WRXP up for sale again??

Aren't most of the Merlin properties currently enjoying rating increases? I would say that they might wait and see if there is going to be some cash flowing into the group, especially considering at least one station has filled a format hole.

Rumors of Merlin's sale have been greatly exaggerated. Okay...
http://www.radioink.com/Article.asp?id=2541138&spid=24698

I think I'd tend to believe Robert Feder more than Randy Michaels. Clearly there's an ongoing grudge match between the two. Here's some of what Feder had to say about Michaels in July when the all-news formats were aborted at WEMP/WRXP and WIQI in Chicago:

"If it weren’t for all the jobs that were lost and careers that were wrecked, this would be a day for gloating and celebration. Once again, Randy Michaels has exposed himself as the arrogant, inept charlatan we’ve always known him to be. But he’s getting better at it: This time, it only took him a year to fail miserably."

As for me, I do hope that the alternative format ends up being retained at 'RXP this time around whatever the ownership outcome is. The music mix is sounding good, and there must be a strong demand for it....more so than country, dance, smooth jazz or some other permutation of a talk format.

To give the above post a local flair: Robert Feder is to Randy Michaels as Phil Mushnick is to Mike Francesa... and Vince McMahon... and Joe Morgan...

XCountry285 said:

Dance is well covered by Now & KTU. We have NO station in the market currently playing any current based rock besides New Rock 101.9.

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Do we have to go there again?

Let me fix this.

XCountry285, I know you love 'RXP. There are others in here that feel the same as you. IF the powers that are behind Merlin sell the station and the new owners want to keep the format, then you have no worries. But if they are going to flip it to something, it makes the most sense to go dance/EDM. Things are still rising in terms of growth of the genre.

92.3 Now may be a dance leaning CHR, but they are a CHR. With the exception of mixshows, the station still follows along with what is popular to their audience in terms of pop. 'KTU may be a dance leaning A/C, yet that station follows along with their audience in terms of their likes. But in both cases, it is still not enough to satisfy the potential audience a CHR/EDM.

And yeah, I want in should such a station happens. I never said it before but I DO want in.

Merlin brought too many stations too fast its as simple as that

Whether talking about 101.9, 94.7, 103.9, or 99.5, if any of them are sold or flipped, I would think dance or country would have to be at the top of the format lists.

I would love to see someone hire Salkowitz and put Pulse back on the air. He has a proven track record in the city and knows the format inside out. And 87.7 garnered amazing numbers for it's very limited signal.

The other logical choice could be country. Yeah, I know, country doesn't work in NYC. But you have to admit that the format has changed dramatically since last airing in NYC, and is very modern, mainstream and pop/rock leaning now. I think a really slick produced country station that focused exclusively on current/recurrents (like Entercom's Wolf stations), could garner decent numbers in the city (and especially the suburbs). I think it could easily beat 101.9's news or rock numbers and be somewhere on par with PLJ, Fresh, Now, etc.

Tony Santiago said:

... But if they are going to flip it to something, it makes the most sense to go dance/EDM. Things are still rising in terms of growth of the genre.

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The market is lacking variety so I do not knock a dance format although hope they keep the alternative format since it is the only station for that genre in NYC. I suspect the dance choice is more about your personal preference since how do you come to that conclusion above? What market has a successful Arbitron dance format? I cannot even find one market that even has a dance format.

CBS buys 101.9 and moves NOW 92.3s format there

then moves the fan to 92.3

What does CBS do with 660?

They're at the market cap right now. Something has to go, and between 660, 880 and 1010, I see WINS as the weakest signal of the three.

And why would they move 92.3? That's dumb, all the promotions that have been done to get people to go to 92.3 are in the toilet with a new frequency.

This IS a business, not a chess game, remember?

WNTIRadio said:

This IS a business, not a chess game, remember?

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So maybe they get rid of Channel 55. Why is that so unbelievable? They've been selling small market TVs, and Long Island, while close to the city, is in a smaller MSI. Get rid of 55, and they can buy an FM. Simple.

another article on merlin http://radioink.com/Article.asp?id=2541930&spid=24698

mikerock said:

Tony Santiago said:

... But if they are going to flip it to something, it makes the most sense to go dance/EDM. Things are still rising in terms of growth of the genre.

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The market is lacking variety so I do not knock a dance format although hope they keep the alternative format since it is the only station for that genre in NYC. I suspect the dance choice is more about your personal preference since how do you come to that conclusion above? What market has a successful Arbitron dance format? I cannot even find one market that even has a dance format.

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It may be a personal preference since I like the music but for the facts, I am keeping that aspect out of it. And for a format you ask? DENVER (KDHT), LONG ISLAND (WPTY), SEATTLE (KNHC), HUDSON VALLEY (DRIVE FX 94.1, 95.7).

TheBigA said:

WNTIRadio said:

This IS a business, not a chess game, remember?

Click to expand...

So maybe they get rid of Channel 55. Why is that so unbelievable? They've been selling small market TVs, and Long Island, while close to the city, is in a smaller MSI. Get rid of 55, and they can buy an FM. Simple.

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They would NEVER dump 55 for an FM station. It was good strategy to buy WLNY actually since they could run CBS programming there should they need to pre-empt Channel 2 for something.

Tony Santiago said:

They would NEVER dump 55 for an FM station. It was good strategy to buy WLNY actually since they could run CBS programming there should they need to pre-empt Channel 2 for something.

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They have other places to do that now. Typically it's sports that gets pre-empted, and they now have the CBS SportsChannel on cable.

TheBigA said:

WNTIRadio said:

This IS a business, not a chess game, remember?

Click to expand...

So maybe they get rid of Channel 55. Why is that so unbelievable? They've been selling small market TVs, and Long Island, while close to the city, is in a smaller MSI. Get rid of 55, and they can buy an FM. Simple.

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But Long Island is part of the New York DMA (and the radio MSA) which is why they bought it. I think part of why they bought it is "Must Carry" and it gets them an additional channel in the market.

Plus, the Nassau-Suffolk embedded market is ranked 19th nationally. CBS only said it would sell the smaller radio markets... such as the deal they recently made in West Palm Beach.

BRH said:

The other logical choice could be country. Yeah, I know, country doesn't work in NYC. But you have to admit that the format has changed dramatically since last airing in NYC, and is very modern, mainstream and pop/rock leaning now. I think a really slick produced country station that focused exclusively on current/recurrents (like Entercom's Wolf stations), could garner decent numbers in the city (and especially the suburbs). I think it could easily beat 101.9's news or rock numbers and be somewhere on par with PLJ, Fresh, Now, etc.

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Entercom's Wolf in San Francisco was flipped to sports, 95.7 The Game. 95.7 was the Bay Area's only full-market country station. No one in San Francisco has stepped up to replace it.

So maybe they get rid of Channel 55. Why is that so unbelievable? They've been selling small market TVs, and Long Island, while close to the city, is in a smaller MSI. Get rid of 55, and they can buy an FM. Simple.

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Channel 55 is not only a regular TV station in the 19th market, it is carried on cable and satellite systems all over the entire number-one market. And, by far, most viewers get their TV over cable and satellite. In essence it is a full New York market station for most cable TV and satellite viewers, and it is getting a lot of promotion and support on Channel-2.

Since the acquisition earlier this year, CBS has pumped millions into new programming. It is using WCBS-TV news and weather people to host its own locally focused morning talk show, and a primetime hour of local NYC area news. It also is co-branding its news vans with logos of both stations.

One medium that is rarer than a NYC FM station is a NYC TV station, and there is no way CBS will give up this kind of TV potential just to put a sports talk station on FM. It has other options on the radio side of the business.

When it does feel the need to move sports talk, or all news, to FM, it can dump an existing FM format, or it can unload an AM before messing with TV, which has much greater long-term potential.

When it comes to AM signals WCBS and WFAN are among the best in existence and they will be the last AMs to go. Obviously, that leaves the WINS license. The WINS programming could move to other CBS owned signals and reach even more listeners than it does now.

WCBS and WFAN also use the same transmitting facilities creating an efficient synergy. They are the keepers, WINS is the odd AM man out when the necessity arises.

TimeIsTight said:

One medium that is rarer than a NYC FM station is a NYC TV station, and there is no way CBS will give up this kind of TV potential just to put a sports talk station on FM. It has other options on the radio side of the business.

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Maybe, but all the talk is focused on which AM do they sell, and that's not the only option. I'm just suggesting there's an alternative to selling an AM.