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In Ventura County, Calif., the Alfredo Plascencia-led Lazer Media is a Hispanic media leader, with two of its four stations in the Top 5, according to Nielsen Audio ratings. Up the 101 Freeway in Santa Barbara, one of the five Lazer audio brands — its flagship Regional Mexican “Radio Lazer” offering — can be heard.

Soon, another Lazer brand will serve Spanish-language radio consumers from Isla Vista to Carpinteria, thanks to a deal that’s just been submitted to the FCC for regulatory approval.

 

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WASHINGTON, D.C. — The FCC’s Video Division Chief has given the green light to an upgrade request for a television station offering PBS programming to Iowa’s largest market.

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He’s a veteran marketer directly tied to the Aflac “Duck,” Progressive’s “Flo,” and the parental life coach featured in Progressive spots known as “Dr. Rick.” A two-time CMO of the Year (from Ad Age and AdWeek), Jeff Charney left Corporate America at the top of his game last year to start an “invite-only” nationwide marketing collective.

This game-changing startup, MKHSTRY, follows a scarcity model, working only with the bravest founders, brands, and individuals to disrupt existing business models to indeed make history, similarly to code-cracking companies like Uber, OpenAI, Spotify, Tesla, Airbnb, etc.

What can you learn from Charney? Find out when he makes a rare public appearance at Forecast 2024 on November 15.

Charney’s ability to constantly stay relevant has earned him unrivaled success as a marketer and led to the development of three of the most historic brand icons of this century. From 2005-2008 he was CMO of QVC. He then joined Aflac, where he spent two years as its CMO. From November 2010 through March 2022, Charney was CMO at Progressive. 

At Forecast 2024, Charney will appear in conversation with veteran radio programming consultant Mike McVay. It’s poised to be a rapid-fire 30-minute journey giving you the opportunity to understand marketing, creativity, and relevance from the C-Suite and beyond. Charney and his team are also developing their own AI, so he’s sure to offer a different and timely perspective.

This session is scheduled from 4pm-4:30pm Eastern and is in-person, in New York, and nowhere else!

Now in its 21st year, Forecast is broadcast media’s most prestigious leadership conference. Presented by Streamline Publishing’s Radio + Television Business Report and Radio Ink, and co-chaired by Catherine Badalamente of Graham Media Group and David Santrella of Salem Media Group, Forecast provides unprecedented opportunities for learning, networking, and conversation with our industry’s top leaders.

Forecast 2024 takes place at the Harvard Club in New York City on November 15, 2023.  Register online today!

Synthax Inc. named Right Track Marketing to represent several pro audio brands in the mid-Atlantic territory of the United States.

The brands include Digigram broadcast audio systems as well as RME, Ferrofish, Appsys, myMix and Alva.

Right Track represents manufacturers in the professional audio, video, lighting, musical instruments and consumer electronics industries.

The announcement was made by Synthax Director of Sales Derek Badala.

The post Synthax Adds Right Track to Its Rep List appeared first on Radio World.

Four years ago, Beasley Media Group demonstrated its fondness for eSports by acquiring a team of its own from Immortals Gaming Club. It has competed in the Overwatch League as the Houston Outlaws. In 2019, eSports was hot, and the Overwatch League professed to be the first major global professional esports league with city-based teams across Asia, Europe, and North America.

It is now known that the Overwatch League will shutter by the end of 2022. What does this mean for Beasley?

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WASHINGTON, D.C. — When it comes to P1 or P2 consumers, in ratings parlance, there’s likely scant overlap between the radio and cable television properties of a publicly traded company born in the Nation’s Capital and a multinational giant serving Spanish-speaking audiences through audio and video content channels.

But, with respect to multicultural might, each company believes it is a force for electorate motivation. As such, a “groundbreaking breakfast” will be held Thursday (11/2) at the elegant Willard Intercontinental Hotel to “raise awareness and empower African American and Hispanic voters” in the 2024 election cycle.

 

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Founded in 2008, it is one of the largest business-to-business online music catalogs globally, offering uncompressed broadcast quality commercial and production music tracks, with music metadata, that is licensed for business use by radio and television broadcasters.

It is now partnering with an AI-powered radio services firm with a product integration agreement signed, sealed and delivered.

The deal brings I Like Music’s catalog directly into Super Hi-Fi’s Program Director RadioOS.

“As part of the agreement, any Super Hi-Fi customer can leverage I Like Music’s curated multimillion track, online music database within Program Director, to program and operate radio stations and import the track and copyright data,” the companies say.

Within Program Director, I Like Music customers will have access to every U.S. and U.K. chart single and album since those charts began in the 1950s. The I Like Music catalog can be leveraged in all territories where Super Hi-Fi has customers; local content can be accessed through the database.

 

At present, two Wall Street analysts track Beasley Media Group, the owner of such radio stations as WBZ-FM “98.5 The Sports Hub” in Boston, WRIF and WCSX in Detroit, and WMMR and WMGK in Philadelphia, among others in markets such as Tampa, Las Vegas, and Augusta, Ga.

One analyst offered a Q3 2023 revenue estimate of $62 million. The other offered an estimate of $63.8 million. Beasley’s actual revenue for the three-month period ending September 30 came in well short of those estimates.

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WWFD in Frederick, Md., recently concluded the experimental phase of its MA3 HD Radio operation. It has notified the FCC that after five years, it will now continue to operate as a full-time all-digital AM station as is allowed under commission rules.

The author is a senior broadcast engineer and program director for Hubbard Broadcasting. He provides an update for Radio World readers on the experimental work that has been done.

With apologies to Star Trek, this summer WWFD (820 kHz, Frederick, Md.) completed its “five-year mission” of testing the all-digital HD mode of AM broadcasting known as MA3.

On July 31, we submitted a Digital Notification to the FCC, transitioning the station from digital operations under Experimental Authority to normal licensed operations. Up to almost the very last day, WWFD was working with Xperi Corp. to support as much field testing as possible. 

Dave Kolesar. The photo was taken at the SBE Chapter 37 picnic in Wheaton, Md. So what were we doing?

In a few of our papers and presentations at the NAB BEIT Conference, Mike Raide of Xperi and I have noted that the Reference Carrier in the MA3 waveform accounts for approximately 38% of the transmitted power in the waveform. 

While this carrier is necessary for coherent reception of the signal constellations in the OFDM (Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplex) signal, could power savings be achieved by reducing the level of this carrier, and at what cost? Would fringe coverage or fast receiver acquisition (the ability of a receiver to lock on to an MA3 signal and output audio within one frame, or about 1.4 seconds) be compromised? 

These are issues best examined in field trials, and WWFD’s proximity to the Xperi offices in Columbia, Md., make it the logical platform for drive tests.

The Xperi test van.

Jeff Baird and Paul Peyla of Xperi created some RF recordings of WWFD, and modified them to reduce the Reference Carrier level by 6 dB. (Theory and laboratory tests indicate that this value would offer the maximum benefit of power savings with the minimum amount of signal degradation.) 

Retransmitting these RF recordings required some creativity, and a solution was devised: A PC would play back the recordings into a sound card with a high AES sampling rate (near 200 kHz), and the output of that card would be fed into the AES3 audio input of the main transmitter (Nautel NX-5). This bypasses the Exgine card and demonstrates a new method of MA3 signal generation, as not only can a previously recorded RF signal be played back (retransmitted), but new RF vectors can be (and were) generated for transmission using this same method. Design engineers, imagine the possibilities!

With the MA3 signal generation question resolved, it was time to go out into the field and do drive tests. 

The test van setup.

WWFD’s coverage area makes an excellent test bed for signal characterization: There are mountains (the Appalachians) to the west, a fertile valley with excellent ground conductivity to the northeast in Pennsylvania, the urban core of Frederick (its city of license), flat open terrain to the east, and two major metropolitan areas in its fringe reception area (Washington and Baltimore). 

Such varied conditions provide many options for testing signal robustness and receiver acquisition. The best way to compare different test scenarios is to use the same driving route (with similar conditions: time of day, weather, etc.) and log the audio availability as a function of distance covered. This “percent audio availability” could then be used to compare the reliability of each Reference Carrier level scenario (including a normal MA3 signal) on each predetermined test route. 

The test results will be presented at the 2024 Broadcast Engineering and IT Conference next spring, but are very promising: In all test runs, Core reception (Primary Carriers) was reduced by no more than 5.8%, and Enhanced reception (Secondary and Tertiary Carriers) was reduced by no more than 4.3%. 

While this is a measurable effect, and the power savings would be modest, why would a station go through the trouble of reducing the power of its Reference Carrier? 

A high-power (50 kW) station may see a reduction in its power bill, which may be beneficial and worth the slight reduction in coverage. However, I would argue that there may be another reason to consider a reduction in the Reference Carrier level, at least for short durations. For this, we must revisit the idea of peak power levels in AM broadcasting.

It is well-known that an AM transmitter needs enough headroom to accommodate power peaks of 6 dB. For WWFD, this means that in its days of analog operation, its 4.3 kW daytime signal would occasionally peak at 17.2 kW. This translates into a corresponding transient power draw (plus overhead to account for transmitter efficiency). This matters when on emergency generator: WWFD’s generator, an old Onan 20 kW rig, barely handled the analog AM transmitter when on day power. With MA3 operations, even with Peak To Average Power Reduction (PAPR) algorithms in place, the 6 dB overhead figure still becomes 8.2 dB. 

The MA3 waveform. The reference carrier is the CW in the center.

That means that the peak (transient) power of our digital transmissions hits just above 28 kW! The generator becomes unstable, and we have had to cut to night power (our next lower preset) just to stabilize the generator during utility outages. 

With a modified Reference Carrier level, we may be able to find a “sweet spot” where we would only have to modestly reduce our digital carrier power so as to make the generator happy once again. Generators are capital expense items, and I’m going to have a much easier time setting up a “genset preset” for the transmitter, actuated by the remote control, than I would be trying to convince management to invest in a new generator. The reduction in coverage under such a scenario may be barely perceptible, and such a scenario may demonstrate the utility of (temporarily) reducing the Reference Carrier.

At this point, it may be useful to ask: If we can successfully reduce the Reference Carrier power without significantly compromising signal coverage, can we trade that for power increases for the Core or Enhanced carriers? 

Such an idea would be subject to the restrictions of NRSC emissions masks, but the idea should not be overlooked. MA3 coverage has already been shown to work better than analog in most Electric Vehicles (EVs), but any enhancements to the robustness of AM reception in these vehicles of the future should be seriously considered. Such testing would once again require WWFD to operate under Experimental Authority, and I would be totally in favor of doing that, as I have a strong personal belief that if the AM band is going to stay relevant for years in the future, it has to get to digital. 

MA3 operation solves the dual problem of poor audio quality and lack of metadata that all analog AM users experience. You can mandate that cars have analog AM tuners, but that doesn’t mean that anyone has to listen to them. It’s the same with digital, but at least there AM is put on a more even playing field with other services in the car dashboard.

The idea of taking WWFD all-digital occurred to me around Christmastime 2016. I had not anticipated that seeing that project through would raise new possibilities for improving the AM service as a whole, and be a viable technical solution for reception in EVs. I’m happy to have had the station be used as a test platform for ideas on improving digital transmission and AM broadcasting in general, and welcome its continued role in that discussion.

[Read more stories about the future of AM radio in cars]

The post WWFD Concludes AM Digital Test Phase appeared first on Radio World.

Super Hi-Fi will integrate the music catalog of B2B music supplier I Like Music into its Program Director RadioOS.

Logo of I Like Music

“I Like Music offers uncompressed broadcast quality commercial and production music recordings to power radio programming,” the companies announced. “As part of the agreement, any Super Hi-Fi customer can leverage I Like Music’s curated multimillion track, online music database within Program Director, to program and operate radio stations and import the track and copyright data.”

In Program Director, I Like Music customers have access to U.S. and U.K. chart singles and albums dating to the 1950s, and access to additional recordings across genres.

“The I Like Music catalog can be leveraged in all territories where Super Hi-Fi has customers, and local content can be accessed through the database,” they said.

The announcement was made by I Like Music CEO Rachel Jones and Super Hi-Fi Chief Commercial Officer Ryan Taylor.

I Like Music licenses music to industries including radio and TV, in-store retail and the DJ market.

Super Hi-Fi describes Program Director as a cloud-based, AI-powered radio operating system. “Deep integration with the I Like Music catalog means that customers can now take advantage of programming using Super Hi-Fi’s advanced sound code and data capabilities, including over 100 music attributes like Key, BPM, mood, energy, acousticness, chillness and much more.”

[Read more recent news about Super Hi-Fi.]

The post I Like Music Partners With Super Hi-Fi appeared first on Radio World.

The audio stream of FOX News Media’s free ad-supported streaming television service focused on meteorological forecasts is being added to the app and accompanying web portal owned by the company helmed by President/CEO David Field.

FOX News Audio has expanded its partnership with Audacy to include FOX Weather.

It is already available to users via the Audacy app and on Audacy.com, expanding a four-year relationship that already includes the distribution of FOX News Podcasts and the FOX News Talk audio streams.

FOX Weather marked its two-year anniversary on October 25, and can also be found as a digital multicast offering tied to over-the-air FOX Television Stations in such cities as New York, Los Angeles and Chicago.

FOX News Audio encompasses FOX News Radio (FNR), FOX News Headlines 24/7 and FOX News Podcasts. FOX News Podcasts offers a catalogue of on-demand original podcasts, including “The FOX News Rundown.”

On SiriusXM Channel 115, FOX News Headlines 24/7 provides listeners with around the clock coverage of the day’s headlines in 15-minute segments.

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Working with a client’s engineer recently, I recommended the purchase of some necessary equipment, and he agreed. I suggested that he call his preferred vendor to get competitive quotes, but he told me that his business manager requires him to purchase everything from the giant web presence (no, I am not saying names). 

I asked, knowing the answer: “You don’t have relationships with any industry vendors?” 

Being a young guy, he wondered why he would need that. Suddenly I pictured a scene from “Kung Fu.”

I said, “Grasshopper, now listen: Having relationships with a few preferred dealers within broadcasting is great. These are experts in how these products are used. They know your projects. They know what brands you have and like. They often have been trained by the manufacturers. 

“A dealer can advocate for you if you have a problem with a manufacturer’s product. They may offer you favorable purchasing terms or leasing options. They’ll work with you and your budget to get the most value. And most of the time they can beat the websites and catalog vendors that don’t specialize in broadcast.”

I think he got the point. But I could have added another reason to use a vendor: They answer the phone (yes, I still use the phone) and if they’re good, they will jump to get what you need. 

I recall working at 6 p.m. on a Friday, when the program director told me that we had a major remote Monday morning. Of course I didn’t have all the equipment I’d need. I called my vendor (on his cell), and he shipped me the needed items overnight, so everything was good. Yes, he saved the day. But wait there’s more. He called me later to make sure everything had been delivered. 

This is the personal service you can enjoy if you use a reputable dealer.

I’m preaching old-school values here. I know big websites and generic catalogs may be tempting, given how easy it is to find and buy products online these days. 

But the people who work at these sites (if you can reach them) probably don’t care if you receive your items on time. They usually have no idea how the equipment will be used in your professional broadcast setting. Sometimes you do not know whether the product had been returned by someone else prior to you receiving it.

No, I don’t work for a vendor. I do appreciate our industry’s specialized suppliers and the value they add to our business. 

As I’ve preached before, build relationships. They will help you in your career. Where do you start these relationships? Society of Broadcast Engineering meetings, AES Audio Engineering Society meetings, Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers meetings. Trade shows, yes, collect the business cards. I’ve been teased that my phone’s contact list is an industry resource; many people will call me to find out whom to call. 

You should never feel like you are alone on a project, and a good vendor can hook you up with someone who has already done something similar to what you’re trying to do. 

Build your professional relationships, they will pay off throughout your career. And that includes your equipment dealers. 

By the way, vendors usually know about job openings before anyone else, so make friends.

Read past commentaries by David Bialik.

The post What? You Don’t Have a Broadcast Vendor? appeared first on Radio World.

Sound Advantage Media has added two radio formats for syndication. 

“Classic Top-40” is described as “a mix of ‘lost’ songs not heard on the radio anymore but are big hits and longtime favorites from the ’60s–’80s, lots of ‘wow’ factor.”

Meanwhile “Classic Songs & Smooth Jazz” features songs from artists such as Michael Buble, Frank Sinatra and Diana Krall, as well as Kenny G, Manhattan Transfer and Herb Albert.

Sound Advantage Media also has partnered with a virtual commercial production service, Voice Creative, a team of “advertising storytellers” including a team of some 60 voice actors.

For info email Gary Begin, garybegin10@gmail.com.

[Sign Up for Radio World’s SmartBrief Newsletter]

The post Sound Advantage Adds Two Formats appeared first on Radio World.

The number of products and platforms for radio broadcasters based on some form of artificial intelligence technology is exploding. This feature provides an overview of 10 of them.

WORLDCAST SYSTEMS

While generative AI gets attention for its potential impact on creative work, AI already is being used behind the front panels of parts of the airchain already.

WorldCast Systems offers a technology called SmartFM on its Ecreso transmitters, which range in power levels from 100 Watts to 10 kW.

“SmartFM enables broadcasters to benefit from up to 40% energy savings on their FM transmission — this includes reducing electricity costs and lowering CO2 emissions — without any compromise on audio quality or coverage,” said Gregory Mercier, director of product marketing. He said a 10 kW FM using an Ecreso transmitter with SmartFM could save 824 MWh over 10 years compared to an older transmitter with 55% efficiency.

The tool predicts human perception of audio quality at the limit of coverage and depending on content characteristics. “After a psychoanalysis algorithm qualifies the robustness of audio content to perturbations, SmartFM dynamically changes the RF output power in relation to broadcast content.”

The AI has three steps. First it uses a statistical approach for content breakdown and classification. “This phase corresponds to the retrieval and analysis of large numbers of data, our ‘big data,’” Mercier said. This enabled WorldCast to create a library of audio content classified by signal characteristics as well as by the impact on the listener’s acoustic experience. The tool then uses a probabilistic approach in the implementation of content detection, and finally a deterministic approach in automating RF management.

SmartFM is sold as a software option with annual fee or a permanent license. Ecreso transmitters include a three-month free trial. 

A notable user is Uplink Network GmbH in Germany. It deployed SmartFM across 800 Ecreso transmitters with the support of broadcasters including Deutschland Radio, RBB, WDR and NDR. 

ENCO

ENCO-GPT uses generative AI models to generate audio content and automate voice tracking and commercial creation for TV and radio workflows. It creates spec spots and commercials on demand to simplify radio production.

“ENCO-GPT shines by helping users to instantly create ad and promotion copy on behalf of sponsors, alleviating the time, energy and costs spent with traditional methods,” said President Ken Frommert.

“An intuitively designed web interface allows users to run ENCO-GPT from anywhere with an internet connection, including mobile browsers.”

The user answers a few questions to generate copy for a 15-, 30- or 60-second ad. A text window presents the copy, which users can manually edit or re-generate. 

Next, the user selects the most appropriate voice from several male or female voice options available. ENCO-GPT then allows the user to add the right music bed for the spot before downloading the final down-mixed audio file.

“Spec ads can be downloaded from ENCO-GPT and sent to the client almost immediately,” Frommert said. 

“The user interface is simple enough for users of any skill level to learn quickly, with intuitive prompts that guide users through the process.”

SUPER HI-FI

Super Hi-Fi products are based on an AI production technology called MagicStitch, said Chief Commercial Officer Ryan Taylor. 

The headliner product is Program Director, an “operating system” that Taylor says enables broadcasters to curate, program, schedule and operate their stations. 

“AI powers all of the audio production, like creating segues, layering in voice tracks and branding, volume leveling and more. AI also powers our clock rotations, automatically selecting songs that sound good together and separating out music throughout the day.” Program Director is sold for a monthly platform or per-station fee.

The company also has Weathercaster, an automated service that can create weather reports using custom synthetic voices, produced with openers, sponsorships and music beds, and created in various lengths. The AI generates scripts, creates voices, assembles elements and produces the output. Weathercaster is offered in tiers starting at $199 per month per station.

And VoiceIQ, part of Program Director, is a cloud-based AI that prepares and delivers produced voice tracks. Taylor said they sound as if they were edited and mastered manually. It removes background noise, tone-matches to the user’s reference standard, eliminates plosives and clipping and optimizes dynamic range.

Super Hi-Fi’s audio and music selection/rotation AI was developed in house. The company uses ChatGPT for script creation and partners with ElevenLabs for voice synthesis. iHeartRadio is using MagicStitch for automated segues in its mobile apps on digital-only stations. Cardio equipment maker Peloton uses it on Peloton Radio and its “Scenic” rides. Sonos uses Program Director on its owned-and-operated stations. 

FUTURI MEDIA

The company’s RadioGPT has gotten lots of headlines but that is only one of Futuri’s AI-based tools.

TopicPulse is an AI-driven story discovery and social content system. For show prep it promises “real-time insights on the stories that are currently trending with a specific audience, the stories that are about to go viral with that audience, and the stories that are getting stale so that content creators can avoid them.”

A companion product called TopicPulse Instant Video gives creators access to short video clips on that day’s hot stories, using licensed footage, that can be rebranded or edited with custom VO or images, and pushed to a station website and social feeds. 

Spokeswoman Zena Burns said the AI is used to scan Facebook, Twitter/X, Instagram and a quarter of a million sources of news and information to deliver insights on how stories are performing with specific audiences. “AI is also used to create first drafts of social posts, blog posts and on-air talking points based on those stories.”

TopicPulse uses natural language processing and adaptive AI. 

Futuri said the tool has thousands of users in radio, TV, digital publishing and other segments. Radio users include Audacy’s WXBK(FM) in New York and Hubbard’s WTOP and Howard University’s WHUR(FM), both in Washington.

Other tools from Futuri that rely on AI include SpotOn, Prep+, podcasting AI Post and revenue AI system TopLine.

WAYMARK

This video creation tool uses the website URL of a business to create “instant, fully customized and ready-to-air commercials.” It can be used to generate “spec” creative for potential ad partners for streaming and cable TV placements.

“Broadcasters find that this helps them from spec all the way to air; they can win more ad revenue and/or extend campaigns with local businesses,” said CEO Alex Persky-Stern.

“Our partners consistently report that Waymark helps open doors to businesses who otherwise would not have been able to afford video advertising packages.”

The platform uses AI for multiple stages of the video creation process. It incorporates large language models for scriptwriting, computer vision models for image curation and selection, upscaling models for asset enhancement, and text-to-speech technology for synthetic VOs. “Waymark leverages a fine-tuned model of GPT-3, as well as a proprietary combination of 12 other AI technologies.”

The company partners with stock libraries to ensure that its assets are licensed, and the AI models rely on images and videos that are already in use by the user’s brand. 

Waymark is a scalable subscription-based service. Partners can choose monthly or annual payment plans. Radio clients include Alpha Media Group, Beasley Media Group and Morgan Murphy Media.

RADIO.CLOUD

From Radio.Cloud comes Voicetrack.ai, which is used to create hosted radio shows with an AI DJ.

“Voicetrack.ai allows a fully automated AI supported operation of a hosted 24/7 channel or complete radio shows, such as overnights or weekends,” said Managing Director/CEO Christian Brenner.

“The AI host will perform similarly to what a real DJ would do: music teasing, weather forecast, local stories, news, traffic reports, music chart updates, etc.”

AI creates the text for each voice break, creates DJ audio from a cloned voice and mixes the voice track into the show and playlist, including ramps and hook promos.

“We developed a complex backend and created the prompts we send to ChatGPT or Google Bard before checking and improving the reply,” Brenner said. “The Text-to-Speech is third-party.” Brenner called it “a real automated operation. We have heard that other products still require a lot of day-by-day manual work.”

The tool is sold as a monthly SaaS service, with cost varying depending on how many stations and how many hours per day are used.

In July Radio.Cloud helped launch Absolut Radio AI, believed to be the first 24/7 internet radio station fully driven by AI; the host, named kAI, informs listeners about AI and the voice tracks, imaging and playlist mixing are done by AI. Then in August, Absolut Radio AI debuted on DAB+, believed to be the first OTA station driven full-time by AI.

RADIO WORKFLOW

This is a web-based traffic platform that incorporates AI to generate creative elements for ad production. This includes voiceovers, voice cloning and generation, production music, sound effects and script writing.

Founder Shane Zammit said, “The AI component focuses on generative functions for ad production, including creating unique voiceovers through voice cloning and voice generation, script writing based on the context and tone of the ad segment, and generating production music and sound effects that fit the narrative.”

Zammit said Radio Workflow uses a mixture of AI models, including some developed in-house as well as open-source models and other external ones. “This hybrid approach allows us to offer a robust and versatile set of generative features tailored for radio ad production.”

The platform is available through a monthly model, with pricing tiers based on size and needs of the station. 

Regional Media is among its users. “They have reported a significant improvement in the speed, productivity and creativity of their ad productions, attributing it to our AI-driven generative features,” Zammit said.

SUITELIFE SYSTEMS

SuiteLife Systems software helps broadcasters monitor infrastructure in and from studios and remote transmission sites. Its flagship product is Axess. 

“It’s a logic engine that enables a centralized engineering team to monitor, control, manage and diagnose hardware and transmission infrastructure and facilities around the United States,” said Bobby Stevens, director of media technology sales and marketing. 

“This includes monitoring for a site’s vital technical information including temperature, line pressure, RF Line (forward and reflective power), as well as the weather and outside environmental influences.”

The software provides cross-platform support for hardware and software systems made by various manufacturers. Axess logs data and creates instructions to notify engineers of changes in the state or function of infrastructure at their sites.

The engine uses SuiteLife Control Language to analyze hardware throughout a network. Data and information that are gathered are moved into an optical visual interface to be viewed on a dashboard. Axess notifies the broadcaster if systems are showing errors or are out of norm and logs the information. It can also be directed to make changes to hardware and RF transmission devices.

SuiteLife said Axess is used by major network affiliates and several large station groups, logging EAS and monitoring hundreds of sites and hardware.  

VERITONE

Veritone developed an enterprise AI platform, aiWARE, that supports several offerings.

Veritone Discovery is a media discovery and analytics tool to discover large amounts of visual and audio broadcast data, and track and verify ads including organic mentions. 

“By transforming broadcasts into intelligent, highly structured content in near-real time, customers can seamlessly find moments, brand mentions and other clips within seconds,” the company says. It provides the ability to search a broadcast for spoken words, faces, logos, objects and sentiments. Users include Audacy and Cox Media Group.

Veritone Attribute tracks performance of ads including tangible ROI data. It enables stations to optimize linear TV and radio campaigns by correlating an ad with web “lift” in nearly real time. Bonneville Seattle, Hubbard Broadcasting and Primedia are customers.

And Veritone Digital Media Hub is an asset management and monetization tool that enables stations to generate more revenue from their content. 

“AI can uncover archival footage that can be shared, sold or otherwise used, speeding the path to content monetization. Additionally, AI makes it easy to organize, share and consolidate content with AI-driven metadata asset tagging, rights management controls and flexible integrations with current systems, ingesting AI into your current solution stack.” Users include CNN, Bloomberg and Westwood One. 

ADTHOS

The Adthos Ad Platform can be used by broadcasters and clients to create targeted and voice-branded advertising and short-form audio content at a moment’s notice, the company says.

It uses AI to generate creative scripts. Text-to-speech adds the voicetrack using AI and synthetic voices, then the tool automatically selects music or sound effects to complete the audio ad, based on the context of the script generated.

Processes includes Voice Conversion, in which accent and pronunciation of the original speaker remain but it takes on the sound of the voice model; Overdubbing, in which a voice is instantly cloned and words in a sentence can be replaced, without training a voice model; Source Separation, in which music and voices can be separated into different tracks; Noise Removal, eliminating background noise; Speaker Separation, identifying individual speakers and separating them into tracks; and Content Moderation by the AI.

Adthos uses a combination of its own AI, open source with its own models, and external vendors. The company has approximately 70 trained voice models for broadcast purposes such as ads, news and sports. 

An example of major users is Talpa Network in The Netherlands, which owns four national stations and sells airtime for four other national stations. Subscriptions start at just $49.95 per month for a basic package. A month’s free trial is available.

This year saw the launch of self-service audio ads. “Users simply submit a short briefing via the portal, and using AI technology, Adthos generates the script, adding AI voices, sound effects and music, resulting in a fully AI-produced ad that’s available to be played out instantly.”

For advertisers and smaller broadcasters, Adthos said, it saves time and cost of production, “while publishers can offer customers a self-service ad buying experience while supporting long-tail revenue streams through microtransactions.”

[Read More Radio World Stories About Artificial Intelligence]

The post 10 AI-Based Tools for Radio appeared first on Radio World.

On August 24, RBR+TVBR readers first learned of two transactions that saw the company led by CEO Vince Bodiford and funded by 5-Hour Energy creator Manoj Bhargava agree to purchase LPTV stations serving a wide swath of Massachusetts and California’s Coachella Valley, respectively.

One of those deals has just closed, with Greg Guy of Tideline Partners serving as the exclusive broker in the transaction.

 

Meet Vince Bodiford at Forecast 2024! They are creative, nimble, and understand how to maximize the importance of local radio and television. They are independent and small broadcast groups. A Forecast 2024 “Main Street Media” session explores the “secret sauce” that enables them to be competitive, successful, and innovative in an ever-changing media environment. Panelists include Bridge Media Network CEO and Head of Media Vince Bodiford, Lilly Broadcasting CEO Brian Lilly, Midway Broadcasting Corp. Chairman Melody Spann Cooper, and Bold Gold Media Group President/CEO Vince Benedetto. Moderating the panel is Colorado Broadcasters Association President/CEO Justin Sasso. BE IN THE ROOM WHERE IT HAPPENS! LIMITED SEATING REMAINS FOR FORECAST, NOVEMBER 15 AT THE HARVARD CLUB IN MIDTOWN MANHATTAN. REGISTER NOW!

 

 

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Until now, Connecticut Public Radio broadcasts reached nearly all of the Constitution State, but not all corners. The far northeast corner of the state can’t get it, nor can the city of Danbury, largely due to hilly terrain and signal limitations of WNPR-FM in Hartford.

That’s about to change, and noted media broker Greg Guy had a hand in the deal.

 

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Travel east on 15 Mile Road from Gratiot Avenue, just south of Mt. Clemens, Mich., and you’ll come across the broadcast tower and the studios and offices of a television station that debuted on May 20, 1989, under the ownership of a man who owned an automotive parts supply company.

Today, WADL-38, which operates on digital Channel 27, is still a family-run operation — for now. Adell Broadcasting Corp. on May 10 signed off on an agreement to sell the station for millions of dollars. It has yet to close, and the man who today runs Adell believes regulatory approval won’t be approved anytime soon.

In protest, Adell has pulled The CW Network affiliation from the station. There’s a reason why.

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