Industry News

The National Association of Broadcasters has announced the NAB Show New York will return to New York City at the Javits Center on Oct. 19–20.

Produced by the NAB, the NAB Show New York is designed to be a more intimate opportunity for the broadcast, media and entertainment industry to present and discover product updates, new applications and workflow efficiencies to deliver superior audio and video experiences.

Additional details, including registration, will be available in the coming months, the NAB said.

More information is available at NABShowNY.com.

The post NAB Announces Plans for NAB Show New York in 2022 appeared first on Radio World.

Nielsen on Thursday morning announced that it plans to move forward with its introduction of Broadband-Only (BBO) Homes in its local television market measurements, beginning in January 2022.

The Media Rating Council (MRC) recently completed an audit of the BBO Homes. And, just after the Closing Bell on Wall Street, shared several “perspectives” on the matter.

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WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Copyright Royalty Judges on December 23 announced that they have adopted existing rates and terms for the retransmission of over-the-air television and radio broadcast stations by cable television systems to their subscribers.

Here’s what that means.

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Corpus Christi, Tex.-based Mako Communications found itself with a group of low-power TV stations with a unique trait: the deadline to build them isn’t until 2023.

It decided to sell them, attracting a variety of buyers and prices. Now, it has a buyer for a facility serving the home of Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.

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It bills itself as a Chicago-based multimedia company that offers extensive radio programming offerings including mix show syndication, production and imaging.

Now, the entity majority-controlled by Robert Jamrog is poised to become the licensee of a FM translator licensed to serve Monterey-Salinas, Calif.

The seller? One of the biggest acquirers of radio stations in the last decade.

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For Nashville radio listeners, there’s been a longtime presence of a unique Classic Hits station targeted to those that may very well been labeled a “hippie” some 50+ years ago.

Class A WHPY-FM is Hippie Radio, and together with an AM/FM combo in Gallatin, Tenn., and a group of stations in Warsaw, Ind., comprise Kensington Digital Media.

Now, its founder has selected the GM of the Warsaw stations to serve as the company’s COO.

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For listeners of SiriusXM’s “80s on 8” Channel, every weekend “The Big 40 Countdown” features three of the original MTV VJs, Alan Hunter, Nina Blackwell and Mark Goodman. With JJ Jackson deceased, there’s been an inconspicuous absence on the satellite radio broadcaster’s lineup.

Martha Quinn is the other VJ who first entertained a generation of cable TV viewers. And, chances are she won’t be joining her former MTV air personalities anytime soon. That’s because she’s just inked a major deal with iHeartMedia that puts her in middays across more than 35 markets where it owns radio stations.

On January 10, Quinn will begin hosting The Martha Quinn Show on radio stations known for playing today much of the songs that were new when Quinn was on MTV in the 1980s.

Quinn’s program will air in middays, regardless of market. Stations include KOSF-FM in San Francisco, the station branded as “103.7 FM 80s+.” Quinn has been associated with KOSF as its morning show host for five years.

Other confirmed markets where Quinn’s show will be heard include Seattle, Milwaukee, Salt Lake City, Minneapolis-St. Paul, and St. Louis. While iHeart operates Classic Hits stations in each of these markets, a roster of stations was not provided by the company.

“Martha has such a genuine and uplifting personality and she constantly brings excitement and positivity to listeners,” said Tom Poleman, Chief Programming Officer and President of the National Programming Group for iHeartMedia. “She has an unmatched ability to connect with her audience, not to mention an amazing playlist filled with the songs she helped make famous through the years. We know that listeners across the country will fall in love with Martha Quinn, just as audiences everywhere have for decades.”

Quinn’s time at MTV began in July 1981, following her graduation from New York University. The man in charge of MTV at the time? iHeartMedia CEO Bob Pittman, largely known at the time for programming WNBC-AM 660 in New York in September 1977 — at age 23.

An individual who most recently served as Chief Revenue Officer of Distributed Media Lab has accepted the role of SVP/Digital at audio content creation and distribution company Cumulus Media.

He reports directly to CEO Mary Berner, and begins his new job on January 18.

As SVP of Digital, Merves will be tasked to lead and further shape Cumulus’ digital strategy, with a focus on generating revenue across multiple Cumulus Media platforms and channels.
Merves is considered by Cumulus to be “a proven leader in digital revenue growth strategies, audience monetization, and branded content.”

Merves ended up at Distributed Media Lab after it acquired the company he founded, Wundervue. There, he dedicated his efforts on supporting media companies and advertising agencies “in their digital transformation, operations, product development and growth opportunities.”

Before starting up Wundervue, Merves was Chief Digital Officer of Belo Corp., working from Dallas. He’s also been Director of Digital Sales at TEGNA, from December 2013-May 2015, and before that held positions of increasing importance at Cars.com.

“Jared has been at the forefront of digital media throughout his career and has helped many companies propel their businesses forward through innovation,” Berner said. “Digital has been a critical and successful pillar of our business strategy, and Jared brings the experience, creativity and technical expertise to build on that foundation and catapult
us to the next level.”

He has been with radio station owner Connoisseur Media since he was hired as Chief Financial Officer in 1996, when the company was known as Connoisseur Communications.

Now, this longtime partner and colleague of CEO Jeffrey Warshaw is relinquishing his role as EVP/CFO, effective December 31.

As a result, the day-to-day duties held by Michael Driscoll will be handed to Oliver “Olly” Price. He will hold the title of SVP/CFO for Connoisseur Media. Price came to the company in 2012, and presently serves as its VP of Finance and Accounting.

Driscoll won’t be stepping aside, however, as he will still be involved in some aspects of Connoisseur Media as the company’s EVP. Driscoll is a co-founder, with Warshaw, of Connoisseur Media, a new incarnation of the original company formed in 2004.

Warshaw commented, “Mike and I have worked together for a long time. In the years working with him, we have occasionally had different opinions, but never harsh words or arguments. I am glad in this new role he will get a chance to take some more time for travel and things he had wanted to do, but I look forward to still working together. He will always be my partner.”

Driscoll added, “I have really enjoyed the nuts and bolts of helping build a Company and focused on building teams, working on processes and getting the trains to run on time. I could not have had a more fulfilling time, looking forward to coming in each day, and have had a lot of fun working alongside Jeff for this quarter century. I will miss being involved in every decision, and having daily contact with the friends and great colleagues we have in our operations as well as here in the corporate office. I am happy to still be a part of the company, and also an investor in it, and want to watch things grow. This is just a part of a plan Jeff and I have had for a few years, and I have every confidence that our Company will reach new heights as Jeff works with Olly Price as the new CFO.”

Connoisseur Media today owns radio stations in the Nassau-Suffolk, N.Y. and Metro Fairfield County, Conn., Nielsen Audio markets embedded within the New York DMA. It also owns stations in nearby New Haven, Conn., and in Frederick, Md.

By Carl Marcucci and Adam R Jacobson

STAHLSTOWN, PA. — For drivers heading west on the Pennsylvania Turnpike, exiting the Allegheny Mountain Tunnel signifies two things. First, they are close to Shanksville, and the Flight 93 memorial site. Second, they are 90 minutes from Pittsburgh’s city center and the Golden Triangle.

For radio listeners, most Pittsburgh stations can be heard loud and clear. So can a 630-watt Class A FM licensed to Meyersdale, Pa., whose owner could soon lose his license, as he is a convicted felon. Listeners are aware of this, and a pastor who appears on the station each Sunday is now advocating on the owner’s behalf.

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