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BOCA RATON, FLA. — A South Florida Democrat who in recent years emerged as a major proponent of legislation that would impose new artist royalty payments on broadcast radio stations in the U.S. has announced that he will step down following the Congressional recess for the 2022 midterm elections.

It’s a major blow to groups including musicFIRST and SoundExchange and perhaps a sign that the NAB-supported “Local Radio Freedom Act” has proven successful on Capitol Hill.

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The “streaming war” continues, with players like Netflix facing stiff competition from ad-supported and ad-supported hybrids such as Hulu and Discovery+. It’s a story the digital video PR machine churns out every day in a bid to declare victory over linear television.

While some believe the OTT story is overblown and a bubble could pop in just months, the ad spend for OTT seen in 2021 as determined by MediaRadar is something everyone in broadcast media should take note of.

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How vital is it for marketers to “bridge the gap” between linear television and streaming?

Just ask HDRadio and Tivo parent Xperi Corp., and a cross-channel TV advertising firm that has planned and executed successful TV campaigns for hundreds of brands.

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BOCA RATON, FLA. — The largest private owner and operator of communications infrastructure in the United States has announced that it has successfully issued $1.368 billion of tower revenue notes secured by its portfolio of 3,526 tower sites.

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BOCA RATON, FLA. — It’s known across South Florida as a “BIG” home for rock and roll favorites ranging from Ozzy Osbourne and Eric Clapton to Men at Work and Tears for Fears. Now, this longtime iHeartMedia property that’s home to veteran local morning host Paul Castronovo could be on the hook for a big fine for a nearly three-year old contest.

Why? The FCC says it violated its rules for failing to be clear on the contest’s eligibility period.

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iHeartMedia faces a possible $20,000 fine in a contest rules violation case. The Federal Communications Commission said the company’s history of contest rule violations played a factor in the amount of the penalty.

The FCC Enforcement Bureau said the case involves a contest — ironically called “You Can’t Win” — that was held by WBGG(FM) in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.

(via @CastronovoShow Twitter)

A person who attempted to participate on May 30, 2019, had won a separate station contest, the “Southwest Flyaway Fridays,” on March 1, so the station call screener didn’t allow him to participate. The listener then argued that the station wasn’t following its own contest rules.

When the FCC inquired, the company replied that an employee had applied a past exclusion rule incorrectly but it also said this wasn’t relevant because the listener would have been ineligible anyway. But the commission ruled that the “plain language” of the contest rules indicated otherwise.

Even if there was an ambiguity, it continued, FCC precedent is that ambiguous rules are to be “construed against the interests of the promoter of the contest.”

The commission also didn’t accept the station’s argument that the person raising the complaint didn’t have “standing” in the case. (Readers who are involved in creating radio station contest rules may wish to read the FCC NAL for specifics of why the commission didn’t accept iHeart’s various arguments.)

The base forfeiture in contest cases is $4,000 for each violation; the FCC opted to increase the proposed penalty to $20,000 in part because the station also failed to maintain the contest rules on its website for at least 30 days after the end of the contest, as required.

But another factor in raising the amount, the FCC said, is that “the licensee is the pro forma assignee of an affiliate with a history of violating the Contest Rule.” The commission listed several examples of contest cases 2000 to 2012 involving stations owned by what was then called Clear Channel.

The station has 30 days to pay the fine or to reply with any counter argument.

This was the second time in as many days that the FCC has mentioned problems of past rule compliance by a major broadcast group; in an unrelated case we reported earlier, the commission took Cumulus to task for various past EEO and other infractions.

The post No, Really, You Can’t Win appeared first on Radio World.

ASCAP reported record revenue for 2021, collecting $1.335 billion.

The American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers said, “Increases in collections from the audio streaming and audio-visual sectors pushed ASCAP’s domestic revenue to $1.011 billion in 2021, up 4.4%, an increase of $42.5 million over 2020. This was the first year that ASCAP domestic revenues from U.S.-licensed performances surpassed $1 billion.”

It said the strategic growth plan it launched in 2015 has driven revenues to grow at a 5% compound annual growth rate since then.

“ASCAP’s identification, matching and processing of trillions of musical performances drove record-setting distributions that exceeded $1 billion for the fifth year in a row and increased $41 million over the previous year, for a total oaf $1.254 billion available for distribution to its more than 850,000 songwriter, composer and publisher members in 2021.”

It said the total available for domestic distributions of licensed and administered performances was $912.6 million, a 2.4% increase over 2020. It said strong domestic performance offset a drop in revenue from foreign societies of 9.7% “due largely to business closures and the lack of vaccinations.” But its international distributions were up 5.9%.

Its annual report is posted at www.ascap.com/annualreport.

 

The post ASCAP Reports Record Revenue appeared first on Radio World.

For two decades, he’s served as Marketing Director for the CBS and The CW Network affiliates serving the Cleveland TV market.

Now, he’s packing his bags and will soon enjoy Sonoran desert sunsets and perhaps a meal or two at El Charro.

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Its assets include NPR Member station WFYI-FM and PBS Member station WFYI-20 in Indianapolis.

Soon, it will be adding a low-power TV station to its property collection — thanks to a donation being made by a prolific trader of late in the LPTV arena.

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It’s been a topic of interest among marketers and advertisers for the last several years. And, for radio, achieving “addressable advertising” prowess hasn’t been easy.

Audacy Corp. believes it has a solution.

Introducing ADAN — the Audacy Digital Audience Network.

The audio content creation and distribution company formerly known as Entercom called ADAN “an addressable aggregate of over 60 million listeners that other audio platforms and streaming platforms do not reach.’

How so? As Audacy explains, each month the company connects with 200 million “fans” across its broadcast and digital assets.

More than 60 million of these listeners can be found on ADAN across its streaming content, on the Audacy app and on its podcasts.

“Through this high-performing audience solution, ADAN can target precise audiences at scale and deliver high-performing digital audio media strategies for Audacy’s advertising partners,” the company asserts. “Fully integrated into its tech stack, ADAN plans are optimized in real time, yielding actionable brand insights and detailed campaign reporting.”

Among the declarations from Audacy is that ADAN audiences skew “more affluent, are more likely to be college educated and are more diverse.” Then, there is the all-important unduplicated reach to listeners “that other audio platforms do not deliver.”

Audacy did not qualify this claim against competing organizations such as iHeartMedia.

“The creation of ADAN is exciting as we continue to build our Audacy streaming audio and podcast assets,” said Brian Benedik, Audacy Corp.’s Chief Revenue Officer. “The marketplace has moved to audience-based investment and our new ADAN offering is highly scaled with unduplicated digital listeners. We can target these audiences with precision and optimize campaign performance for better marketer outcomes. Our Audacy local and national sales teams are looking forward to working with our agency and brand partners in this capacity.”

Components of the Audience Network include Audacy’s broadcast brands; and podcasts from Audacy’s Cadence13, Pineapple Street Studios and American Public Media.

Exclusive stations, curated music stations from Audacy brands, talent and influencers and digital streams of MLB play-by-play broadcasts via flagship partnerships are also included in ADAN.

It says it is a “fierce defender” of the First Amendment and “the critical importance of the ability to freely express views, both popular and unpopular.”

That said, the NAB explains that the First Amendment “does not prevent private actors from exercising sound, moral judgment.”

That’s why the chief advocacy group for broadcast radio and TV wants any state-sponsored programming with ties to Moscow pulled from U.S. airwaves now.

What will operators in Kansas City and Washington, D.C., do?

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From the People News page: Guntermann & Drunck announced two new sales roles in North America.

“To better serve the many western U.S. customers, and particularly to drive further market success, GDNA is continuing their North American expansion,” it said in an announcement. “Carlos Mira was appointed  director of sales for Mid America, Florida and Latin America, and Silvia van Lieshout joined GDNA North America Inc. as director of federal sales.

The sales team is joined by Andy Cooper, field application engineer.

G&D makes professional KVM extenders, switches and matrix switches; it is headquartered in Germany and has a North American sales and support subsidiary in California.

Send announcements for People News to radioworld@futurenet.com.

The post G&D Beefs Up North American Sales Presence appeared first on Radio World.

There’s a new feature in the iHeartRadio app that lets listeners send voice messages to air talent on participating iHeart radio stations.

“Engage with your favorite on-air hosts and DJs in on-air conversations by tapping, recording, and sending your voice directly from within the iHeart app for iOS and Android,” the company tells listeners on its website.

The user navigates to a participating live station, taps the mic button and records a voice message up to 30 seconds, and hits Send. The voice recording is sent to the station.

The feature only works on participating iHeartRadio live radio stations. The user has to have the latest iOS or Android app.

TechCrunch reports that the feature also will roll out to interested iHeartRadio podcasters who opt in come April.

“What makes this offering unique,” TechCrunch reports, “is that the recordings aren’t just going to some inbox somewhere — Talk Back is integrated with the proprietary iHeartRadio content management system, so the voice recordings are available to use, live on air, within about 10 seconds after sending.”

The post iHeart Adds Talk Back Feature to App appeared first on Radio World.

The market – and the world — is changing as the next phase of technological evolution is “human centered, inclusive and sustainable.”

With that, it is the belief of the organizers of this week’s GSMA MWC Barcelona 2022 conference — the GSM Association’s flagship mobile industry and technology event — that high speed capacity networks, 5G and data-driven technologies like AI and IoT “underpin the transformation as companies across sectors look for digitally enabled and bespoke solutions.”

Among the companies actively seeking solutions are radio and TV broadcasters serving North American audiences.

And, that explains why FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel is in the Catalonian metropolis Tuesday (3/1) to appear in the keynote session, “New Frontier of Partnerships.”

“The next generation of Telcos face untapped growth but must adopt a holistic approach to its transformation,” the GSM Association says. “Part of the blueprint is expanding collaboration and dialogue with other industries, as doing so will be better for business and offer connectivity solutions ready for the new era.”

AI, ML … REINVENTING MEDIA

Joining Rosenworcel on the panel is Cristiano Amon, President/CEO of Qualcomm. Serving as the session moderator is The Wall Street Journal technology, media & telecom commercial sector journalist Sara Mascall. In her remarks, Mascall revealed that 5G and wireless technology advancements were key for WSJ journalists, as the publication takes an audience-first approach and consumes content “wherever, whenever.”

She noted, “It requires seamless data connections, and allows us to provide data-driven solutions from an editorial perspective.”

Perhaps one of the more startling session revelations came from Mascall, who shared that Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning (ML) are being used by The Wall Street Journal for advertising alignment across its platform. In the case of AI, it is also being used in the newsroom, freeing up journalists to focus on big breaking news-type of stories — a chilling statement in a time when the Mercury News of San Jose, Calif., was skewered on the February 27 edition of CBS’s 60 Minutes for having what appears to be a 1-person newsroom. To others, AI is a reality of a greatly evolved news business — giving promise to both radio and TV to increase their news coverage while balancing staffing and expenses.

Following her short introductory remarks, Rosenworcel took the stage to talk about not only 5G, but “the next-next generation of wireless” — 6G. For Mascall, Rosenworcel is an individual who has had a “significant impact” on the technical revolution, one that began under former Chairman Tom Wheeler and propelled forward in a world without “net neutrality” under Rosenworcel’s predecessor, Ajit Pai.

For Rosenworcel, “Invention, innovation and imagination” served as the key themes of her prepared keynote address, delivered just before Noon, local time, on Tuesday. She noted that 5G communications networks are up and running in 112 countries, resulting in more than 95,000 5G deployments.

How do we go “deeper and further” with 5G deployment? Rosenworcel turned back to 1960, and the months before the election of John F. Kennedy as U.S. President. Then, Kennedy offered a call to action and a statement of belief to push the boundaries of technology to address the challenges of the world around us. This can be done again today, as Rosenworcel offered three ideas for a brighter wireless future.

First and foremost: freeing up more spectrum, especially in the mid-band airwaves. This, she said, is “key to delivering on the promise of 5G services.” Thus, 5G deployment must come at scale.

To accomplish this, spectrum auctions are Rosenworcel’s top priorities. She recalled the “successful” October 2021 prime mid-band spectrum auction, followed by the granting of some 5,600 C-Band licenses. Then came Rosenworcel’s “big reveal” — the U.S. will hold another spectrum auction, scheduled for July 2022, but this time in the 2.5 GHz band. She calls this auction offering “the single-largest swath” of mid-band spectrum we have for GHz.”

Rosenworcel’s move to more spectrum, in her view, also involves receiver improvements, tied to the next step in innovative spectrum management. This, she believes, aides in providing greater access to spectrum.

Lastly, on the subject of imagination, Rosenworcel touched on 6G, and how its development and future rollout is, like 5G, “matters for economic and national security” in the U.S. and globally.

PLENTY OF ELBOW ROOM

The midday session, which Rosenworcel did not participate in beyond delivering her prepared remarks, is perhaps the most relevant to radio and TV in the U.S. across the four-day event, which began Monday morning and concludes March 3. Many of the sessions are in-person only, although virtual and hybrid opportunities are being offered by conference organizers. Rosenworcel’s session was sparsely attended by in-person attendees.

A session held earlier in the day on Tuesday, including a “What’s Next for the Mobile Sector?” conversation that saw Republic of Korea Minister of Science and ICT H.E. Hyesook LIM offer a detailed overview of how “Korea’s 5G opened a new world,” was held in a small room with classroom-style desks attended by perhaps 50 in-person conference-goers.

Republic of Korea Minister of Science and ICT H.E. Hyesook LIM

While the thin in-person attendance on Tuesday morning may be a warning sign that upcoming events including the 2022 NAB Show in Las Vegas could yield disastrously low numbers, the return of the broadcasting industry’s biggest global show in late April cannot be fairly compared to MWC Barcelona. For the GSMA, extremely strict vaccination and face mask rules are in place. Then, there is the war in Ukraine, resulting in the removal of a Russian pavilion from MWC Barcelona.

But, it could not be disputed that the in-person crowd size on Tuesday declined dramatically from Monday, when MWC Barcelona opened.

THE ‘NEW TECH ORDER’

“Diversity4Tech” was a topic discussed as the conference opened Monday, at a 9:30am CET session on “transforming the workplace” that was perhaps the most well-attended of the keynotes thus far. With attendees all wearing high-grade KN95 face masks and no social distancing, the auditorium-style seats quickly filled as GSMA Director General Mats Granryd weaved his way through a conversation before individual presentations from the heads of Swedish company Telia, global giant Vodafone and Spain’s Telefonica. The session also included pre-recorded presentations, delivered in Mandarin, from China Mobile, China Telecom and China Unicom.

The FCC on January 27 revoked China Unicom’s authority to provide telecom services in the U.S. This decision came after the Commission in March 2021 found that China Unicom Americas “had failed to dispel serious concerns” regarding its retention of its authority to provide telecommunications services in the United States. This act came after the FCC ordered China Telecom (Americas) Corp. to discontinue any domestic or international telecommunications services within the U.S. by Jan. 3, 2022 “in light of potential security threats to the nation’s telecommunications infrastructure.”  CTA offered consumers mobile service under the brand name “CTExcel,” as a Mobile Virtual Network Operator (MVNO).

The Commission in May 2019 denied China Mobile’s telecom services application.

The MWC Barcelona conference saw a capacity in-person crowd attend a Monday morning session led by GSMA Director General Mats Granryd. In-person attendance on Tuesday fell dramatically from the first day of the four-day affair, which saw the Russian pavilion axed due to the war in Ukraine.

Among the other MWC Barcelona sessions was a “ministerial programme” at 10am CET Monday turned its attention to digital inclusion and what it will take to get everyone connected.

Fintech and 5G session dominate the schedule, along with cybersecurity — a topic of particular importance given the Ukraine invasion by Russia and the threat of internet and IP attacks carried out by suspected Russia-based hackers.

In addition to the session featuring Rosenworcel, Tuesday’s sessions included an EsEt company spotlight on monetization and securitization of 5G and fiber networks.

An “ethical overview” of AI was a morning highlight.

For a look at the agenda for MWC Barcelona 2022 events on March 2-3, please click here.

MWC Barcelona 2022 attendees will receive a complimentary copy of the Winter 2022 RBR+TVBR Special Edition with their conference registration.

The National Association of Broadcasters today, Mar. 1, urged broadcasters to refrain from carrying and state-sponsored programming associated with the Russian government or its agents. The call came in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

“The National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) is a fierce defender of the First Amendment and the critical importance of the ability to freely express views, both popular and unpopular,” stated NAB President and CEO Curtis LeGeyt. “While the First Amendment protects freedom of speech, however, it does not prevent private actors from exercising sound, moral judgment.”

LeGeyt’s statement continued: “To that end, given the unprovoked aggression exhibited by Russia against the free and sovereign people of Ukraine, NAB calls on broadcasters to cease carrying any state-sponsored programming with ties to the Russian government or its agents.”

[Related: “Russian Broadcasters Leave EBU”]

The statement ended noting that NAB knows that such programs are extremely limited on U.S. airwaves, but “we believe that our nation must stand fully united against misinformation and for freedom and democracy across the globe.”

The question of how a broadcaster can tell the source of any given programming is timely. The NAB and other broadcast organizations have sued the FCC, opposing a new rule that requires stations to determine the source of foreign-based content. The association has argued that the requirement puts undue burdens on radio and TV stations, that that the rule is unconstitutional and that the problem the FCC is trying to solve is a “phantom harm.”

The post NAB Opposes Airing Russia-Sponsored Programming appeared first on Radio World.