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The ABU Digital Broadcasting Symposium 2020 is taking place March 2–5 at Hotel Istana in Kuala Lumpur.

This year’s theme is “Collaborate and Innovate.” The primary role of DBS 2020, say organizers, is to “help broadcasters in the region make a smooth transition to digital broadcasting and introduce them to the latest range of technologies on the market.”

Held annually in Kuala Lumpur, DBS consists of a conference, an exhibition floor, masterclasses and workshops. In 2019, it attracted 1,254 participants from 377 organizations in 59 countries. They included 82 speakers and 60 exhibiting companies.

The organizers announced in February they would go on with the event despite the recent outbreak of COVID-19. Director of Technology & Innovation Ahmed Nadeem explained they were “monitoring the situation and following guidelines from local authorities and agencies,” and “taking all necessary safety precautions.”

SAFETY MEASURES

He said these include working closely with Hotel Istana Kuala Lumpur to ensure specific safety measures; increased disinfection across all high-volume touch points; and the availability of hand sanitizer around the event. They are also encouraging a “no-handshake policy” for attendees and say the hotel has set up a protocol for anyone feeling unwell.

This year’s event will consist of a three-day conference on March 3–5 and an exhibition floor on the same days, along with a range of workshops and masterclasses. The conference’s 12 sessions will focus on topics of strong interest to broadcasters, with speakers from the region and beyond.

The conference aims to address the ongoing challenges facing the broadcasting industry and help find solutions that will enable broadcasters to remain relevant and take informed decisions.

“The industry confronts challenges both in terms of keeping its audience and the fragility of broadcasters’ business models,” explains the ABU.

“New technologies and advanced solutions, which are fast being rolled out by tech-savvy organizations, are disrupting the usual flow of media distribution. Media consumption is becoming more and more personal and the use of digital technologies to understand the preference of audiences is key to developing an edge over the competition,” it said.

“Broadcasters need to be agile and adopt a more mediacentric approach, taking advantage of the convergence of technologies and the new digital innovations in media delivery, intelligence and business operations.”

The symposium will address challenges, suggest solutions and share experiences related to digital transition, technology implementation, creative content ideas, along with enhancing user experiences.

It will explore opportunities the changing media business can provide and find effective ways for broadcast and media organizations to collaborate and futureproof their operations.

DBS 2020 will feature a best booth award, to be decided by participants. The winner will receive a free booth in 2021.

The post ABU DBS 2020 Starts This Week appeared first on Radio World.

In 1976, WOHO(AM) was second in the ratings to the legacy market leader in Toledo, Ohio, WSPD(AM), a stuffy bastion of Frank Sinatra records and call-in recipe shows pushed by air talent well past its prime. At the time, Ken Deutsch served as WOHO’s “outgoing program director.” Here, he recalls some of the efforts and misadventures the station embarked on while attempting to unseat its chief rival.

“I want you to get rid of that bubblegum crap we’re playing, and fire those rock jocks!” shouted our general manager. “Do it now!”

And with that subtle directive from the GM, Toledo’s WOHO(AM) began the transition from a successful top-40 operation to an adult news and talk format. 

We did this by gradually adding more information segments and nighttime talk shows, and by tweaking what music we did play to reflect adult tastes. At that time, AMs around the country were heading in this direction in order to reach a more desirable demographic for advertisers: 18–49. 

But our GM failed to predict the cost of this upgrade, and how long it would take to change our image in the mind of the public. 

Rock n’ roll disc jockeys were relatively cheap; skilled and experienced news people were expensive, and we had many to hire. To get the message about our format change out to the public, we also had to invest in billboards, newspaper ads and TV spots, some of which couldn’t be traded out, no matter how we tried.   

After about six months we sent an intern out on the streets to take an unofficial survey on what people thought of the new WOHO. Most “Joe and Jane Lunch Pails” (as our general manager referred to our listeners) thought WOHO was still top 40, and several mentioned the names of jocks who had not been at the station for over a year. Uh oh. 

It looked like it might take a while longer to convert those people who had been listening to WSPD(AM) for most of their lives.  

The GM put up with the high costs for about a year — which I estimated was one third of the time it would have taken to change public perceptions — before he exploded in his office one day while looking at some financials. 

“Ken, what the hell have you done to our station? We were doing great playing the teen hits, and we were making money like crazy! Now look at this!” he shouted while shoving a balance sheet in my face, “I told you that switching to an adult format was a bad idea!”  

I looked at him standing there, veins popping out on his forehead, and it was at that moment that I made a decision: to just let him yell at me until his anger subsided. The next few months were difficult as our GM put increasing pressure on everyone to get the ratings up, something that was largely out of our hands. That would just take time. 

Then our beloved GM, who as you may have guessed ran more on raw emotion than research, let me know he was bringing in a “consultant” to tweak our programming. 

By that, he meant he was hiring a hatchet man to dismantle the news format and get us back into top 40, no matter who got crushed. 

INTRODUCING PUNKIE

Shortly thereafter I met this guru, whom I’ll call “Punkie.” He was a California rock jock with no programming credentials, and he brought with him a character called “Timmy the Frog,” who existed as a sound effect on a cart. 

During his air shift, Punkie talked to Timmy and spewed jive talk. Punkie didn’t have a title at our station, but he seemed to have the power to make whatever changes he liked to our personnel and our music. 

I ran an aircheck of Punkie one day to preserve his shtick for posterity. 

 

“More More More,” and the Andrea True Connection, and here comes Timmy the Frog —

(Sound effect: ribbit ribbit splash) 

Hanging around in the WO-HO porcelain palace in the WO-HO powder room at 3:02, baby. We also have the Disco Lady —

(Sound effect: lady sighing suggestively) 

Oh, right in my ear, dear! I love it! 

(Starts next record)  

You’re in a giving mood, I’m in a taking mood, I’m in a shaking mood, I’m in a quaking mood, baby. I’m in a mood that’s so good I got to deliver, man! I got to give give give, I got it all to live. Starbuck and “Moonlight Feels Right” at WOHO.

One of Punkie’s first acts was to fire the news writers and the woman who worked part time handling traffic reports on the air. This left our afternoon anchor, whom we’ll call “Lawrence,” bereft of support. 

Lawrence calmly approached Punkie and told him that without these people he was unable to do his job, and furthermore that it was unfair to his staff to fire them so abruptly.      

Punkie’s response to Lawrence: “Oh, I see, you got an integrity thing going on. I can dig that.” 

But within three weeks the adult news and talk format had been dismantled, and we were back to bubblegum. It was the collapse of a two-year experiment.  

I lost track of the station after that because I had already given my notice. But listen, if you see Punkie, or Timmy the Frog for that matter, give them my regards.

Ken Deutsch is a writer based in Sarasota, Fla. You can reach him at kenrdeutsch@gmail.com.  

The post Adventures in 1970s AM: Helloooo, Punkie! appeared first on Radio World.

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The author is membership program director of the National Federation of Community Broadcasters. NFCB commentaries are featured regularly at www.radioworld.com.

The last 10 days have seen fears escalate dramatically as news of the spread of coronavirus took center stage. The U.S. stock market tumbled. Japanese schools and industries came to a standstill. International diplomacy was tested in countries with travel to and from Asia. Coronavirus fears even entered the Democratic debates and the impending U.S. national election. To get a sense of the tensions worldwide, the New York Times set up a page of rolling updates.

While coronavirus has yet to strike the United States, many officials have said the illness’ arrival is only a matter of time. Such fears should only prompt federal, state and county leaders nationwide to ensure their area noncommercial media, including community radio, is at the table.

[Read: Community Broadcaster: Looking Up]

As I have written in past columns, community radio plays a crucial role in emergency preparedness. In rural areas, we are at times the only live, local media available. When there is misinformation and uncertainty, trusted local voices can make a huge difference and avert further tragedy.

With more attention squarely on emergency preparedness, now is the time to clearly state the necessity of noncommercial media.

America’s Public Television Stations President Pat Butler made the case for noncommercial media as an important partner in federal efforts to protect the public. His remarks came amid news that the Corporation for Public Broadcasting would be seeking support from the Department of Homeland Security for the first time.

“After 10 years of making do or doing without, that situation needs to change,” Butler said, according to Current. Given the rise in potential health emergencies, along with the earthquakes, fires and other calamities nonprofit media outlets inform the public about, funding for radio appears overdue.

The Federal Communications Commission has done regular check-ups on the nationwide Emergency Alert System. While the latest FCC analysis indicates compliance improvements, the General Accounting Office says more must be done. Moreover we can’t pretend everyone’s mobile phones will do the trick. Radio remains central to people globally, and America must fast-track community media in its emergency preparedness planning.

By the way, the 10 years Butler is referring to is the Public Telecommunications Facilities Program, which Congress eliminated in 2010. PTFP helped many stations make tremendous infrastructure strides. Many stations need federal investment to make sure their communities are safe.

Some states are already on the move related to this matter. California Gov. Gavin Newsom stated radio is a big part of preparedness in his state as those travelling overseas return. New York State is also including radio as part of its response and education endeavors.

However, station leaders should not wait to be called. Touch base with county and state leaders. Reach out to members of Congress in your region. There is no greater service you can provide than stepping up in a time of need.

 

The post Community Broadcaster: Coronavirus Education appeared first on Radio World.

There was a lot of talk about “deleveraging balance sheets” and “improving capital structure,” but iHeartMedia’s fourth quarter 2019 earnings call on Thursday gave little new insight into the transformative shift in business operations the broadcaster announced in January.

iHeartMedia, which emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy in May 2019, said its modernization initiatives will take advantage of new technologies in order to create operating efficiencies, according to the company’s earnings statement. iHeartMedia let go over 1,000 employees last month and said it will create what company executives call “AI-enabled Centers of Excellence” located in select cities. According to the company’s 10-K filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, it still has 11,400 employees.

[Read: iHeart Defends Painful Change]

Those modernization initiatives at iHeartMedia, which operates 856 radio stations in approximately 160 markets, are expected to deliver $100 million in cost savings for the company by the middle of 2021, according to Thursday’s financial release.

Analysts during Thursday’s earnings call raised the issue of localism and whether iHeartMedia’s ratings could be hurt following all the staff cuts.

“We don’t think the quality will go down, but rather it will go up. We want the best programming in each market. Distance is no longer an issue in our business and our ability to project the best talent we have to any location any time is a substantial advantage for us,” said Bob Pittman, chairman and CEO of iHeartMedia.

iHeartMedia did disclose it anticipates seeing its real estate expenses jumping this year as it consolidates some broadcast facilities and downsizes others.

“Our investments in these modernization initiatives are expected to result in an increase in incremental capital expenditures related to real estate optimization of approximately $40 to $50 million in 2020. While we expect some additional capital expenditures impact from our modernization in 2021, the majority of this investment in capital expenditures is expected to impact 2020 and to be weighted to the second-half of the year.”

He added, “Additionally, we anticipate approximately $45 to $55 million of restructuring costs related to achieving our cost savings,” the company said in its financial statement.”

Overall revenue for the company came in flat for the fourth quarter of 2019 at $1.0261 billion compared to $1.0263 billion in Q4 2018. Broadcast revenue declined 2.7% in the last quarter to $611.79 million compared to Q4 2018, according to financial statements. Part of that drop is attributable to less political ad revenue in 2019, company executives said. Broadcast remains the company’s largest source of revenue.

For the year in 2019 overall revenue for iHeartMedia was $3.6 billion, up 2.0% from the previous year. Broadcast revenue for the year dipped overall by 1.4% to $2.2 billion.

“As the number one audio company in the U.S. based on reach, we look forward to expanding our unequaled multiplatform leadership position and leveraging the investments that we have made to modernize our infrastructure and become more efficient, effective and competitive,” Pittman said.

Premiere Networks and Total Traffic & Weather, both owned by iHeartMedia, generated revenue of $614.7 million in 2019 compare to $582.3 million in 2018, according to the company’s financials.

The broadcaster, which also owns online music service iHeartRadio, has seen its stock price drop this week right along with most of the market. Thursday’s price closed at $14.96, a slide of 6.1% for the day. It’s carrying $5.3 billion in debt even after emerging from bankruptcy protection just last year.

Pittman said the “audio environment has never been more exciting,” and at least part of his excitement can be traced to podcasting. The company did see gains in digital revenue, which were driven mainly by podcasting. iHeartMedia is the largest commercial podcast publisher, according to Podtrac, a third-party download service. Digital topped $376 million in revenue for the year, which is an increase of 32.2% over 2018.

 

The post iHeartMedia Gives Few Details on Modernization Plan appeared first on Radio World.

Play-by-play announcer Greg Wrubell, pregame and postgame show host Ben Bagley and color analyst Riley Nelson team up with the Tieline ViA.

The author is senior broadcast radio engineer for BYU Broadcasting.

PROVO, Utah — In the fall of 2016, as a senior broadcast engineer, I was given the engineering responsibility for studio and transmission functions for the radio stations at BYU Broadcasting, which is located on the Brigham Young University campus in Provo, Utah. The radio stations consist of KBYU(FM) 89.1 MHz HD, BYU Radio HD2, and KUMT(FM) 107.9 KHz. 

At the broadcast center, BYU Radio, in concert with the BYU Athletics department, produce and provide play-by-play and game analysis, for football, basketball, soccer and baseball games live over air, including webstreams. In 2018, we also assumed responsibility for the distribution of our live sporting events to our radio affiliates. 

With this new responsibility added to the mix of our radio sports operation, there was a separate request to increase the number of live sporting events. This means we can air two, occasionally three, different sporting events simultaneously. However, we can’t hire four or five remote engineers and send them jet setting across the USA — that cost was not an option for us. But there was another way. 

With the exception of football, our sports announcers are required to travel with the remote mixing gear, and then mix/engineer their own shows.

Of course, that is a double-edged sword! Doing this reduces the amount of engineers needed to travel, but then you are relying on your talent to have at least some basic audio mixing skills.

SOLUTION

To perform this miracle, I needed to find a magical box. A remote unit that would be ridiculously easy to use, insanely versatile and, last of all, be intrinsically redundant like never before. 

When I attended the NAB Show last year, I visited the Tieline booth. I had previously purchased a Tieline product called Merlin. What a great name for a product that comes from a company that I consider to be the wizards of remote connectivity.

I was so impressed with this unit, I wanted to give Tieline the first crack at this unknown magic box I had conjured up, a Swiss Army Knife of radio remote codec units. I was not expecting to get all of the requirements on my list checked off. Well, to my amazement Tieline did have one such unit in its arsenal of remote weaponry: the ViA. 

I have no idea why it’s called the ViA, but after my demo, ViA stands for Very Intelligent Apparatus. My magic box was a reality. 

ViA is a compact unit that can handle a three-headset mix, plus one aux bus that can have analog, digital, or USB sources routed to it. It features a beautiful touchscreen display that makes navigating menus a breeze and is equipped with a good size rechargeable battery, which will keep you on the air and running when the power goes out. (Trust me I know.) It includes AGC, compression, gating, filters, EQ on each channel. Also, there’s a built-in SD card stereo/mono recorder and playback device with full library recall, custom playlist option, mixing ability and a full blown matrix and cue routing control. 

There are more features on this box that I could write about, but consider this: A person can take this little unit, add the new dual LTE module and three headsets on the road, set up in the middle of nowhere with no power, connect up with dual bonded LTE SIM cards and broadcast for two hours without a hitch. You’ll quickly become a believer in Tieline. ViA is the real deal. 

CCC 

Let me finish by commenting on a Tieline product that works with their remote gear line, which of course includes the ViA. This product is the Cloud Codec Controller. 

No matter where the ViA is located in the U.S., as long as it is turned on with an internet connection (LAN, LTE or wireless) and assigned an IP address, I will be able to connect to the unit via the CCC software and have complete control of it. And I really mean complete control, just as if I were standing right in front of the unit itself. 

That was the feature that won my full allegiance to the Tieline company. It gave me the peace of mind and confidence that sending the ViA on the road with no engineer, is not only doable, but is now the active protocol. In reality, there really is an engineer with the unit; he just happens to be sitting at his desk computer back at the station, making any necessary adjustments. 

The Tieline ViA was a golden find. As for Tieline, they are the Swiss Army Knife of remote radio broadcasting.

For information, contact Dawn Shewmaker at Tieline U.S. in Indiana at 1-888-211-6989 or visit www.tieline.com.

The post User Report: Tieline ViA Is a “Magical Box” appeared first on Radio World.

The term “automation” has come to mean so much more in 2020.

Radio World asked the sponsors of our new automation trends ebook to share their views on the state of their sector. We invited them to comment on what they are thinking about now and for systems in the future.

How far along is our industry in moving automation to the cloud, and what are next emerging steps?  What are the new most relevant features and capabilities that these systems are bringing to radio operations? How can you reduce your risk from ransomware? How are systems from various ecosystems working together? Will “the cloud” replace brick and mortar studios?

Read how they answered inside.

The post Trends in Automation for Radio: 2020 appeared first on Radio World.

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MB has unveiled the COALS and OPIF changes that will allow broadcasters, cable and OVS operators, and DBS providers to provide and update their carriage election contact information

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