Legacy

FCC v. Prometheus is certainly a huge matter, but other legal issues impacting radio and TV in 2021 deserve attention. What’s the first one that comes to mind to Gregg Skall, the noted Washington, D.C. communications attorney with boutique firm Telecommunication Law Professionals? Find out in the latest InFOCUS Podcast, presented by DOT.FM. LISTEN HERE

As of today, Northern California Public Media has used a 120-watt signal to reach such Mendocino County towns as Healdsburg, Cloverdale and Windsor. To bring its programming to listeners in Santa Rosa, a 16-watt translator at 90.9 MHz was brought into the mix. Soon, everyone north of San Francisco will be able to hear NoCal's programming.

Jacobs Media on Wednesday offered a three-hour CES 2021 virtual tour of what’s hot for radio broadcasters. Xperi SVP of Broadcast Joe D’Angelo was one of the participants. What are his key takeaways from what he's seen so far? Joe shares all in this latest RBR+TVBR InFOCUS Podcast, presented by DOT.FM. LISTEN HERE

For three hours on Wednesday, Fred Jacobs of Jacobs Media Strategies conducted a virtual tour of the all-online Consumer Electronics Show — CES 2021. With presentations from Amazon Alexa Auto and Xperi ahead of those scheduled from LG, Ford, Triton Digital and Mercedes Benz, we offer a small taste of what participants got to see and learn about.

Its broadcast properties include such CBS affiliates as WPEC-12 in West Palm Beach. And, that affiliation -- along with those for 12 other stations -- won't be changing anytime soon. However, nine CBS stations owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group aren't included in this group, and we've listed those stations.

On November 30, 2016, DirecTV gave birth to a virtual MVPD designed to provide a "skinny bundle" to consumers who weren't interested in a costly monthly subscription plan. At first, consumers seemed to like the vMVPD, today branded as AT&T TV NOW. But, subscriptions peaked 2 1/2 years ago. Now, new packages are no longer available.

LG Display and Eyesafe, a low blue light consumer electronics industry specialist, have teamed up to roll out the first Eyesafe Certified television display. And, they are using the virtual CES 2021 conference and expo to do so.

From July 13 to November 5, 2020, Townsquare Media shares were largely stagnant, stuck at a COVID-fueled price that was less than half of its February 2020 value. Then came the election of Joe Biden as U.S. President. Since then, TSQ has been on a hot streak.

Wednesday, January 6, 2021, was supposed to be the day when the Electoral College votes for U.S. President were counted in a largely ceremonial affair, sealing the victory of Joe Biden seen in the November election. That was hardly the case, as the U.S. Capitol was put on lockdown as Trump supporters disrupted the proceedings. Broadcast media sprang into action.

In May 2006, Cox Communications completed its sale of cable television systems serving customers in West Texas, a portion of North Carolina, Middle America., and two California markets. This gave birth to Suddenlink, which is apparently in a retrans consent fight with the new Cox Media Group. On Wednesday afternoon, Suddenlink responded.

Is COVID-19 killing more than a handful of radio stations in Q1? The latest U.S. broadcast station totals from the FCC show another drop in the number of licensed radio stations during the quarter. Meanwhile, the number of FM translators licensed for broadcast continues to surge.

What can TEGNA shareholders expect in the way of Q4 and full-year 2020 results? While the official numbers won't come until March 1, TEGNA on Wednesday shared its preliminary results — along with a preview of what could very much be on the books for 2021.

Just east of Austin is a Class A FM offering Classic Country programming. It's heading to a new owner, pending FCC approval.

A company that heavily invested in broadcast television spectrum across the end of the 2010s on Monday completed the sale of three full-power TV stations and a low-power TV translator. It marks the company's downsizing in a trio of major markets. It also heralds a turning point for a company that quietly installed a new CEO in late November.

If you watch NBC's affiliate in markets such as Buffalo and Portland, Ore., you're in no danger of facing any sort of channel change. The same can be said for NBC affiliates serving the Tampa Bay region and Columbus, Ohio. That's because the Peacock parent is starting 2021 with two valuable new affiliation agreements -- with some of broadcast TV's biggest players.