the HOT List

On Sept. 4, Nexstar Media Group shares sat at $57.80, with some wondering if the broadcast TV's shares were somewhat undervalued. The dip in value erased improvements seen since a similar dip in mid-June, and in mid-May. Today, Nexstar shares are on fire. With Wednesday's Closing Bell on Wall Street, they're ever-closer to reaching a new five-year high.

In late July, Lenfest Broadcasting and Philadelphia-area licensee WMCN License Holdings LLC agreed to sell its channel-sharing agreement for a station that relinquished its spectrum in the FCC's incentive auction. The buyer then assigned its rights and obligations to acquire the "zombie" station serving the nation's fourth-largest market to the operator of a regional news network serving the New York Tri-State Area. The asset purchase agreement has now been filed with the FCC, making this news and information-focused entity's expansion to the Delaware Valley. Kalil & Co. served as the exclusive broker in this transaction.

Total local advertising revenue in the U.S. will cross the $150 billion mark, while traditional media such as radio and TV will account for nearly two-thirds of that revenue. Those are the key findings from BIA/Kelsey's just-released U.S. Local Advertising Forecast 2018 report.

RBR+TVBR late Monday reported the sale of 13 TV stations in 10 markets by ZGS Communications to the NBCUniversal arm that includes the Telemundo Spanish-language network's owned-and-operated stations. The deal involves one full-power station, nine Class A stations, and low power stations serving Springfield, Mass., and Richmond. We now know that channel-sharing agreements forged by ZGS, a participant in the FCC's incentive auction, are also involved in its deal with Telemundo. We've also confirmed the purchase price for the 13 stations.

Mark Jan. 25, 2018 on your calendar, AM broadcasters that still seek an FM translator. That's when the second cross-service FM translator auction filing window for stations with kHz-only signals -- a.k.a. Auction 100 -- begins. The window closes not long afterward.

After 37 years as Chairman of DISH Network Corp., Charlie Ergen can no longer add the title "CEO" to his role at the Englewood, Colo.-based direct broadcast satellite (DBS) service provider. Effective immediately, Ergen has relinquished his post as Chief Executive Officer "to devote more attention to the company's emerging wireless business." Meanwhile, all eyes are on the new role for Warren Schlichting.

This week, the state of Maine will get another economic boost from the official ribbon-cutting and grand opening of a 33,000-square foot manufacturing facility in the city of Lewiston. The launch of the new Dielectric facility will also be good news for TV broadcasting companies in the midst of a post-FCC spectrum auction repack process. In an exclusive RBR+TVBR Weekly Tech Roundup interview, Dielectric VP/GM Keith Pelletier shares why there's a need for the new facility, and how Sinclair Broadcast Group ownership has helped Dielectric achieve considerable market share in its space.

NBCUniversal has said goodbye to its largest affiliate partner for its main Spanish-language network, Telemundo. That's because NBCUniversal's Telemundo Station Group is buying the company's assets and, pending FCC and other government approvals, will be welcoming their 13 TV stations in 10 markets fully into the O&O fold.

The three-pronged media company is poised for growth in its current markets and could expand into other areas of the U.S. where holes of interest present themselves. With a highly publicized leadership change now in its past, Townsquare is being co-led by a genial co-CEO who came on board 7 1/2 years ago after a tenure as a VP at Thomas H. Lee Partners. RBR+TVBR spoke with Dhruv Prasad about his passion for local radio, and how that will help bring more riches to the broadcast company.

As news of Cumulus Media's Chapter 11 reorganization plan filtered across the broadcast media industry, some pointed to the number of creditors who have some sizable unsecured claims they may not be able to collect more than pennies on the dollar on, should things turn particularly sour for the company. Among those potentially impacted: Industry veteran Randy Michaels, and Westwood One founder Norm Pattiz.

After nearly two months of darkness for DISH Network subscribers and a slatemate in its negotiations with the independent broadcast TV company based in Erie, Pa., for a new retransmission fee agreement, Lilly Broadcasting's stations will soon be returning to the DBS provider's lineups in five impacted regions.

There's an entity that describes itself as “a publicly traded diversified holding company which seeks opportunities to acquire and grow businesses that can generate long-term sustainable free cash flow and attractive returns in order to maximize value for all stakeholders” which has been actively acquiring TV properties following the FCC's spectrum auction. This entity, HC2 Holdings Inc., earlier this week agreed to purchase two Mega TV affiliates in Florida. Now, its subsidiary -- HC2 Network Inc. -- is acquiring an entire TV network.

Want to hear that song from TV On The Radio on your television? There's now an easier way to get the task done, thanks to a newly forged partnership between Comcast and iHeartMedia.

The "coercion" of American Cable Association members of carrying ATSC 3.0 signals, along with ATSC 1.0 signals, as part of a new beefier-to-broadcasters retrans consent deal will not be tolerated by the Pittsburgh-based advocacy association. In fact, it has sent a letter to the FCC telling it is keeping a close eye on the "thousands of agreements" members will be negotiating over the next five weeks.

How often do viewers of your TV stations or listeners of your radio stations unintentionally watch, or hear, a commercial? Silly question, right? A similar question is being asked about digital ads by a highly influential newsletter -- and it gives more ammunition to the TVB and RAB to go out there and fight for dollars that are rightfully theirs.