KOSF's Martha Quinn To Host Middays On 35+ iHeartMedia Classic Hits Stations

[TheBigA]

I'm a little surprised no one has mentioned KBAY's significant music shift, which occurred today.

Someone started a thread on the subject here:

https://www.radiodiscussions.com/threads/kbay-changes-from-the-bays-greatest-hits-to-the-bays-best-music.743986/

As I said there, it was obviously done because advertising options are becoming limited for music formats that appeal to people over the age of 65. They will no doubt lose some of the 6+ numbers, but those they lose will be mostly those over the age of 65. So it's bad for total audience, but good for the demos.

 

[MarkW]

I am not so sure the change will do more good than harm. Plenty of listeners do not want to hear a steady diet of boyband and girlband artists. KBAY is playing a ton of that music now. That includes listeners in the 25 to 54 demo.

Given the fact only a handful of mainstream stations have a strong signal in the South Bay, their numbers will probably still be decent, but it wouldn't surprise me if the numbers take a step backward.

KOSF and perhaps KISQ stand to gain here. KOSF has fared well since expanding its playlist while remaining firmly anchored in 80s pop/rock.

 

[Mediafrog+]

servicing $20 billion in debt was “just like paying your mortgage”.

Except that it’s not. If you have a typical home mortgage amount and you fail to keep up the payments, the bank or mortgage company will foreclose and toss you out on the street. However if you have $20B in debt and can’t service it, those backing the loan will bend over backwards with refinancing, restructuring, and reworking of the loan terms to give the debtor the best chance of pulling through and making everyone whole. The rules are different for the rich in comparison to the non-rich.

Reminds me of the old saying, which goes something like “If you owe the bank $100,000 you have a problem. If you owe the bank $100,000,000 the bank has a problem.”

 

[TheBigA]

If you have a typical home mortgage amount and you fail to keep up the payments, the bank or mortgage company will foreclose and toss you out on the street.

Not exactly true. You usually get a few months to work out terms with your lender, regardless of the loan. It depends on the circumstances. There are federal laws that deal with mortgage scofflaws. Someone defaulting on their mortage may be out of work with no income or assets. iHeart was still in business, still bringing in a lot of cash flow, so there were tools to work with.

The similarity is you have interest and principle to pay. Over the course of ten years, iHeart paid lots of interest, very little principle. In the end, the lenders got enough interest to cover the cost of the loan, plus a portion of the assets. Similar situation with the other radio bankruptcies.

 

[MarkW]

In the end, the lenders got enough interest to cover the cost of the loan, plus a portion of the assets.

In corporate bankruptcy, claimants are segmented into classes of varying priority. Those at the front of the line receive the greatest recovery (as a % of amount owed by the debtor at time of filing). Those at the back of the line (e.g. subordinated creditors, preferred equity holders, then common equity holders) receive the lowest recovery, and many times zero recovery.

Traditional lenders have expenses that need to be covered via receipt of interest payments, including cost of funds - which is the cost lenders pay to acquire the funds needed to make loans. There is also time value of money to take into consideration.

Bond issuances are a bit of a different story. At time of original issue, bonds can be sold for par value (e.g. face value), a premium, or a discount. The higher the discount, the greater the yield for the bondholder. Money at time of original issue is raised from an offering, conducted by one or more arrangers, and fees (e.g. debt issuance costs) are paid at closing from those proceeds. Those fees generally are paid to the investment bank(s) who arranged the offering and other financial and legal professionals. That commercial paper can then usually be sold, sometimes subject to restrictions contained in the bond indenture, on the secondary market. The term "junk bonds" commonly refers to companies whose long-term financial viability is questionable, and whose bonds trade on the secondary market at a discount to par value. Sometimes, such bonds trade at 50 cents, 40 cents, or even 10 cents on the dollar to par value.

So, as far as iHM is concerned, there were likely some winners and there were definite losers insofar as the prepetition creditors are concerned. A number of variables influence such determination.

 

[TheBigA]

So, as far as iHM is concerned, there were likely some winners and there were definite losers insofar as the prepetition creditors are concerned. A number of variables influence such determination.

The bottom line is they're still in business. And the debt was not a factor in Martha Quinn's hiring at KOSF or her subsequent expansion of duties to other stations.

 

[MarkW]

Agreed. She is a talented broadcaster.

 

[DavidEduardo]

So, as far as iHM is concerned, there were likely some winners and there were definite losers insofar as the prepetition creditors are concerned. A number of variables influence such determination.

If you look at the bankruptcy, the equity holders were the losers. Much of the debt was traded for equity, and the existing equity holder lost based on the percentage of equity they held.

The original deal with the Mays family had private equity buying the company, with much of the purchased finance by large debt packages from senior lenders. Some of the equity holders also acquired some of the debt.

So we are talking about two kinds of debt... ongoing operational payments due were paid. The people who were part of the LBO bore the crush of what was essentially a devaluation of the company.

The losers were the equity holders and senior lenders for the LBO. Normal trade debt like equipment, accumulated tax liability and other operational debt was not affected, and has all been paid on a timely basis all along.

 

[MarkW]

Makes sense, since the LBO lenders greatly overvalued the company at the time their money went in.

 

[DavidEduardo]

Makes sense, since the LBO lenders greatly overvalued the company at the time their money went in.

Remember, when the recession hit they tried to back out of the deal... even went to court... but had to make good on the contract.

Remember, that was the 18 month period when the perfect storm hit: the recession, the smart phone and the PPM.

 

[MarkW]

Excellent points.

 

[Gregg.]

Back to the original post, I think this is great for folks who were young when MTV first came on your cable system. I'll never forget the first time I saw it. "In The Air Tonight" by Phil Collins was the first video I watched. And Martha Quinn was one of the original VJs, making her perfect for a radio format that now is aimed at folks in their 40s and 50s. I've listened to Quinn on live streaming from KOSF and she sounds great as a morning DJ.

I suppose this is a bit sad because the midday DJs on all those iHeart Classic Hits stations are now getting reassigned... or terminated. But this is the trend. In many markets, FM stations have a live morning show and that's it. Either they voice-track other dayparts or run syndicated shows like Delilah and John Tesh (AC), Ryan Seacrest (Top 40), Mario Lopez (Hot AC), Alice Cooper (Classic Rock), etc. So now we add Martha Quinn to the list.

I wonder if other owners will start running Quinn as well. The initial roll out is just for iHeart Classic Hits stations.

 

[TheBigA]

I suppose this is a bit sad because the midday DJs on all those iHeart Classic Hits stations are now getting reassigned... or terminated.

Not really...in most markets they were out-of-town VTs, not local DJs.

Christie James, who currently does mid-days at KOSF, is also Martha Quinn's producer.

I wonder if other owners will start running Quinn as well. The initial roll out is just for iHeart Classic Hits stations.

Interesting idea. The way iHeart does that is through their syndication company Premiere.

 

[AMFMTV]

In reference to the question about what happens to mornings on KOSF, Martha just posted on her FB page that her show moves to Middays -- even on KOSF. Christie moves to the AM drive slot.