Radio News

The Supreme Court for the State of Florida has unanimously sided with a decision rendered by the state's Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals, affirming that common law in the Sunshine State does not recognize an exclusive right of public performance in pre-1972 sound recordings. Translation: Mark Volman and Howard Kaylan, otherwise known as "Flo & Eddie," co-founders of 1960s pop act Turtles, have lost their copyright battle waged in Tallahassee.

Could iHeartMedia lenders who have steadfastly refused to participate in an exchange of debt securities notes and signal approval to amendments to a pair of outstanding term loans be ready to work with the nation's No. 1 radio broadcasting company on resolving an impasse that has stretched for some seven months? That's what iHeart's hoping for. On Tuesday, it provided its lenders with a counter proposal.

Set your alarm and perk the office coffee pot early on Thursday, Nov. 9. That's because Cumulus Media has set an 8am Eastern conference call with Wall Street investors to discuss its official Q3 2017 earnings results. The No. 2 radio broadcasting company on Thursday morning released "selected preliminary operating results" for Q3, however, and it sends the message to all that President/CEO Mary Berner and her team are working hard to make progress at a company that's excessively overleveraged. By 9:58am Eastern, Cumulus shares were up more by 100%, to 64 cents.

"One of the most powerful forces in government is inertia," says FCC Chairman Ajit Pai. "Rules that get on the books stay on the books, sometimes long after the rationale that underlay their adoption is gone." And, with those words, the head of the Federal Communications Commission laid out his rationale for Thursday's revelation of an actual order set for introduction at its November Open Meeting that would bring major changes to the agency's media ownership rules.

Roughly one hour east of San Antonio lies the city of Gonzales, Texas. On the FM band, one can hear the primary station for an increasingly popular Americana network branded as "Sun Radio" — KCTI-FM 88.1. Those call letters presented a problem to Texas Public Radio. Why? Those are the same call letters of its station on the AM dial, licensed to Gonzales. The FCC's Media Bureau reviewed the matter, and it has now rendered its decision.

Neither headwinds from slowing auto sales nor the impact of severe weather across the U.S. could deter the nation's satellite radio provider — the longtime home of personality Howard Stern (pictured) — in Q3. SiriusXM enjoyed a robust July, August and September 2017 — so much so that it increased its 2017 guidance for revenue, adjusted EBITDA and free cash flow. 

Cumulus Media has acted on its Jan. 2014 "Put and Call Agreement" allowing it to convert its LMA of two big Chicago FMs to outright ownership. This results in the official end of Merlin Media's foray into radio broadcasting.

Don't think for a minute that Democratic FCC Commissioners Jessica Rosenworcel and Mignon Clyburn had the backing of multicultural broadcasting companies with respect to the soon-to-die Main Studio Rule enacted in 1939. The Multicultural Media, Telecom and Internet Council (MMTC) on Tuesday immediately responded to the Commission's 3-2 party-line vote to kill the rule by offering its congratulations.

Come July 2018, Brigham Young University's broadcast media operations will have completed a major consolidation effort announced today by the collegiate institution based in Provo, Utah. The school announced today that it is merging its three TV entities into one national network, while its radio broadcasting arm will be combining its SiriusXM Satellite Radio channel with its Class C over-the-air property along the Wasatch Front.

Educational Media Foundation gained a significant presence in the Golden State in late September when it agreed to a deal valued at $57,750,000 that gave it entry into L.A. and North County San Diego. The City by the Bay was not noted, as EMF already owns a Class B covering the Bay Area that airs KLOVE. Yet, EMF just secured a translator covering San Francisco for KLOVE. Is another deal in play?

More than seven months ago, iHeartMedia's iHeartCommnications commenced private offers to eligible lenders under its Term Loan D and Term Loan E facilities to amend the existing term loans and exchange them for new securities of iHeartMedia and CC Outdoor Holdings and/or iHeart Communications. The company has had no luck with the exchange offers, offering extension after extension since April 5. The latest extension came late Thursday evening, with none of iHeart's original terms amended.

CBS Corp. has commenced its exchange offer for the separation of its radio business. The exchange offer represents the next step in the planned combination of CBS Radio and Entercom, which will be effected through a "Reverse Morris Trust" transaction.

A final agreement has been put into place that will convert a LMA to outright ownership for the entity that's now overseeing a three FM/two AM (plus translators) cluster in a big Ozark resort town that also includes a local online news hub and cable TV offering The Vacation Channel. The company buying the stations is led Paul Coates, and a former presidential candidate who served as the 44th Governor of Arkansas.

Today marks a very special occasion for the Recording Academy. It’s District Advocate Day, which sees the activation of group members across the country to meet with their local member of Congress "to discuss important updates to music legislation." Translation: Lobbying is being done to gain support for presently moribund House bills that would impose more royalty fees on radio stations across the U.S.

Nearly one year ago, a buccaneer in the Heart of Dixie was slapped with a steep fine for operating an FM station without a license. The FCC's Enforcement Bureau has finally reviewed, and adjudicated, on the response to its NAL from the individual found to have been operating an unlicensed radio station in Guntersville, Ala. The message to this radio pirate? Surrender the booty.