the HOT List

Broadcast media company Urban One on Wednesday enjoyed a big day on Wall Street, with a late buying surge sending its stock up by double digits. That bump in value, it turns out, was nothing compared to what was seen on Thursday. Thank McDonald's for a remarkable 59% jump for UONE. A casino deal OK is another huge reason.

McDonald's is moving forward with what it calls "bold new investments to further reflect its diverse customers, crew members and communities in its marketing." It's a four-year effort, and women-owned and LGBTQ+ platforms are also poised to benefit.

Ten free ad-supported streaming television, or "FAST," channels have been added to the Local Now platform recently unveiled by the Byron Allen-controlled Allen Media Group. The FAST offerings come courtesy of a new agreement with The E.W. Scripps Co.

If securing Nick Cannon for two sessions wasn't a sure bet the 2021 NAB Show would be staged as a live event in Las Vegas — the first major industry gathering since NATPE Miami 2020 due to COVID-19 — this is.

Among the media companies making their pitch to media buyers and CMOs on Tuesday was Univision Communications — with an entirely new C-Suite continuing a theme shared earlier this year in a "get to know you" session for the ad-buying community: Come Grow with Us.

What will emerge in mid-2022 as a new Discovery Inc., with WarnerMedia's assets merged into what will be a new company, is poised to surge past the company led by Bob Bakish and ultimately controlled by Shari Redstone and National Amusements, Inc. That's the big take of the big merger from S&P Global Market Intelligence's TV Networks research analyst.

At 7:30am Eastern Monday, the official word came from Dallas and from New York: Another blockbuster media merger had been consummated. Only this time, it involves two major players in a rapidly evolving MVPD arena seeking to remain as relevant in the connected TV world as it has been in the cable universe.

It's hardly a shocker: U.S. consumers who participated in a study for Publicis Media and Verizon Media want streaming options that are less costly. And, they'd not mind if commercial advertising be seen to offset a subscription.

The privately held company focused on superserving Spanish-speaking Hispanic consumers on Friday released its first quarter results. How did the company do in Q1? Adjusted EBITDA was up slightly, while its recently launched PrendeTV over-the-top offering is off to a roaring start.

As anticipated, the radio industry took "a very big hit "in 2020 due to the pandemic and subsequent cutbacks in overall spending activity. Over-the-air advertising revenues dropped to $9.7 billion, a 23.6 percent decline from $12.8 billion in 2019. That's according to the first quarter edition of BIA Advisory Services’ 2021 Investing In Radio Market Report.

No, Tony Stark has nothing to do with it. But, it could prevent a super new way for audio media purveyors to profit from what AI experts at Veritone are calling "hyper-realistic synthetic voices."

RBR+TVBR Editor-in-Chief Adam R Jacobson connects with radio industry veteran Jay Meyers to discuss the state of the industry today from the eyes of a former PD, ex-Clear Channel and Jacor executive, radio group CEO and now broker. It's all here in this fresh InFOCUS Podcast, presented by dot.fm. LISTEN HERE

The largest African-American owned media company superserving Black consumers across the U.S. has released its first quarter earnings report. And, like many media companies, the first three months of 2021 weren't so rosy. That set, the seeds for a strong pandemic recovery have been planted ... and the digital dollar tree is blossoming. 

The man who largely funded one of Great Britain's biggest commercial radio broadcasting companies, through his Covington & Burley attorneys, has filed comments with the FCC seeking advanced approval of 49.99% non-voting ownership of iHeartMedia.

Nielsen has responded to the Media Rating Council's news regarding a confirmed understatement by as much as 6% of the Total Usage of Television (TUT) by Persons 18-49 during the ratings measurement company's February 2021 measurement period. In short, Nielsen says that pandemic measures led to "some understatement of audience estimates."