start TV networks on its DT signals.

Now, the low-power TV station serving the Buckeye State’s capital region is being sold to a religious broadcaster that’s held a Time Brokerage Agreement for the facility since 2019.

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BOCA RATON, FLA. — From a low-rise office building housing Newsmax on the ground floor and its corporate offices on the second floor, Vertical Bridge has established itself as a formidable presence in the world of tower ownership.

Now, the competitor to Steve Bernstein’s SBA, just up the street; Crown Castle; and American Tower Corp. has struck a potentially game-changing deal with Dish Network Corp. that will go a long way toward helping the DBS provider become a major 5G player nationwide.

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Entercom Communications distributed “an important update” on Monday morning regarding one of its most important audio brands.

“Later in 2021,” its Brand Manager — the Sports Format Captain for the entire company — will step down from day-to-day oversight of WFAN-AM & FM in New York and CBS Sports Radio.

What’s next for Entercom … and for Mark Chernoff?

Many are likely asking that question, as Chris Oliviero, Sr. VP and Market Manager for Entercom/New York, wrote in a company memo to the local staff that “[a]fter nearly 30 years of unmatched success,” Chernoff will be relieved of day-to-day oversight of WFAN and for CBS Sports Radio “after a worthy successor has been identified.”

While that will come over the next 11 months, Chernoff notes it won’t be rushed. “Trust me,” Oliviero wrote. “[It] will be no easy task.”

And, “since no one knows the job better,” Oliviero said Chernoff will be a member of the search committee for the next sports content lead for both brands. Until that time, he’ll remain fully responsible for all operations.

Chernoff will continue on as an advisor to WFAN after the search and transition is
complete.

Oliviero commented, “I was lucky enough to first meet Mark in 1998 in his windowless sub-sub-basement office out at the Kaufman Astoria Studios in Queens. I was a college grad groveling for part-time board op shifts at WFAN. That began a relationship that has evolved into one of the most rewarding, important and genuine friendships of my entire life. One that I have and always will cherish.”

Chernoff’s tenure at WFAN includes overseeing a Sports Talk giant that gained an FM signal, the former WPIX-FM and WQCD-FM at 101.9 MHz; saw Imus in the Morning continue the legacy of the former WNBC-AM; and gain a huge legion of fans through such sports talk shows as Mike & The Mad Dog.

While those programs may be top of mind, “no name has been more responsible for the consistent excellence of ‘The Fan’ than ‘Chernoff,’” Oliviero said.