Lemay Dies In Fatal Ozarks Tower Collapse
Webster County Sheriff Roye Cole on Friday revealed the identity of the individual who was killed Thursday morning (4/19) as the television tower housing the transmitter for Ozarks Public Television's KOZK-21 in Springfield, Mo., located to the east of the metropolitan area in Fordland, Mo., crashed to the ground. It is the head of the Washington state-based subcontracted team hired to handle tower and transmitter needs associated with the FCC's post-spectrum auction repack process.
New England Sports Legend Gil Santos Dies
For generations of sports fans, Gil Santos was "the voice of New England." His resume features 36 years as the radio play-by-play voice of the New England Patriots NFL club, and 38 years delivering sports reports at :15 and :45 past the hour on WBZ-AM 1030. Santos was also known for his play-by-play alongside Bob Cousy for the Boston Celtics NBA team, and for Boston College and Penn State football. He also lent his voice to the Boston Marathon. Santos died Thursday at the age of 80.
ACA Calls Out NAB For New Rationale On ‘UHF Discount’
The American Cable Association has made it clear that the restoration of the so-called "UHF discount" by the Ajit Pai-led FCC could be harmful to its member MVPDs.
Now, in reply comments filed Wednesday afternoon in the FCC's matter of an amendment of Section 73.3555(e) of the Commission’s Rules — the National Television Multiple Ownership Rule — ACA President/CEO Matthew M. Polka and SVP/Government Affairs Ross J. Lieberman are blasting the NAB for moves it believes will expand the discount.
Is The DOJ Close To Approving Sinclair’s Tribune Take?
If you believe the New York Post, the Department of Justice is thisclose to approving Sinclair Broadcast Group's headline-making acquisition of Tribune Media. The tabloid reported late Wednesday that a DOJ stamp of approval is just days away, citing sources close to the matter.
This Cumulus Creditor Wants Its Money
An Allentown, Pa.-based media design and production company that's tied to a TV station that just collected $140,482,163 in the FCC's spectrum auction isn't fooling around when it comes to a sum of money it is owed by Cumulus Media. While the dollars this company wants for Cumulus are less than 1/10 of what it just scored in the incentive auction, Cumulus believes it owes nothing for the use of a tower and antenna system for two big FMs in this north-of-Philadelphia market.
In Surprise Move, Mignon Clyburn Says Goodbye To FCC
Following months of speculation regarding the future of one of the FCC's longest-serving Commissioners, Mignon Clyburn today at the Commission's April Open Meeting revealed what her future will be. She's leaving the FCC, and today's meeting was her last as a Democratic member of the agency.
Disney Gets Key Wall Street Upgrade Ahead Of Q1 Report
First-quarter 2018 earnings are due soon from some of the key video entertainment companies trading on Wall Street. In advance of these companies' earnings releases, Pivotal Research Group's Brian Wieser modified his investment house's financial models for Disney, Time Warner, FOX, CBS, Viacom and Discovery Communications. Here's what he believes is the "best positioned of the group." Put on your mouse ears for this one.
How Much More Repack Cash Has Been Authorized?
The Incentive Auction Task Force and the Media Bureau on Monday announced what many broadcast media companies hoped would have happened last week as their top executives gathered at the 2018 NAB Show in Las Vegas. The issuance of a further allocation of the TV Broadcaster Relocation Fund has been given the green-light by the FCC. So, just how much cash is going in to the reimbursement fund, and who is eligible for these funds?
A ‘Huge’ North American Revenue Dip Coming For Pay TV
The Asia Pacific nations will see a $3 billion increase in pay TV revenue between 2017 and 2023. Perhaps North America needs to take the lead of countries where Mandarin, Japanese, Vietnamese and Thai are commonly heard along with a tinged English used in Australia and New Zealand. North American pay TV revenue is about to fall off a cliff, new research finds.
Univision’s ‘Multi-Year Transformation’ Not Free Of Layoffs
Flights from nearby Miami International Airport aren't the only thing around here taking off. It appears upward of 150 people are also taking flight, for good, from Univision Communications. It's the second, and deeper, round of job cuts at the Hispanic and millennial-focused company in eight weeks. The company explains it is part of its "multi-year transformation initiative."
Should The Digital Giants Pay Up For Your Content?
If digital media is forecast to continue to beat the pants off of broadcast radio and TV for years to come, shouldn't Facebook and YouTube fork over some money to content producers like ... radio and TV stations? It's an interesting concept and one that's getting serious play in Australia. RBR+TVBR Editor-in-Chief Adam Jacobson shares his thoughts on the concept of "retransmission fee agreements" of the social kind in this exclusive commentary.
Is Entravision Stock Too Pixalated?
It's been a tough 30 days for Entravision Communications. One week ago the company was making job cuts at its radio and TV stations. It's been a month since EVC shares closed above $5.05 a share. Now, it appears that a newly announced partnership between ad fraud protection and data intelligence firm Pixalate and an Entravision digital subsidiary did little to energize investors.
Enjoy The Silence: Cumulus Forced To Shut Down A Big Translator
A Cumulus Media-owned Alternative operation mainly heard in one of the nation's largest markets received a bit of a jolt just two days before Friday the 13th. The FM translator Cumulus uses to bring this station, based on an HD2 signal, to the masses was to sign off at midnight. A tweet referred to the situation as "lame as heck news." Blame the FCC: It acted on an interference complaint submitted by the owners of a Class A on the same signal, some 55 miles to the west.
What’s In Store For Radio’s Future?
From digital disruption to concerns about the “connected car,” radio industry leaders continue to express concern over where AM and FM will be in the not-so-distant future. How they are reacting was the focus of a standing-room only session late Wednesday at the 2018 NAB Show in Las Vegas. Moderated by Fred Jacobs, President of Jacobs Media, the talk ranged from content to monetization.
Laughter, And Graciousness, From An Urban Legend
In an emotional 14-minute acceptance speech in which she was "just so, so honored to be here this morning," Cathy Hughes -- the founder and chairperson of the publicly traded company now known as Urban One -- graciously accepted the 2018 Lowry Mays Excellence in Broadcasting Award from the Broadcasters Foundation of America.