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The much anticipated Fall 2021 edition of the Radio + Television Business Report‘s quarterly magazine is being distributed Monday via digital PDF download to all subscribers.

It’s the exclusive home to this year’s Top Local TV Leaders rankings, based on reader nominations; important media technology company updates; and the only place readers will find the findings of the Media Staffing Network/RBR+TVBR annual TV Sales Salary Survey.

What else can you find inside the latest RBR+TVBR magazine?

• WHAT’S THE DEAL?
  Has COVID-19, and now the delta variant, crippled broadcast transaction values forever? It’s a tough question. For some, station valuations for radio were sliding before the coronavirus cratered the marketplace. For others, there’s green on the horizon for both radio and TV broadcasters.
• MOVING FORWARD
  An exclusive look at the 2021 TVB Forward conference, directly from
  TVB President/CEO Steve Lanzano.

Not a RBR+TVBR Member? Don’t wait! Click here to secure your access to all that the Radio + Television Business Report has to offer media business professionals every day.

Thanks to the efforts of Bryan Broadcasting in Texas and the ingenuity of Dave Kolesar, a Senior Broadcast Engineer at Hubbard Broadcasting, the future of the AM radio band is a bit brighter thanks to the technological innovations HD Radio-only broadcasts can bring.

Sadly, that hasn’t stopped licensees from turning in their licenses for forlorn stations in the kHz band. Cumulus Media did so one year ago; Beasley Media Group also opted to do so with one South Florida AM. Saga Communications did so last week. Now, another licensee has done so, in Portland, Ore.

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Carmaker Audi, a subsidiary of Volkswagen Group, has been active in the realms of digital radio, hybrid radio and metadata.

Late last year, Christian Winter of Volkswagen Group software development subsidiary CARIAD wrote in Radio World that, after the successful launch of hybrid radio in Europe, Audi was offering the feature in most of its 2021 vehicles, including models available in North America.

He also noted that iHeartMedia had started providing RadioDNS support for hybrid radio in Audi cars, and that Radioplayer Canada was supporting Audi with data from more than 350 Canadian radio stations.

In a recent ebook about trends in digital radio, Radio World checked in for an update with Anupam “Pom” Malhotra, senior director, Connected Services, at Audi of America.

Pom Malhotra

Radio World: What’s the most important digital radio trend right now?

Pom Malhotra: Hybrid radio is the newest trend, as more and more cars have a broadband internet connection. Broadcast-only digital radio, like HD Radio for North America or DAB in Europe and some other countries, is standard in every Audi.

RW: Audi has been one of the carmakers most engaged with digital radio and hybrid radio. Broadly speaking, how would you characterize the state of digital radio around the world?

Malhotra: The standards are very mature, and all new cars come equipped with digital radio in Europe using the DAB standard. Digital radio enables new radio programs because the distribution is cheaper and there is a larger spectrum for new stations. Additionally, digital radio enables nationwide broadcast stations like Deutschlandfunk in Germany or NRK in Norway. More recently, Audi has launched hybrid radio in many of our models both in Europe and in the U.S., which extends FM broadcasts beyond their geographical limitations.

RW: What can radio entities around the world do to keep broadcast radio prominent in the car?

Malhotra: The challenge for broadcast radio is how to compete with the user experience of streaming audio through an online connection. Using standards like RadioDNS, broadcast radio providers can include metadata like station name, streaming URLs and station logos via the online connection to enrich the listening experience for the customer in the vehicle. In today’s vehicles, radio must be visually on par with streaming services and online radio apps in the connected car.

RW: Which countries do you feel have advanced the most in deploying digital radio, for each of the major platforms?

Malhotra: In Europe, DAB is widely used in Norway, Switzerland, the U.K. and Germany. In all European countries, DAB created a new market for new programs and helped channels get better coverage, for example in the Swiss Alps.

Although North America has a rich history in broadcast radio and has innovated significantly with satellite radio and HD Radio, the growth of online streaming through internet radio threatens to make AM and FM radio obsolete over time. This is where hybrid radio can reinvigorate the broadcast industry to appeal to new and younger listeners.

RW: WorldDAB states that “DAB+ is firmly established as the core future platform for radio in Europe.” Please comment.

Malhotra: From a manufacturer point of view, DAB delivers everything a broadcast radio station needs. With the addition of RadioDNS as the online standard, broadcast radio is ready for the future.

RW: Which major countries or markets are you watching to see will adopt digital standard(s) next?

Malhotra: From Audi’s perspective, we have seen all major markets already adopt or are in the process of adopting either HD Radio or DAB as their digital radio standard.

RW: What impact do you expect on the digital radio marketplace from Google’s aspirations for Android Automotive?

Malhotra: Android gives listeners the ability to download their preferred internet radio apps via an online store in their vehicle. However, customers will choose their infotainment options based on the attractiveness of content, which means there will always be room for broadcast radio as long as it delivers a competitive listening experience.

RW: Hybrid radio is part of Audi’s MIB 3 infotainment system. What is the status of that rollout, and which media companies are supporting it?

Malhotra: Hybrid radio is available now in all MIB 3 vehicles with the high-speed data package for the 2021+ model year — A4, A5, A6, A7, A8, Q3, Q5, Q7, Q8, and e-tron Sportback/SUV. For 2022, that will expand to more models including the all-electric e-tron GT and Q4 e-tron.

Within the North American market, we already have nearly 1,500 FM stations supporting hybrid radio from broadcasters like iHeartRadio, Cumulus, Entercom, Educational Media Foundation, Boise State Radio in Idaho and Radioplayer Canada. More media companies are continuing to grow support for hybrid radio using the RadioDNS standard.

RW: What else should we know about Audi’s current or pending activities in digital radio?

Malhotra: Audi continues to play a leadership role in helping to shape the future of broadcast radio. In fact, the chair of the WorldDAB Automotive Group is a senior Audi executive from our CARIAD subsidiary, Martin Koch. Aand Christian Winter, also from CARIAD, represents Audi on the RadioDNS steering board.

The post Audi Encourages Support for Hybrid Radio appeared first on Radio World.

The National Association of Broadcasters paints an increasingly grim picture of the financial state of the U.S. commercial radio industry, and said that includes FM stations as well as AMs.

In a 75-page filing to the FCC about ownership rule reform, the NAB listed evidence that it says shows the impact of increased audio and advertising competition on radio.

“Aside from losing nearly 200 radio stations in the past two years, growing numbers of stations are unprofitable and experiencing negative advertising growth, while at the same time are constrained by outdated ownership restrictions from responding to these competitive conditions,” NAB wrote.

“The managing director of a nationally-known media brokerage firm stated in a declaration that there are increasingly no buyers for struggling AM and FM stations, especially in mid-sized and small markets, other than a same-market competitor who often may not be allowed to purchase the troubled stations due to the local radio caps.”

As a result, it said, more stations, both AM and FM, are “unable to maintain a significant local presence and offer a high level of local services, and their owners are both financially unable to improve their stations or sell them to a competitively viable local broadcaster capable of upgrading the underperforming outlets by leveraging scale economies.”

NAB said it had “submitted unrefuted evidence demonstrating the increasing parlous financial position of the radio industry, which directly and negatively impacts stations’ ability to hire additional or even retain existing staff; upgrade their facilities; and maintain, let alone improve, their programming, including locally oriented content.”

It said local radio stations’ OTA ad revenues fell almost 45 percent in nominal terms ($17.6 billion to $9.7 billion) from 2005 to 2020, “and even when taking stations’ 2020 digital ad revenues into account, their total ad revenues still dropped 39.8 percent in nominal terms ($17.6 to $10.6 billion) over that time period.” Further, it said, analysts expect only a very modest recovery from the pandemic recession.

“The advertising revenues of FM stations mirror the radio industry as a whole, with FM stations’ revenues over the same 2005–2020 period showing a similarly stark decline.”

It cited BIA data showing that the OTA ad revenues of FM stations in the 253 continuously surveyed Arbitron/Nielsen Audio markets fell from $10.5 billion in 2005 to $6 billion in 2020, a decline of 42.9 percent in nominal terms.

These data, it said, show a clear and present threat to FM stations’ “ability to serve the public interest in the spirit of the Communications Act.”

Further, FM stations as well as AMs have experienced declines in listenership. “According to Nielsen Audio, the Average Quarter Hour (AQH) Listening of FM stations dropped 23.5 percent in just the past five years. Falling AQH audiences directly impact the competitive and financial viability of FM (and AM) stations because advertising is sold based on stations’ AQH listening, rather than stations’ audience reach or weekly cume.”

These findings, it said, are proof of its argument that commercial U.S. radio stations compete in a broader market and should be regulated accordingly.

The NAB believes current caps on how many stations a given company can own in one market need to be eased or eliminated in the face of audio and advertising market competition and recent marketplace developments. (Not all major broadcasters agree.)

And it says those who support the existing rules ignore the fact that commercial stations, upended by digital technologies, “cannot function in the public interest as Congress intended unless they remain economically viable.”

Read the filing (PDF).

More comments

The NAB’s filing also touched on a number of other issues.

It said some critics are misinterpreting the Supreme Court’s recent decision in FCC v. Prometheus Radio Project to mean that the court affirmed the FCC’s “full discretion to implement its conception of the public interest as to diversity.”

In fact, NAB said, the high court did not “affirm” any such thing, rather that it left open questions about the FCC’s authority to consider minority and female ownership in its quadrennial reviews.  NAB says structural ownership rules will do nothing to promote future ownership diversity.

In addition to dealing with several TV-specific issues, the association also told the FCC it needs to act quickly to finish this 2018 quadrennial review, which should have been done by now. It said the FCC has no flexibility to defer the process.

“In particular, the commission has no authority to skip the 2018 review and roll that quadrennial into the upcoming 2022 review, despite the urging of certain commenters.”

The post NAB Lays Out “Parlous Financial Position” of Radio appeared first on Radio World.

The Media Bureau of the FCC is reminding applicants about an upcoming filing window for applications for noncommercial educational (NCE) FM new station construction permits.

As previously announced, there’s an opportunity to file for one week, in early November.

The window will open at 12:01am Eastern on Tuesday, November 2. It will subsequently close at 6pm Eastern on Tuesday, November 9.

The window is available for FM reserved band (channels 201 –220) proposals.

All new NCE FM applications must be filed electronically on FCC Form 2100, Schedule 340
in the Bureau’s Licensing and Management System (LMS). Applicants should select the application “New NCE FM Construction Permit Application” in LMS.

The application deadline will be strictly enforced.

Applications submitted before or after the window will be dismissed, without further consideration, so please adhere to the window put in place by the Media Bureau.

In conjunction with this filing window, the Commission will not accept FM reserved band minor change applications or FM non-reserved band adjacent channels (channels 221 –223) and intermediate frequency (IF) (channels 254-274) minor change applications after
11:59pm Eastern on October 4.

The freeze will continue in effect until the close of the window.

The latest Media Monitors Spot Ten TV report shows that, like at Spot Radio, the cold and flu season has led to a sudden influx of commercials for one popular allergy, sinus and cold medicine brand.

At the same time, there is a flurry of new activity from a host of brands and a QSR at No. 1.

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When looking at the iHeartMedia-owned Media Monitors’ Spot Ten Radio report, one must discount all of the iHeart-related promotional spots and podcast ads to get an accurate account of what brands are actively spending on AM and FM commercial announcements.

This week, Vicks is back — in a big way — while Capital One is also back in the Spot Ten.

As shown below, the sinus and flu medicine brand is now seventh by play count, soaring from No. 39 last week.

Then, there is DuckDuckGo, a new fan of AMs and FMs. They are the big leader by paid play count.

Lastly, Capital One is No. 10 with its latest campaign as Indeed and Progressive are the only other advertisers meriting slots on the Spot Ten this week.

 

The author is general manager of GMF-Christian Media, Buenas Nuevas Network.

I have been a client of Arrakis Systems and automating stations using their software and hardware since 2005. Four years ago, when I learned of the new Apex automation system, my first impression was that this was the automation we’d been waiting for.

When we started our Buenas Nuevas Network in 2018, our CEO Dr. Richard Hamlet conveyed a message of quality and excellence in all we do. So I started by adding Apex automation. Its versatility, live functions and programming tools have placed this software at the top of its class. Apex is sophisticated yet remains the most user-friendly and intuitive automation program on the market.

In-person staff interaction is a thing of the past, which makes communication of time-sensitive and complex tasks more difficult. Apex has minimized this gap between producers, programmers and DJs.

[Related: “With Automation, You’re Buying More Than a Product”]

We have a diverse team in multiple markets including San Juan, Monterrey, Boston, Albuquerque, Jacksonville, Memphis, and several markets in North Carolina. Apex allows my staff to navigate the system remotely as if they are in our studio headquarters. Having staff simultaneously working on production and programming remotely is truly a blessing.

The Apex On Air module is flexible and easy to navigate. My DJs set up their own user profiles, allowing them to quickly bring up their own customized windows layout, which may be as simple or complex as they wish. Using multiple sound cards, they may manually crossfade events or allow Apex to automatically do so.

Features include drag and drop, preview audio, and File Info to share interesting facts about an upcoming song. You can run a game manually or let the system do it.

Apex On Air works with Apex Tools, the management software. Using Tools, we manage audio, create clocks, edit the play schedule, import, voice track, record and edit new audio and pull reports. Apex Tools is the fastest and easiest to learn programming tool out of many programming platforms we have used.

There is a lot to consider when purchasing automation: features, installation, staff training, efficiency of daily operation and the ability to support technological growth. Apex has the bells and whistles. There’s no need to purchase additional software as our stations evolve.

Thanks to the Arrakis support staff, installation is smooth and quick; they jump in to train your people and will help with anything that may come up later. I highly recommend that decision-makers take advantage of the time Arrakis gives for testing Apex before making a big automation purchase. It will be worth it.

Contact Arrakis at 1-970-461-0730 x2 or visit www.arrakis-systems.com.

Radio World User Reports are testimonial articles intended to help readers understand why a colleague chose a particular product to solve a technical situation.

The post User Report: Apex Serves Buenas Nuevas Network appeared first on Radio World.

Media Bureau Announces Opening of Biennial Ownership Report Filing Window and Reminds Parties About October 5, 2021 Information Session

The FCC’s Media Bureau is reminding licensees that the window for the submission of 2021 broadcast biennial ownership reports is now open.

All licensees of commercial and non-commercial radio and TV stations must file biennial ownership reports with the Commission in odd-numbered years.

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Salem Media Group, the owner of Christian-themed and secular conservative Talk radio stations saw investors snapping up shares of the company’s stock across Friday’s trading session.

Volume was exceptionally high, pushing Salem’s shares to a price last seen in mid-July 2018.

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WASHINGTON, D.C. — Until earlier this year, a heritage Hot Adult Contemporary station filled a format void in the Washington, D.C., market, although its programming and advertisers largely focused on the small city of Winchester, along I-81 due west of the National Capital area.

That big, booming signal was sold by Allen Shaw to Educational Media Foundation. The station’s programming shifted to a pair of Class As. Now, one of those two FMs has been spun again. The buyer? A broadcast ministry that’s already in control.

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Inyo County, Calif., is a remote area of the Golden State, located between the Sierra Nevada mountains and the Nevada state line. There’s one town of significance, Bishop. While Fresno and Bakersfield may appear to be near, high terrain and highways make the distance greater.

As such, Bishop is, believe it or not, within the Los Angeles DMA. That’s exactly why a TV station licensed to this little town has just been purchased by the owner of the MeTV Network and related Oldies radio brand.

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“At Saga Communications, we believe local media has the power to affect communities,” the radio broadcasting company’s website reads. “For more than 30 years all of our brands have been operated by local managers committed to building positive relationships with our audiences and clients.”

That said, one of its brands no longer exists, with web traffic routed to the very page on Saga’s corporate portal offering that quote.

What happened? Saga pulled the plug on the AM in a mid-sized market, and surrendered the station’s license to the FCC.

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MIAMI — The owner of unaffiliated Spanish-language television stations serving South Florida, which is awaiting FCC approval of its acquisition of a Spanish-language AM Talk station accused of spreading information the state’s Democratic Party has judged as false, has failed in its attempt to appeal a bankruptcy ruling made earlier year by a Federal District Court.

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Next year will likely be another record-breaking political cycle. How big? One competitive ad intelligence SaaS company is projecting $8.9 billion in political media spend — the highest ever for a midterm cycle.

When asked for a breakout of broadcasting and cable dollars, and for dollars only going to broadcast media, there’s clearly some substantial growth.

But, there’s also one big question that can be asked: Where are 96.4% of the dollars that aren’t going to broadcast media going?

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Audacy employees who receive their pay check via Direct Deposit were left scratching their heads, and perhaps deeply concerned of a major problem, after waking up on Friday, checking their bank accounts, and not seeing their normal infusion of funds.

What happened? A “technical issue” is to blame, and it was quickly resolved.

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What are the primary benefits of virtualization to radio broadcasters? Are we farther along now than a year ago in seeing virtualization come to PPM, to EAS? What are common misconceptions or unfamiliar terms in virtualization that readers should be aware of?

Those are some of the questions explored in our new ebook “What’s Next for Virtualization?”

Editor in Chief Paul McLane talked with six manufacturers and software sponsors about their applications of the concept of virtualization, and he checked in with prominent industry engineering executives for an assessment of the relevance and impact of virtualization.

How close are we to a fully virtualized air chain? What else should we know on this topic? Find out in the latest free ebook.

Read it here.

The post What’s Next for Virtualization? appeared first on Radio World.

At Thursday’s FCC meeting, Acting Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel used the occasion of her trip to Louisiana to explain several commission initiatives.

 In a written statement, she described the damage done by Hurricane Ida and summarized steps the FCC had taken before and after that storm.

 “But we have to understand where communications fell short, where recovery took too long, and what changes can be made to make our networks more resilient before the next unthinkable event occurs,” she wrote in comments released by her office.

 She talked about the NPRM that the FCC has adopted to strengthen its DIRS system and possibly to require backup power at communications facilities including broadcast stations.

The text of her statement is below:

This week I had the opportunity to see firsthand the devastation wrought by Hurricane Ida. Commissioner Carr joined me to crisscross a long, flat stretch of Louisiana — from Baton Rouge to New Orleans. The drive itself was telling. Along the way we saw cruel reminders of the storm and the great damage wind and water can do — mangled store signs and piles of refuse still being cleared away. Still, what struck me most was all the blue. Not the grey-blue of Lake Pontchartrain. Instead, it was the bright blue of heavy plastic tarps. They were everywhere. On the pitched rooves of homes. On the flat tops of commercial buildings. They were part of fixing what had blown away.

That image stays with me. But so does the strength and resilience of everyone we met. They love where they live and are deeply committed to restoration in their communities. They are also deeply invested in making sure that when the next storm comes — and it will — they are better prepared. Being better prepared means having more resilient communications. It means making sure our networks work when we need them most. I spoke with Governor John Bel Edwards about this before our trip and I heard it from everyone we met — state public safety leaders in Baton Rouge, 911 call center operators in Livingston, broadband companies in LaPlace, and FirstNet officials in Raceland.

Everyone we spoke with wanted to tell us their stories and give us their ideas. They wanted us to know what worked and what didn’t and how stronger and more resilient communications can save lives. I’m grateful Commissioner Carr was able to join me and thank all my colleagues for supporting the swift actions the agency took to assist before and after the storm.

In anticipation of landfall, the Federal Communications Commission set up an information hub for Hurricane Ida, with emergency communications tips in nine languages, tailored media advisories for broadcasters, downloadable Public Service Announcements, communications status reports, and other content.

We deployed FCC staff to Louisiana and the Federal Emergency Management Agency Regional Response Coordination Center in Dallas, Texas, to support spectrum management, perform damage assessments, and prioritize recovery efforts.

In coordination with FEMA and other federal partners, we activated our Disaster Information Reporting System. As a result, we published the first comprehensive assessment of Hurricane Ida’s impact on communications networks followed by daily updates.

We provided technical assistance to 911 coordinators, State Emergency Operations Centers, 911 call centers, carriers implementing the Wireless Resiliency Cooperative Framework and other communications providers, and the Louisiana Association of Broadcasters.

We engaged in daily coordination with Federal, state, and local partners, as well as with industry, to help coordinate the transport of necessary communications equipment, fuel, and other resources to help fill communications gaps. We also set up a first-of-its kind team to address coordination with utilities to prevent accidental fiber cuts during debris removal and restoration.

Of course, we had help.  Communications companies worked long and hard to restore critical services. All of this made a difference. More than 98 percent of the cell sites in the affected counties have been restored. Other outages trended downward as fast as power was restored.

This is progress. But we have to understand where communications fell short, where recovery took too long, and what changes can be made to make our networks more resilient before the next unthinkable event occurs.

Today’s rulemaking gets that effort going. We start by taking a second look at the voluntary Wireless Resiliency Cooperative Framework and its disaster roaming and asking where can it be strengthened. Are best practices enough? Should coordination happen earlier? Be more automatic? This was something that came up repeatedly in our discussions in Louisiana — a desire for this cooperative roaming to work faster, work better, and help keep more people connected in disaster.

We also revisit our Disaster Information Reporting System and seek targeted comment on where there are gaps that need to be filled. 911 call centers should not be the last ones to find out where there are critical network failures. But we learned that during Hurricane Ida, that is exactly what happened. So we ask about how we can improve data collection and timely notification during disasters.

Finally, we renew our inquiry into backup power for communications facilities. Our review of the data collected in the aftermath of Hurricane Ida reveals that the lack of commercial power at key equipment and facilities is the single biggest reason why communications networks failed. Left unaddressed, this problem will only get worse in coming years as we experience disasters with increasing severity, duration, and impact. So our rulemaking explores resilience strategies for power outages — including better coordination between communications providers and power companies and backup power or other measures that could help keep service running after a disaster.

I am hopeful that this rulemaking is the beginning of a broader discussion of our need for resilient networks. Look around. We have hurricanes in Louisiana, a snowstorm in Texas, and wildfires out West. These issues are not going away. We need to think deeply about what network resiliency means and how our policies can support it. So in addition to this rulemaking, next month the FCC will hold a virtual field hearing on Hurricane Ida and the resilient networks now needed in disaster more generally. To make it simple, we’ll have it as part of our monthly open meeting in October. Stay tuned for details.

 

The post Rosenworcel Highlights Network Resilience appeared first on Radio World.

Marketers have asked for it. Now, thanks to Media Framework and Nielsen, they’re going to get it.

In one week, the “most comprehensive and validated diverse-owned media list in the industry” will be released. And, it will be paired with a “Diverse Owned Media Planning and Investment Guide” full of profiles and aggregated metrics of diverse-owned media on TV, radio and digital platforms and their related audience descriptions, estimated reach and gross impressions.

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