On December 22, 2020, Cumulus Media closed a transaction that saw the sale of five radio brands serving the Albany, Ga., market to First Media Services for $450,000.
Now, 7.11% of the funds Cumulus earned from that deal, consummated in April 2020, could be heading to the FCC as a financial penalty for apparent violations of the Commission’s EEO rules.
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A veteran multiplatform media strategist and executive at Paramount’s CBS Stations division has been appointed Sr. VP of Streaming, reporting to division President Jennifer Mitchell.
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It’s known for six radio brands, a health and fitness directory, and a classifieds website serving Northeastern Nevada from the city of Elko.
Now, Ken Sutherland‘s Ruby Radio Corporation is preparing to part ways with the radio assets, according to the broker of record in this pending transaction.
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Toyota will include HD Radio as a standard feature in its next-generation infotainment system in the U.S., which means nearly all new Toyota cars in the country will have an HD Radio in future.
Xperi announced the development this past week while releasing its financial results for the fourth quarter and past year.
“Toyota has been a valued customer for some time, although the extent of their prior implementation was in mid-line and upper-end vehicles,” said CEO Jon Kirchner during an investor call.
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“I think this represents a decision recognizing the importance of HD Radio in the broader infotainment suite. It’s representative of the continued progress we make with the HD Radio ecosystem in North America, and it lays a foundation as well for follow-on next-generation entertainment features, which ties in with what we’re doing with DTS AutoStage.”
On that front, Xperi said 16 car companies are testing its DTS AutoStage technology in Europe, North America and Asia. “Multiple partners, including two major OEMs, are in advanced stages of testing.”
Radio people know Xperi largely as the parent of HD Radio and DTS AutoStage, but it has numerous other businesses including IP licensing, pay TV, consumer electronics, driver monitoring and TiVo.
Overall, Kirchner said the recent quarter was “solid” and that the company “continued to successfully deliver against the key strategic objectives we set following our merger with TiVo nearly two years ago.”
Revenue in the quarter was $214.4 million, compared to $433.9 million for the period in 2020, which included prior revenue from Xperi’s Comcast agreement. Xperi said quarterly revenue without that earlier adjustment was up 2% in Q4. The company posted a loss per share of 14 cents using GAAP calculations and earnings per share of 30 cents using non-GAAP.
For the year 2021 Xperi reported revenue of $877.7 million, down from $892 million the year before. It reported a GAAP loss per share of 53 cents and a non-GAAP earnings per share of $2.03. It said it had “returned over $100 million to stockholders through dividends and share repurchases” in 2021.
The post Toyota to Make HD Radio Standard in U.S. appeared first on Radio World.
A new Radio World webcast series, beginning in March, will help managers and engineers get a better grasp on technologies that can advance their organization’s goals.
The series “Running Radio Today: Produce, Deliver, Profit” is free. Produced by Radio World and hosted by Editor in Chief Paul McLane, it will have three parts, one per month focused on a different part of the radio broadcast business mission and workflow.
Each part features presentations from leading technology vendors, plus a roundtable discussion with Paul and a co-host from the broadcast engineering community.
The first of the series on March 17, “Produce,” will focus on trends and tools for how radio content is created. The 2020s have brought streamlined studio workflows, centralized network designs and expanded remote capabilities. What are the implications for content creation, from the microphone and automation system to the control surface and AoIP network? Discussing those questions with Paul will be technology experts from sponsors Telos Alliance, RCS and Comrex. Co-hosting will be Jason Ornellas, regional director of engineering for Bonneville International and past recipient of the Radio World Excellence in Engineering Award.
The second webcast on April 14, “Deliver,” is about how distribution of content is changing. What should radio managers know about advances in transmission, codecs, streaming and other technologies that deliver your content to the listener? Is your station up to date? Joining us for this will be experts from sponsors Synthax/Digigram, Xperi, Wheatstone and Comrex. Paul’s co-host will be Rob Bertrand, chief technology officer of WAMU in Washington.
And the third webcast on May 18, “Profit,” will focus on monetization and the use of technology that helps generate revenue for radio. Several new tools are available today to maximize all business operations of radio. We’ll find out how modern tech has infiltrated the ledgers and is improving the bottom line from companies including Marketron. Other participants will be announced soon.
Registration for Part 1 is now open.
The post Webcast Series Explores “Running Radio Today” appeared first on Radio World.
Introducing the Radio Masters Sales Summit — presented by Streamline Publishing’s Radio Ink and The Center for Sales Strategy.
The event is scheduled for September 22-23, 2022 at the Intercontinental at Doral, minutes away from Miami International Airport.
“For decades Radio Ink has led this industry and revealed information that is critical to its survival,” said Eric Rhoads, Chairman and Founder of Radio Ink and the Radio + Television Business Report. “At the time when only eight stations in the U.S. had websites, we brought you the Radio Ink Internet Conference, and it resulted in significant industry change. We then launched the Radio Ink Convergence conference to reveal online radio and what radio needs to do to be a part of it.”
Rhoads added, “We know you’re busy. So, the Radio Masters Sales Summit will be a quick in and out. Depending on flights, you can fill your mind with incredible knowledge and powerful tools without more than two days out of the office.”Space is Limited so Register Today for The Radio Masters Sales Summit September 22-23 in Miami.
“I’m super excited about the Radio Masters Sales Summit in September. This sort of NEXT-level sales and management conference for the radio industry is needed as the business has clearly changed over the past few years,” Matt Sunshine, of The Center for Sales Strategy, commented. “The summit is about more than selling in today’s environment and with today’s trends. It will help you master sales in a new way, with critical directives every seller, manager, and owner needs.”
Radio Ink has decided to take immediate action and step up for the industry we love, throw it a lifeline, and give it new tools and new hope. Following two years of turmoil and distractions, it’s time to get back on track. It’s time to rethink sales strategy, refresh management skills, and refocus goals and expectations. Don’t Wait! Register Today for The Radio Masters Sales Summit September 22-23 in Miami.The Ed Stolz Saga continues, as Royce International Broadcasting has assumed control of KREV/San Francisco, KFRH/Las Vegas and KRCK/Palm Springs, Calif.
And, the three stations are now silent, RBR+TVBR has learned, putting an LMA of the stations by VCY America on ice — at least for now.
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Since May 2019, she has served as Executive Producer of “Full Court Press with Greta Van Susteren.”
Now, she has been promoted to VP/GM of the Washington, D.C., operations for Gray Television.
Taking the role is Lisa Allen. This will see her manage the various elements that comprise Gray’s operations on Capitol Hill and ensure their close integration with other newsrooms and resources across the company.
Gray’s Washington operations include the following:
Gray Television SVP/Local Media Sandy Breland commented, “Our Washington operations are expanding to serve our growing company’s reach, making it necessary for a strong
local leader who understands both our challenges and our strengths. We are thrilled to promote Lisa to this new role, as she will ensure that we continue to provide our stations and our audiences with the highest possible level of unique, quality journalism from the Nation’s Capital while also accelerating collaborative political content partnerships involving Gray’s D.C. Team.”
Prior to joining Gray, Lisa was a Supervising Producer for Scripps-owned Newsy, based in Chicago.
When it came time for broadcast media analysts to ask questions during The E.W. Scripps Co.‘s fourth quarter earnings call, two clear focal points quickly became clear. What are the dynamics surrounding retransmission consent revenue, given all of the money being put into the “streaming wars”? And, what’s the long-term revenue model for ATSC 3.0?
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It’s known as a home for “Middle Georgia Gospel” programming, and serves as an FM translator tied to a Class D AM licensed to Perry, Ga.
Now, the owner of that AM has secured the FM translator by converting a lease to an outright purchase.
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It has 27 watts of power and serves the municipality of Marion, Ohio, one hour north of Columbus and home to the presidential home of Warren G. Harding.
And, it could be stripped of its license, as the FCC’s Media Bureau has designated for hearing its license renewal application. Why? Those in charge of this low-power FM may have lied with respect to its board members.
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From the Radio World Who’s Buying What page: Calrec said South African community radio stations are using its Type R for Radio consoles with the help of funding from the South African Media Development and Diversity Agency and systems integrator Experience Audio Solutions.
“The MDDA works with the South African government to assist in developing community and small commercial media across the country and provides funding and media education for local community operators,” Calrec wrote.
“More than 20 community radio stations have put in requests for quotes to upgrade their technology,” it stated. Eldos FM in Johannesburg is among those taking delivery of a Type R through MDDA funding. Southside FM in Durban is being outfitted with a Type R, and Giyani FM is planned.
Experience Audio Solutions works with Calrec’s South African distributor Wild & Marr on these projects.
“There are 285 licensed community radio stations in South Africa, 212 on air, and 156 funded by the MDAA. Community radio listenership in South Africa garners roughly 8 million people,” Calrec wrote.
Send news for Who’s Buying What to radioworld@futurenet.com.
The post Calrec Type R Serves Community Stations appeared first on Radio World.
The Board of Directors of Gray Television has authorized a quarterly cash dividend of its common stock and Class A common stock.
The reward to shareholders comes as GTN, traded on the NYSE, is at the top end of its historical price chart — a good sign for the company led by Hilton Howell Jr. and Pat LaPlatney.
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As a benefit to investors and analysts, Gray Television offered a look at its net income and Broadcast Cash Flow on a year-over-year-over-year basis, with comparisons to Q4 2019 and Q4 2020 offered in its fourth quarter 2021 fiscal report card.
How did Gray do? Net income was down, while BCF was ever-so-slightly under what the 2019 level was.
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Mark 10am on Thursday, March 3, on your calendar. That’s when the Senate Commerce Committee, chaired by State of Washington Democrat Maria Cantwell, will convene an executive session that puts to vote the presidential nominations of nine individuals.
Among them: Gigi B. Sohn, the controversial selection by the Biden administration to fill the fifth Commissioner’s seat at the FCC.
A vote on Sohn’s nomination is third of the nine on the agenda, with the first vote for Arun Venkataraman, to be Assistant Secretary of Commerce and Director General of the United States and Foreign Commercial Service.
Other votes are for nominees to serve in roles at the Department of Transportation, Department of Commerce, and the CPSC. Also up for a vote: the nomination of Alvaro Bedoya to be a Federal Trade Commission Commissioner.
As of today, Sohn’s nomination remains highly contentious. And, her path to the FCC could come down to Sen. Ben Ray Luján, who is recovering from a stroke. The New Mexico Democrat is said to be the deciding vote, one that would seat Sohn.
Then, there’s chatter Inside the Beltway that Ranking Member Roger Wicker and other Republicans, likely to include Ted Cruz, would “boycott” a vote on Sohn based on how she answered their follow-up questions. Republicans are extremely concerned about Sohn’s ties to now-shuttered “OTA via IP” television service Locast, and of her tweets that called Fox News a form of state-sponsored propaganda during the Trump administration.
Sohn is also a supporter of “net neutrality,” fueling concerns among Democrats that the GOP is “blocking” Sohn, despite Wicker’s testimony at a second nomination hearing that this was not the case.
While the opposition to Sohn is vocal, she does have an ally in Christopher Ruddy, as the head of conservative cable TV news operation Newsmax has come out in support of Sohn for her commitment to diversity, something Newsmax can benefit from as it further seeks to grow against established news and political opinion-focused cable giant FOX News.
With very tough year-over-year comps due to strong political advertising revenue in the fourth quarter of 2020, broadcast television industry performance in Q4 2021 can’t be judged by solely the topline numbers being reported.
That’s why the 8.1% rise in core advertising revenue in the final three months of 2021 at The E.W. Scripps Co. is particularly noteworthy, and encouraging.
Nevertheless, Scripps’ EPS for the quarter fell short of the Zacks Consensus Estimate.
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Senate Commerce Committee Chair Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) has set March 3 for a vote in her committee on the nomination of Gigi Sohn for the open Democratic seat on the FCC.
Commerce has chief oversight of communications issues.
Sohn has had two nomination hearings but as yet no vote in the committee on whether to favorably report her to the full Senate for a confirmation vote.
Signaling that there would not be enough Democratic votes to secure a favorable report of her nomination to the full Senate, the scheduled February 2 vote on her nomination was pulled from that executive session.
The post Gigi Sohn FCC Nomination Vote Scheduled appeared first on Radio World.
CARIAD, the software arm of the Volkswagen Group, has joined RadioDNS.
“Audi were innovators in the automotive sector for hybrid radio, using the RadioDNS standards to enable new experiences of radio for drivers in connected vehicles,” RadioDNS wrote in its announcement. Audi is a member of the Volkswagen Group.
“Functionality like the unique ‘range extender,’ which switches seamlessly between broadcast radio and IP streaming, uses our standards to get the required stream information directly from radio stations. CARIAD will now continue to work with RadioDNS to implement and develop standards for their hybrid radio offering, which will be available in Volkswagen Group’s connected vehicles.”
The announcement was made by RadioDNS Project Director Nick Piggott and CARIAD Development Engineer Christian Winter.
Winter said, “Many vehicles in the premium segment of the group are already using RadioDNS technology and we are looking forward to bringing hybrid radio solutions to the volume segment.”
Other organizations joining RadioDNS recently include Hubbard, Gracenote, G&L and NXP.
The post CARIAD Joins RadioDNS appeared first on Radio World.
Radio World Buyer’s Guide articles are intended to help readers understand why their colleagues chose particular products to solve various technical situations. This month’s articles focus on products for radio remotes and sports.
Radio Sintonía with its AEQ Talent audio codec readying for a broadcast from the village of Betancuria on Fuerteventura.Radio Sintonía is the reference station on the FM band for the island of Fuerteventura in the Canary Islands, which recently was the subject of intensive news coverage due to a volcanic eruption on the neighboring island of La Palma.
“We transmit on six different frequencies to provide the best geographical coverage possible to reach our listeners,” said Technical Director Iván Travieso Gómez.
“Our budget is limited, but we are devoted to serve the community and we focus on making what we call ‘street radio,’ with coverage of local sports, events and tourism on the island.”
The station obtained the AEQ Talent audio codec in 2020, but unlike many stations, it wasn’t concerned primarily with “radio from home.”
“Even if we also have been producing programs from home during pandemic lockdowns, we focus on taking the radio out into the street to interact with our community. Also, out in the open, COVID is less contagious than indoors. Further, the fantastic climate of the Canary Islands allows both sports or other events to take place outdoors.”
While the codec is suitable for personal use, the station seldom uses it for a one-man show.
“Talent has an ancillary line and Bluetooth connections. Therefore, we can use it as an ‘OB unit.’ Sometimes we connect it to a 16-channel live sound console, a headphone amplifier, some wireless microphones and a 3G/4G router and we take the radio out to any plaza or town square.”
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Through the Bluetooth link to a smartphone, the team can receive calls and make them part of the program, usually using WhatsApp, which Travieso Gómez said provides very good sound quality.
He likes the simplicity of the Talent control surface and the fact that its Talent Pilot app allows them to manage the unit from a phone.
On the studio PC, the free ControlPhoenix application is installed, which allows him to manage the Talent codec in the field as well as the Phoenix rack-mounted codec at the studio. “We can monitor the status of both in real time and, if required, intervene to modify some configuration parameters or resolve other issues.”
The application shows the connection status and VU meters of both audio inputs and outputs. It also allows them to route signals to the headphones and control the gain.
Radio Sintonía uses the Opus algorithm included in AEQ’s codecs and the free registration on its SIP server. “It saves us from having to complicate our lives setting up one of our own, an effort and cost that is beyond our budget and capacity.”
Travieso Gómez said the Talent has helped the station stay close to its listeners and even improve its audience figures.
Info: www.aeq.es, email AEQ sales or call +34 91 686 1300
The post Radio Sintonía Connects With Talent appeared first on Radio World.
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