Braves on FM

[RoddyFreeman]

When does the current Braves radio deal run out? As I'm sure when the next deal is in negotiations that 92.9 will be a player. Audacy has a good amount of MLB play by play on their sport stations.
WEEI - Boston Red Sox
WCBS - NY Mets
WFAN - NY Yankees
WXYT - Detroit Tigers
KMOX - St. Louis Cards
And I'm sure theirs a few others

I think The Fan has 5 or 6 more years on their contract.

 

[CTListener]

I think The Fan has 5 or 6 more years on their contract.

And who knows where MLB will be in terms of public interest by then? The offensive deep freeze the sport has entered due in large part to a rigid analytics-driven approach will be tough to emerge from, and is likely costing baseball thousands upon thousands of turned-off fans a year and reducing its appeal to potential new fans immeasurably.

 

[jabba17]

When does the current Braves radio deal run out? As I'm sure when the next deal is in negotiations that 92.9 will be a player.

Wasn't 92.9 in negotiations last time, and the main sticking point was who would get priority and who would get bumped if there was a conflict with the Hawks or Falcons?

 

[trusty]

The landscape is a little different in that people are not going to tune in to an AM station for any reason. It is just not on their radar any longer. So, with that in mind, a translator leaves the Atlanta listeners at a disadvantage. I guess they could stream one of the stations.

It is a sad state of affairs that the Braves are relegated to a translator in Atlanta. Years ago (MANY years ago) WSB and WGST fought tooth and nail for the Braves rights. I guess radio is just not that important to the media mix any longer.

Real fans will listen to a crystal set if they have to - especially a world champion.

And, if there's a Braves/Hawks conflict, 92.9 can be the first station in the world to have an AM translator!

Why not.

 

[ThePowerCow]

I've never been to Truist Park, but according to the maps, the park is in one of 680's nighttime directional nulls. Wouldn't think 93.7 comes in too good either.

 

[RoddyFreeman]

I've never been to Truist Park, but according to the maps, the park is in one of 680's nighttime directional nulls. Wouldn't think 93.7 comes in too good either.

You're correct. I thought it funny that the Braves AM flagship station cannot be clearly heard at night around Truist Park. 93.7 comes in fine there in a car.

 

[AMFMRadFan]

On the other hand, WSB still has UGA sports (both football and basketball), on AM and FM, as well as on other Cox Media stations that overlap with WSB/WSBB's listening area (like WXKT 103.7 and WNGC 106.1). Cox will sometimes put UGA baseball and women's hoops on WXKT.

Whenever news breaks during UGA men’s basketball season, especially if it’s the State Of The Union Address or prime time Presidential addresses, the folks at WSB radio move the game for that night to 97.1 THE RIVER WSRV.

 

[Just Some Guy]

With the contract with 100.5 ending the Brave's Radio Network decided that the stream and 680TheFan App would be enought to fill the gap left by not having a "TRUE" FM home...

 

[Just Some Guy]

When does the current Braves radio deal run out? As I'm sure when the next deal is in negotiations that 92.9 will be a player. Audacy has a good amount of MLB play by play on their sport stations.
WEEI - Boston Red Sox
WCBS - NY Mets
WFAN - NY Yankees
WXYT - Detroit Tigers
KMOX - St. Louis Cards
And I'm sure theirs a few others

Dickey signed a 10 year deal when the moved to Truist Park (then Sun Trust)

 

[radiolives]

So 2027 is when the deal ends unless they want out of the deal early

 

[MarkW]

Given the fact the Braves doomed 100.5's ratings, any FM music station would have to be nuts to add them. WSB 95.5 would have to be nuts, too.

I guess the revenue side of the equation was not as good as some on here speculated.

 

[RoddyFreeman]

So 2027 is when the deal ends unless they want out of the deal early

A 10-year deal that started in 2017 would end in 2026.

 

[RoddyFreeman]

Given the fact the Braves doomed 100.5's ratings, any FM music station would have to be nuts to add them. WSB 95.5 would have to be nuts, too.

I guess the revenue side of the equation was not as good as some on here speculated.

I agree the Braves would not be a good fit on a music station. But if The Fan didn't have the contract, 92-9 The Game would be the obvious station to carry them. WSB did carry the Braves starting in 1995, and that might have been a 10-year deal, not sure. But Cox decided the rights weren't worth the price, and the Braves leaving did not hurt WSB's ratings.

 

[BoboKnight]

I agree the Braves would not be a good fit on a music station. But if The Fan didn't have the contract, 92-9 The Game would be the obvious station to carry them. WSB did carry the Braves starting in 1995, and that might have been a 10-year deal, not sure. But Cox decided the rights weren't worth the price, and the Braves leaving did not hurt WSB's ratings.

Could they are the games on 750 only and maintain the combined 750/95.5 ratings? Perhaps only split the broadcasts during the week and air the the games on both 95.5 and 750 on the weekends to maintain the combined ratings?

 

[PTBoardOp94]

No. Nielsen requires the stations air the same programming and commercials 95% of the time in order to combine the ratings data. That works out to about 8.5 hours in the four week ratings period.

If we're talking about sports events only, that is about 2 games per month.

 

[pjc1961]

That should be: 33.6 hours per 28 day survey period = 8.4 hours per week

Enough time for 4 football games per period, for example (pre-game, post-game, actual game coverage)
or the occasional break, but not for a baseball schedule.

 

[PTBoardOp94]

That should be: 33.6 hours per 28 day survey period = 8.4 hours per week

Yes, you're right.

 

[jabba17]

I still wonder if it would be worth it for Cox Apollo/Cox to LMA out WSB 750 to Dickey or someone for sports or second-tier talk. I know that Cox probably doesn't want a direct competitor (talk on 750) or indirect competitor (sports on 750, talk on 680), but it would be a great way to monetize 750. Only question would be how much more they could get by LMAing it.

 

[Ryan Williams]

I still wonder if it would be worth it for Cox Apollo/Cox to LMA out WSB 750 to Dickey or someone for sports or second-tier talk. I know that Cox probably doesn't want a direct competitor (talk on 750) or indirect competitor (sports on 750, talk on 680), but it would be a great way to monetize 750. Only question would be how much more they could get by LMAing it.

That seems very unlikely for a number of reason. IF CMG was willing to even entertain that idea you would have to imagine the LMA amount would have to be absolutely enormous.

It seems to me that if Dickey wanted to expand The Fan and improve reception they would be better off going after more FM coverage, even if that means piecing together a couple of marginal signals on the outskirts.

Such as 93.3 and the La Raza simulcast on WTSH and WKLQ. I'm not saying any of those are currently available, but you get the idea.

The Fan already is decent inside the Perimeter on 93.7. It's outside that is the problem.

 

[RoddyFreeman]

I still wonder if it would be worth it for Cox Apollo/Cox to LMA out WSB 750 to Dickey or someone for sports or second-tier talk. I know that Cox probably doesn't want a direct competitor (talk on 750) or indirect competitor (sports on 750, talk on 680), but it would be a great way to monetize 750. Only question would be how much more they could get by LMAing it.

And would what WSB got paid for doing the LMA make up for what they would lose in ratings and revenue by giving up the AM? The AM according to what's been written here accounts for a small portion of the combined ratings, but that's still a question.