Radio+Television Business Report

He was an engineer and loved electronics and technology. That passion helped fuel a career as a cable television pioneer in Southwest Missouri, and the co-founding in 1993 with Stan Searle of the “Small Cable Business Association.”

That association is now known as ACA Connects, and it is being joined by others across the cable TV industry in mourning the passing of Alvin “Dean” Peterson.

Peterson died on August 8, two days shy of his 81st birthday.

His family built and owned cable and radio systems across the Springfield, Mo., region, while also serving in an advocacy role in Washington, D.C., to help advance cable TV industry issues at the FCC and on Capitol Hill.

Peterson served as president of Southwest Missouri Cable TV in Carthage, Mo., until its sale in 1999. At that time, Peterson stepped down from the board of what had become the American Cable Association (ACA).

“Everyone at ACA Connects is deeply saddened to hear the news of Dean Petersen’s passing,” ACA Connects President/CEO Matthew Polka said. “ACA Connects simply would not be here today without Dean’s vision and wisdom.”

Peterson and Searle created the Small Cable Business Association to create a voice in Washington, D.C., for independent, smaller providers in reaction to passage of the Cable Television Consumer Protection and Competition Act of 1992 and the FCC’s implementation of the rules associated with the legislation.

Services were held August 12 at at Knell Mortuary in Carthage, Mo., with a private burial following a service.

Sinclair Broadcast Group has chosen the individual who will succeed company sales veteran Dan Mellon, who retired on July 31.

It’s an individual with more than 25 years of experience in the broadcast and cable industry.

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As the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) reviews the results of a two-day attendee poll designed to help guide the nation’s biggest advocacy group for radio and TV stations on mask and/or vaccination protocols for its annual affair in Las Vegas, the organizers of the largest annual convention and expo to take place in the city has wasted no time in issuing a vaccination declaration for all in-person attendees.

The Consumer Technology Association (CTA) on Tuesday formally announced in an email communique that CES 2022, the world’s biggest technology event and an increasingly important convention for radio industry leaders, will require in-person attendees to provide proof of COVID-19 vaccination.

What’s notable is that CES 2022 is scheduled to take place in Las Vegas on January 5-8, 2022. The NAB Show, which is eschewing a hybrid option, is scheduled to begin October 9, with the Radio Show events held October 13-14. As of now, it is reviewing its options while assuring the safety of participants will be stringent and per current guidelines.

Furthermore, those that are unable to travel to CES 2022 will have access to a digital event that will run in parallel with the in-person program. While this will not offer the same experience, the CTA says digital audiences “will have the opportunity to share the spirit of the in-person event.”

CTA President/CEO Gary Shapiro explains, “Based on today’s science, we understand vaccines offer us the best hope for stopping the spread of COVID-19. We all play a part in ending the pandemic through encouraging vaccinations and implementing the right safety protocols. We are taking on our responsibility by requiring proof of vaccination to attend CES 2022 in Las Vegas.”

CTA is also assessing the acceptance of proof of a positive antibody test as an alternative requirement and will share more details on this later.

In Las Vegas, CES 2022 attendees will be able to interact with representatives from some 2000 companies — including companies in the nascent space tech, food tech and NFT categories.

The show will undoubtedly highlight advancements in AI, AR/VR, gaming and computing, digital health, automotive and transportation, home entertainment, and the smart home.

Live keynotes from GM Chair/CEO Mary Barra and T-Mobile CEO Mike Sievert remain on the schedule.

The company formerly known as Entercom is also the owner of a digital streaming app formerly known as Radio.com, and both now use the Audacy name.

While Audacy’s radio stations dominate the Audacy app found on smartphones and other devices, companies including Cox Media Group and Seven Mountains Media have partnered with Audacy to help bring their audio streams to the widest audience possible.

The nation’s leading media company focused on Black consumers has followed their lead.

Audacy has signed a content distribution partnership with Urban One, bringing their radio stations audio streams and on-demand content to the Audacy digital platform. Already, one can stream such stations as WKYS-FM in Washington from the Audacy app; localized advertising is heard pre-roll, based on information provided to Audacy from the user’s app.

The partnership is non-exclusive, as Urban One’s radio stations are also accessible via the TuneIn app and the iHeartRadio app.

This makes Urban One’s radio properties universally accessible across the three primary radio streaming apps found in the U.S.

Some 57 radio stations across 13 Urban One markets are now on the Audacy platform.

“This partnership underscores our unwavering commitment to amplifying diverse voices and delivering premier audio content to the communities in which we serve,” said Corey Podolsky, Vice President of Business Development at Audacy. “We’re delighted to unite with a power player in the audio space to expand and enhace our content offering and add dozens of dynamic brands to our library.”

Alec Drake, the Director of Sales for Cumulus Media’s radio stations in the Dallas-Fort Worth market, is retiring.

The company revealed August 17 that he will depart the stations at the end of August. This puts the wheels in motion on a series of promotions, with a VP/Sales named as two other individuals take key posts.

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There’s a new Vice President and GM for Nexstar Media Group‘s FOX affiliate in DMA No. 139.

He’ll also oversee the operational agreements Nexstar holds with the Mission Broadcasting-owned ABC affiliate serving this market.

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Independent Out of Home (OOH) media specialist Talon is rolling out a new connected video offering that unifies over-the-top (OTT) and digital out-of-home (DOOH) advertising.

As such, Talon is joining forces with MadHive to connect digital audiences across two of the fastest growing advertising channels in the U.S. — OTT and DOOH.

Madhive joins Hivestack as a strategic partner to enhance its services and solutions to serve their current and prospective clients.

Talon will utilize MadHive’s proprietary platform to connect advertisers to premium connected TV (CTV) inventory and its end-to-end campaign planning tools for audience targeting, measurement, and attribution. “Combining OTT and DOOH makes perfect sense,” said Adam Helfgott, CEO of MadHive. “It allows buyers to plan, activate, and measure two rapidly expanding media channels that represent an even larger percentage of marketers spend. The cross-channel platform will deliver a more holistic picture of the customer journey by creating new currencies and insights on a single audience — all while simplifying brand workflow.”

DOOH domestic advertising spend is projected to reach $3.84 billion by the end of 2023, according to Statista. Further, eMarketer notes that U.S. programmatic DOOH ad spend doubled last year and is projected to reach $533.8 million by 2022.

“The growth of digital video is fueling the movement from in-home to out-of-home and we’re empowering advertisers to activate their cross-channel video strategy of reaching high-value audiences at scale, whether it’s a traditional managed service or a self-service approach,” said Jim Wilson, CEO of Talon America. “As marketers look for measurable incremental reach and the ability to tie campaign spending to business results, we’re enabling advertisers to start an OOH journey in-home. By bringing to market new solutions with MadHive and Hivestack, we’re connecting audience data across OTT and DOOH to deliver outcome-based campaigns as advertiser demand on each channel reaches new heights.”

Hivestack’s Supply Side Platform (SSP) will programmatically feed DOOH screen inventory to MadHive, that will serve as the demand-side platform (DSP) for activation across OTT and DOOH leveraging Talon’s Ada audience segments.

Believe it or not, students in Palm Beach County, Fla., are in their second week of school while neighboring Broward County welcomes students back on Wednesday.

In other parts of the nation, there’s still plenty of time to plan for the start of the school year. And, that led Walmart to bump up its spot plays at the TV stations tracked by Media Monitors.

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It’s a rarity these days — a Director of Engineering for a licensee of AM and FM radio stations.

Yet, a media company known for experiential marketing opportunities across the Empire State and its collection of radio stations has one. And, he’s celebrating 20 years on the job.

Tim Backer, who holds the Director of Engineering title at Galaxy Media Partners, joined the company on August 11, 1981.

He’s still with the company today.

“Many — if not most — broadcast stations don’t have engineers on site anymore,” said Ed Levine, President and CEO of Galaxy Media.  “Galaxy not only has an engineer on site, but we have also had the same engineer for 20 years. Tim has and continues to be a huge part of the Galaxy Media Team.  We appreciate all his hard work and dedication to our local company.”

In recognition of his two decades of service, Backer will receive a brand-new engineering vehicle of his choice for his 2am drives to remote engineering sites during the Central New York winters, Levine says.

Galaxy owns 13 radio stations, all located in New York.

There’s a new leader on the latest Spot Ten Radio report from Media Monitors.

And, it demonstrates that one auto insurance brand isn’t trimming its ad commitment to broadcast radio.

As shown below, Progressive is the top paid advertiser using spot radio to reach consumers for the week ending August 15. It’s thanks to just shy of 50,000 spots.

By comparison, Babbel saw a play count of 48,806 as Indeed accounted for 46,368 spot plays.

Nautel’s “Transmission Talk Tuesday” series continues this month with discussions on MPX over AES, Building with Raspberry Pi, and a special session on “Best Practices – Dashboard Presence.”

The sessions are designed to be interactive, with attendees contributing their thoughts and questions throughout each session.

Getting the sound from here to there, over AES or IP, will be the topic on Tuesday (8/17).

The Telos Alliance’s Kirk Harnack will join Nautel’s Jeff Welton to talk about the various forms of MPX delivery and will include practical examples of implementation in the field. microMPX will also be discussed.

An August 24 session will delve into Raspberry Pi. Welton will bring in Nautel’s Alex
Hartman, who will show some of the designs he has done using Raspberry Pi and Arduino
technology.

The last session of the month, taking place on August 31, covers a topic that is not normally discussed in technical sessions: how to configure your RDS for optimal presence on the car dashboard.

“In this session, we’ll discuss how what you put on your RDS can make a big difference in the appearance on the dashboard – and going forward, it will make a significant impact on your stations’ ability to work with hybrid radio,” said Welton.

Joining him is NAB VP of Advanced Engineering David Layer, and Lawrence Galkoff, General Manager of Radioplayer Worldwide Ltd.

All Transmission Talk Tuesday sessions begin at noon Eastern; pre-registration is required.

For more information and to register, visit Nautel.com/webinars/. Sessions are also posted online for those who are unable to join the live chats.

As with traditional Nautel Webinars, ½ SBE recertification credit is available for attending each session.

Marketron, the provider of enterprise revenue management and digital software solutions, will host a free webinar on August 25 demonstrating how broadcasters’ sales teams can leverage video, OTT, and CTV ads to increase the size and quantity of their digital orders.

During the live event, “Video Explosion! How to Sell More in 2021,” Marketron representatives will explain the differences between these critical digital tactics and how sales teams can use them to enhance the value of their proposals and capture a greater share of rapidly growing video advertising revenues.

The webinar, which begins at 1pm Eastern, features Jeff Ulrich, Marketron senior manager of digital transformation and enablement, and Mark Weidel, Marketron senior training and onboarding associate. Ulrich and Weidel will delve into the details of how broadcasters and sales teams can plan, prepare, produce and promote campaigns that leverage the latest video, OTT and CTV ad tactics to deliver stronger results for advertisers.

Ulrich is a 35-year local broadcast industry veteran, having held sales and sales management roles in both Top 10 and mid-sized markets, working closely with local business owners, ad agencies, media sales managers and salespeople across radio, television, print and digital media. In 2018 he was recognized by the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) with its Education in Excellence Award.

Weidel has spent more than three-and-a-half decades in general management and directorial positions in the sports broadcasting and media management fields. The two Marketron experts will conclude the webinar with a Q&A, taking questions submitted by attendees during and after their presentation.

The National Association of Broadcasters on Monday distributed via email a request for attendee input for its upcoming NAB Show, which will see the NAB/RAB co-produced Radio Show staged at the Las Vegas Convention Center in October.

While the NAB reiterates that it welcomes the opportunity after a year and a half for “Coming Together, Safely,” it’s also asking its audience to weigh on potential mask and/or vaccination mandates for all participants.

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Founded in 2018, Desert Mountain Broadcasting has rapidly expanded through acquisitions to amass a stable of 12 stations and 3 translators in the Montana markets of Billings and Bozeman.

It’s poised to grow once again.

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From Podcast Business Journal

iHeartMedia has launched a new podcast network called Cool Zone Media with journalist Robert Evans. Cool Zone Media debuted today with the first episode of the new daily podcast “It Could Happen Here.”

Evans, who will serve as the head of content for Cool Zone Media, will be joined by the iHeartPodcast Network’s executive producer, Sophie Lichterman, who will become Cool Zone Media’s head of creative for the network.

“Remember when the world didn’t feel like it was coming apart? Neither do I,” said Evans. “Cool Zone Media won’t mince words: we are currently living through the collapse of the known and the birth of a new unknown. This new network will chronicle the journey and provide advice and access to those voices trying to build a better future.”

This September, Cool Zone Media will debut its second original podcast “Assault on America.” Written and co-produced by one of the United Kingdom’s leading independent podcast companies, Novel, the show will examine the events of January 6, 2021 in Washington, DC.

“We are excited to launch Cool Zone Media to help elevate vital political voices and viewpoints that are so often overlooked,” said Will Pearson, Chief Operating Officer, iHeartPodcast Network. “With a combined 100 million plus downloads across Robert’s current iHeartRadio podcasts, the appetite for this unfiltered brand of investigative journalism is clear, and we know Cool Zone Media’s content creators will inspire thought-provoking conversation as Robert and the team work to illuminate some of the most complex issues within the rapidly changing global political landscape.”

More podcasts and creators set to join Cool Zone media will be announced in the coming months.

FeiyuTech, a Chinese company focused on video stabilization technology, has unveiled a new line of tiny pocket-sized smart FeiyuPocket2 and FeiyuPocket2S Gimbal Cameras for outdoor, travel, action video and photography, social media video posting, and vlogs.

Based on the FeiyuPocket combination gimbal camera, the new next generation FeiyuPocket2 and FeiyuPocket2S lets users record professional anti-shake image stabilized video on the fly, everywhere they go. Featuring powerful intelligent shooting functions for both novice and professional photography users alike, including 4K/60fps high-definition high frame rate video up to 120Mbps, AI Anti-Distortion mode, Micro High-Torque Mechanical Anti-Shake Technology, 2.0 large aperture, 120° to 130° ultra wide-angle 6-glass high-definition lens for a wider field of view while shooting, built-in speakers, and support for extended external microphones. The FeiyuPocket2S is geared towards professional videographers and photographers and the FeiyuPocket2 is for more personal use.

With the advancements in high-capacity 5G wireless technology, more and more people are choosing to broadcast live videos on TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, and other sites, vlogs, and blogs to share their daily lives or promote their businesses.

Availability & Pricing

• The FeiyuTech FeiyuPocket2 Gimbal Camera is available immediately through FeiyuTech’s official store at: https://store.feiyu-tech.com/products/feiyu-pocket-2 and Amazon at: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0989H36TG with an SRP of $359, with a $30 online discount for $329.

• The FeiyuTech FeiyuPocket2S Gimbal Camera will be available for preorder at Indiegogo with a 25% discount at: https://igg.me/at/feiyutech. For more information, see the website: https://store.feiyu-tech.com/

Gray Television, like many companies, on August 6 revealed that it is requiring all new hires — full-time or part-time — to get a COVID-19 vaccine, effective Sept. 1.

RBR+TVBR has now confirmed that the broadcast TV station owner is moving beyond new hires by requiring all of its employees to get vaccinated. It’s a move that comes alongside an internal announcement from Urban One that it is doing the same at its multimedia operation.

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As of today, Gen Media Partners has rebooted its radio network sales and affiliate sales arm that until now was known as Sun Broadcast Group.

Introducing G Networks.

As GMP sees it, G Networks “will stand as a full-service network audio company providing clients, advertisers, and agencies with comprehensive and streamlined solutions in both Ad Sales and Affiliates.” It boasts more than 4,000 affiliates, and has preexisting offices located in New York, Chicago, Cleveland and West Palm Beach.

The shedding of the Sun name follows the late July exit of Danno Wolkoff as COO and Laura Wolkoff as Sun’s VP of Operations. Their departures came after the September 2020 departure of its founder, Jason Bailey. He founded Sun in 2008 and sold it to GMP in 2018.

Once the Wolkoffs exited, Warren Friedland stepped up from Managing Partner to take on the role of President. Once that was done, the Sun name was sunset by GMP.

He comments, “Evolution isn’t possible without change. It is with this ethos that we have upped the commitment and engagement for our G Networks radio division and are focusing on what is now vitally important to advertisers and stations in the current media environment. With an eye to the future, we intend to both invest and transform the future of audio.”

Rich Baum remains in his role as Chief Revenue Officer, while the Chief Development Officer role remains with Rich O’Brien.

She gave a big New York radio station a rebirth that directly brought it back to its roots as a top CHR/Pop station serving the Big Apple. Earlier, she played a key role in giving Houston a CHR/Pop outlet following the demise of two competitors at a volatile time for the format.

Now, after exiting the radio business for a record label role, this veteran talent is combining her skill set for at Global Media & Entertainment — the London-based entity that wants nearly 50% interest in iHeartMedia.

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Since the start of 2018, he’s been the VP of Broadcast Digital for Salem Media Group. 

Now, this former USA Today Network/LOCALiQ Group Sales Director is adding SVP stripes.

Now SVP/Broadcast Digital is Jamie Cohen. He will now be called on to oversee all aspects of the digital operations for Salem’s local and National/Network digital efforts.

He reports to Salem Broadcast Media President Dave Santrella, who said, “Jamie has done a tremendous job building Salem’s digital enterprise for our local stations. Overseeing all aspects of our digital operations, both locally and nationally, will open more channels of opportunity and unify our efforts in reaching our audiences through digital avenues and monetizing our digital assets.”

Cohen added, “I’m proud of the progress we’ve made and am bullish on our future. With the emergence of platforms like Salem Now, the Salem Podcast Network and other innovations, our audience has never been bigger. We have an amazing opportunity ahead of us and I can’t think of a better place to be.”

Cohen started his career at the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, as an account executive for its STLToday.com operation.