the HOT List

Welcome to the latest retransmission consent battle, and it has led to the "blackout" of some 25 television stations licensed to Mission Broadcasting. To little surprise, each party is blaming the other for the impasse, which involves stations including the FOX affiliate serving New York's Capital District.

Just how impactful are third-party cookies to the broadcast radio and television industry today? If they were eliminated with no privacy-preserving alternatives, 6.3% of all radio and TV revenue would disappear.

Has the Snapchat app officially fallen by the wayside, with TikTok and Instagram far more front-and-center with both users and advertisers? That may not be the case based on its active user rolls. But, monetizing its audience is whole other matter, as can be plainly seen in a rather dismal third quarter earnings report released after Thursday's Closing Bell. In after-hours trading, Snap Inc. shares plummeted by more than 27%.

Sponsored by Bloomberg, NAB Show New York kicked off the first of a two-day radio industry-focused track on Wednesday with a sold-out NAB members-only executive seminar at the Javits Center. The day's events included a trip to Bloomberg's state-of-the-art headquarters, and an inspiring conversation between Urban One's founder and Beasley Media Group head Caroline Beasley.

With the third quarter in the books, a TV advertising report from iSpot is now out. What were its key conclusions? Both estimated national TV ad spend and TV ad impressions during new-airing programming were down 5% year-over-year when compared to Q3 2021. But, three categories jumped from last year, even as the three-month period ending September 30, 2022 did not include the NBA Finals or the Summer Olympics.

Two days ago, a transaction was announced that saw the publicly traded media company known for its Christian-themed and conservative talk programming acquire an AM in South Florida that was once a Radio Disney O&O and is presently an affiliate of Unanimo Sports, which is taking an all-digital approach.  It turns out Salem Media Group wasn't done with its South Florida AM shopping spree.

A House Member has introduced legislation she believes will "ensure broadcasters accurately disclose the identity of foreign sponsors on airwaves and enable Americans to make informed decisions about the media they consume." A companion bill was introduced in the Senate, and Jessica Rosenworcel approves.

Here's a research study that's of particular interest to the "AARP" demographic. Broadbeam's "Video & Audio Usage Among Adults 55+" report concludes that while elder Americans remain slower to adopt new technologies than younger audiences, both the COVID-19 pandemic and financial concerns have pushed older adults towards more rapid adoption.

Salem Media Group has entered into an agreement to purchase the assets of an AM radio station and its FM translator serving Miami. It’s a move that will likely see Salem add to its mix of Spanish-language radio properties.

It was feared that the nation's No. 1 owner of broadcast television stations would fail to reach a new retransmission consent agreement with Verizon FiOS by the time the clock struck midnight on October 15. That's exactly what happened as Saturday began, and Nexstar has come out swinging against the regional cable TV services provider.

FCC Commissioner Geoffrey Starks, appearing on the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA)"Let It Be Known" news program, said that radio geo-targeting is one thing at the top of his agenda. It's a huge win for GeoBroadcast Solutions, which seeks Commission approval of FM booster program origination.

How powerful are television advertisements when it comes to recall? A new Comcast Advertising report demonstrates that ads "in the TV environment" have "a unique ability to drive memories." That's great news for broadcast television, as it competes for ad budgets — and dollars — against mobile and digital video platforms.

The war between the NAB and GeoBroadcast Solutions, the Chris Devine-helmed company seeking FCC approval of program origination from FM boosters — the lynchpin to the commercialization of its "ZoneCasting" technology — has been further enflamed with the revelation that four licensees want their names removed from a petition in front of the Commission that lists each of them as GBS supporters.

In April, he quietly exited the role of President/GM of KNBC-4 in Los Angeles, a role he'd been appointed to in September 2011.  Would Steve Carlston soon be reemerging, perhaps across town after any sort of noncompete agreement was fulfilled? The answer is now known, and it is an emphatic yes.

SiriusXM has unveiled plans that will see the 2023 opening of a broadcast center on a busy stretch of one of the world's most popular entertainment and holiday destinations.