Industry News

Mike Everhart

Alpha Media has operations in 42 markets around the United States, stretching from Alaska to South Carolina, comprising about four dozen studio locations and 200 or so FM and AM licenses.

Director of Engineering Mike Everhart is one of several engineers I interviewed for our ebook “After the Masks Come Off.”

He told me that Alpha’s leadership has been putting lessons of the pandemic into practice.

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“You’ll see it in future iterations of our studio builds. We’re entering a right-sizing operation in the Portland, Ore., market right now; and we’re looking at a move-and-build in another market in the next year or so that will take a lot of those lessons into account.”

The company was already heading down this road, he said, due the cost of construction, which Everhart said has ballooned well above the rate of inflation; a general decline in radio revenue in recent years; and the possibilities that technology brings for enabling remote work and creating more flexibility in the use of infrastructure.

“Those forces have come together and forced us to rethink the way we do these facilities,” Everhart said.

“We’ve been reducing the physical footprint. We’ve been reducing studio counts. We’ve been looking at hoteling workspace as opposed to dedicated individual workspaces, in the office as well as the studio. A person does not have a dedicated workspace all the time.”

A design principle of engineering is to seek efficiency, he said; but Alpha Media’s analysis has shown that traditionally radio is inefficient in their use of space, with low occupancy rates of desks and studios. He attributes this to a cultural paradigm in which a brand’s identity is wrapped up in the control room, where you build a culture to share with an audience.

“What we’ve found is that the culture and feel of a brand is what comes out the speakers and the feelings engendered in the audience members. It doesn’t come from the space, it comes from the head and the heart of the people producing the programs.”

With all that taken into account, and given the costs of building facilities and the expense of commercial real estate, “It doesn’t make sense to keep doing things the way we’ve been doing things.”

I enjoyed putting this particular ebook together and invite you to read more from Mike Everhart and other top engineers. Find it at radioworld.com/ebooks.

Comment on this or any article. Write to radioworld@futurenet.com.

The post Your Culture Doesn’t Come From the Studio Space appeared first on Radio World.

Europe’s leading exhibition and conference for broadband, television and online business executives is readying for “a brilliant comeback” from a COVID-19 pandemic pause.

Get ready for ANGA COM, scheduled for May 10-12, 2022 in Cologne, Germany.

Stand booking is already open and a Call for Participation for the technology program is available online at www.angacom.de.

Key topics of ANGA COM 2022 include FTTH, DOCSIS 4.0, 10G, Wifi, Fixed Mobile Convergence, Sustainability, Artificial Intelligence, Cloud Services, OTT, AppTV, Video Streaming, Smart City and Smart Home.

Numerous leading technology vendors have already confirmed their stand bookings for the exhibition, including ASTRA, ASTRO Strobel, AVM, Berthold Sichert, BTV Multimedia, CommScope, DCT DELTA, Deutsche Glasfaser, Emtelle, gabo, Ocilion IPTV Technologies, Technetix, Vodafone and WISI Communications.

The broadband industry is facing a new spirit of optimism. Even after the pandemic – or precisely because of last year’s experience – the expansion of broadband networks is at the top of the agenda everywhere in Europe. In Germany, for example, with its more than 40 million households, network operators and a steadily growing number of international investors have announced an investment of many billions.

Event organizers says ANGA COM will take place at a date that allows sufficient lead time, given the dates of CES 2022 and the NAB Show, in mid-April in Las Vegas.

Legal and company travel restrictions are expected to be lifted by Spring 2022 at the latest, even with a current surge in COVID-19 cases across several German states.

Solid State Logic has confirmed that it will feature its new System T TE1 and TE2 Tempest Engines at IBC 2021, scheduled for December 3-6 at RAI Amsterdam.

The company’s new System T V3.1 software introduces pay-as-you-go licensing, while delivering enhanced third party device control on top of advanced AoIP routing technology at its core.

The new System T V3.1 software release enables operators using the new TE1 and TE2 Tempest Engines to flexibly scale processing capabilities according to their specific broadcast production requirements. Software licenses for five different processing packs, defined by the total number of mono All-Paths equivalent channels supported, from 85 to 800, are available to users as perpetual or short-term, time-based rental upgrades.

The new TE1 Tempest Engine supports Processing Pack 1 (140 paths) or 2 (256 paths) while the TE2 engine supports all five packs, from 140 to 800 paths at 48 kHz or 85 to 500 paths at 96 kHz. The TE1 is equivalent to the original T25 engine for System T, which offered a maximum of 256 paths, while the TE2 matches the previous 800-path T80 engine. The two new engines and five processing packs expand beyond those configurations to offer a wider variety of channel path capacities that align with a broader range of applications and budgets.

Additionally, the System T V3.1 software provides alerts and warnings as any processing pack license nears its expiration. The new SSL licensing platform enables users to retrieve licenses as required and seamlessly add them to their console systems.

SSL invites you to arrange a demonstration or consultation with a broadcast specialist to walk through product features and real-world broadcast scenarios using its latest System T software and DSP engines. To register for a meeting or consultation, please visit https://www.solidstatelogic.com/events/ibc-2021. At IBC 2021, SSL will be at booth 8.C64.

The infrastructure supporting live productions is gradually changing from mainly SDI Video to IP networks. That’s a result of more computer-generated content, new IP cameras and other NDI or IP sources become commonplace.

As such, there’s a need to integrate a mix of SDI, HDMI and IP Video sources.

Broadcast Pix has responded.

It’s brought to market a new integrated production product, “MX Solution.”

The MX Hybrid features:

• 8 Network/IP + 3 SDI (HD/4K) + 1 HDMI/SDI/Analog inputs
• 4 (2 SDI + 2 NDI) Program and Aux assignable outputs
• 6 Keyers with DVEs and chromakey
• Remote “Browser-Based” and “Easy-To-Operate” User Interfaces
• GuestPix remote guest integration
• Integrated Chat and Intercom
• Enhanced macros to automate repetitive tasks and ensure consistency of production
• Built-in streaming, recording and audio mixing
• Hardware that fully supports 1080p/60 and 4K

“We are very pleased to announce MX Hybrid, the latest product in our range of easy-to-use live production solutions,” said Graham Sharp, CEO at Broadcast Pix. “The feature rich, future proof and flexible MX Hybrid will serve the production needs of government, broadcast, live events, and visual radio users – well into the future with its hybrid input configuration and video format agnostic support. We are offering competitive upgrades to existing users and coupled with our customer support packages, we are fulfilling our vow never to leave any customer behind.”

The MX Hybrid is now available to order for $19,995 MSRP and will begin shipping in late 2021.

Marketing analytics company LeadsRx’s LeadsRx Attribution product now supports multi-touch attribution (MTA) for national television commercials — including live, broadcast, and dual-feed cable programming.

The enhancement, says LeadsRx, “leads to greater accuracy in attribution results, which means buyers of TV advertising can better optimize their budgets and earn higher return on ad spend (ROAS).”

The new LeadsRx capability is available to provide support for national television spot logs that take into consideration the complexities of national advertising. The system automatically adjusts the time commercials air according to the type of feed, time zones, and daylight savings time considerations.

“Accurately measuring the impact of national television advertising has been a pain point for some time due to the existence of dual feeds,” said Adam Ortman, VP of Growth & Innovation at Generator Media + Analytics. “With this new methodology, LeadsRx is now able to better inform clients and help optimize their national TV ad budgets by providing a truer picture of TV’s impact across the country.”

Incorporating national television ads within analytics, such as MTA, is difficult due to the complexities of television. Commercials air at different times throughout the U.S. depending on whether ads are shown during live events (such as sports, concerts, etc.), on broadcast networks (such as the big three of ABC, CBS, and NBC), or on cable networks.

Adding to the complexity is the fact that some cable networks are shown live across the country, while others are aired twice a day (“dual-feed cable”), time zones are different, and some states (e.g., Arizona and Hawaii) do not switch to Daylight Savings Time.

National advertisers must take an analytic approach to understanding how various ad mediums are performing both as individual channels as well as in combination with other channels. The complexity surrounding national TV advertising compounds the issue of accurately measuring advertising effectiveness for brands that advertise across the country. The examples in this Nielsen Feed Pattern Guide shows just how confusing it can be to understand broadcast and dual-feed cable programming air times.

“By offering this solution, LeadsRx is using analytics to help national television advertisers and agencies representing advertisers to lower customer acquisition costs, increase customer lifetime value, and spot and eliminate wasted ad spend,” said AJ Brown, CEO and co-founder of LeadsRx. “Our customers have been clamoring for this kind of solution, and our team has worked hard to provide an MTA solution offering this capability.”

There is no extra charge to add the new feature, LeadsRx notes.

MadHive, described as “the enterprise software platform that powers modern media,” has a new Chief Product Officer.

Craig Berlingo will lead product strategy and development for MadHive’s suite of customizable ad tech software.

Prior to joining MadHive, Berlingo recently served as Head of Product at Telaria, where he grew the video exchange business from zero to $300+ million per year in gross revenue and oversaw the platform’s adoption by top tier publishers and partners such as Hulu, Sling, A&E, Cheddar, Pluto.tv, Adobe, Google, and The Trade Desk.

“There’s no question that advertising has reached an inflection point,” said Adam Helfgott, CEO at MadHive. “New policies from tech giants, a shifting regulatory environment, and the fragmentation of consumer attention across more devices and channels than ever are causing the entire industry to rethink how we target and measure advertising. Craig’s experience building billion dollar ad tech businesses will allow us to further accelerate our rapid growth trajectory as we push the industry forward.”

MadHive got its start helping the nation’s largest broadcasters transition to streaming. The company’s infrastructure-as-a-service offering currently powers local OTT reach extension for major broadcasters including Fox. The full-stack solution provides customizable tools to manage the entire campaign lifecycle, from the industry’s most accurate audience forecasting and targeting to cross-screen attribution against its proprietary OTT-first device graph. This holistic approach has led to adoption with agencies and DTC brands aiming to target more precise audiences beyond social media.

“MadHive has established itself as a leader in digital TV, with its end-to-end platform now powering efforts for both broadcasters and brands,” said Berlingo. “I’m looking forward to joining the team at this exciting time in the company’s growth, as we continue to scale the software that further simplifies how media is bought, sold, and measured across all devices and screens.”

 

Reaching over 2.7 million people each week, Southern Cross Austereo (SCA) is one of Australia’s most diverse entertainment companies, with audio and visual brands and content reaching Australians through radio, television and digital properties.

When it came time to build and flip the switch on a Network Operations Center for Commercial Radio, the first in Australia, SCA selected a U.S.-headquartered provider of resource management software to make it happen.

Specifically, SCA selected Xytech to deploy its flagship MediaPulse system for the operations center.

“Although we are still in the development process, there has already been a significant level of support from Xytech,” said Ben Fransman, Network Operations Manager at SCA. “Fully understanding the nature of our business, the team has been extremely helpful in outlining our goals for MediaPulse and working with us on addressing the complexities associated with this project.”

Southern Cross Austereo upgraded from ScheduALL to MediaPulse. This, Xytech says, was done to better provide stakeholders the ability to create bookings. The resource management solutions provided by Xytech’s MediaPulse “was exactly what we were looking for,” Fransman says.

The Network Operations Centre will manage work orders as well as confirm the booking and create the connection based on date, time and project collateral, including talent interviews, remote guests and cameras.

This is one of the first installed MediaPulse systems in Australia since the ScheduALL acquisition, said Greg Dolan of Xytech. “Everyone at Xytech is really excited to see the confidence Ben and his team have placed in us and MediaPulse,” he said. “Our Managing Director in Australia, Tanya Kelly was really instrumental in this transaction, and I know she’ll be a great partner to Sothern Cross for years to come.”

Broadcast audio software tools developer Futuri Media has announced an update to its Post podcast creation system.

New tools include an in-app audio editor “designed to save production time, speed up distribution of timely content, and enable audio brands to quickly make simple edits to their on-demand broadcast content to keep people listening longer,” according to the company

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Customizable widgets have been added that aids in branding embedded audio. Ad insertion has also been with improvements in ad marker and mid-roll capabilities.

Futuri adds that third-party destination publishing is better, chapter markers are enhanced and analytics deeper.

Send your new equipment news to radioworld@futurenet.com.

Info: https://futurimedia.com

 

The post Futuri Updates Post Podcast System appeared first on Radio World.

Jill Crocker and Malayna McGhee of Ronald McDonald House, center, accept a check from Ross Turner, Ditch, Country Cory and Danni Bruns of Cumulus Memphis. The final amount raised was more than shown as donations continued to come in.

Working to help kids with catastrophic illness, “98.1 The Max” had a particularly good fundraiser this month.

The Cumulus station brought in about $533,000 for the Ronald McDonald House of Charities of Memphis, a record for its local campaign.

WXMX(FM) plays “maximum rock.” It raised the money in less than 12 hours in a radiothon on Nov. 5. Ronald McDonald House Charities of Memphis supports children with pediatric cancer and other catastrophic illnesses undergoing treatment at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and their families.

Morgan D. Bohannon is vice president/market manager at WXMX. Danni Bruns is station program director and the cluster’s operations manager.

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Pierre Robert is baked into the radio landscape of Philadelphia, and now Beasley Media is celebrating him with a month-long 40th anniversary party.

WMMR(FM) will feature highlights of his career, “commemorating local radio’s iconic moments broadcast by a most unique, warm, and recognizable personality.”

Robert (pronounced “roh-BAYR”) is on the air middays in Philly. During his career he has done notable stints on overnights and in morning drive.

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“The award-winning radio host began his journey aboard his trusty microbus, Minerva, when he left his hometown of San Francisco in 1981 to look for a radio home in the City of Brotherly Love,” Beasley Media wrote in the announcement.

“Upon his arrival, there was a natural fit with ’MMR, the progressive rock ’n’ roll radio station located on Rittenhouse Square in the heart of Center City, Philadelphia. The Philly-area listening audience has enjoyed 40 years of Pierre’s musical passion and positive outlook, with his diverse appreciation for all things rock ‘n roll including a vast knowledge of the music they all love.”

The company said he is well known for his interview style with rock artists, his concert coverage and his “Roaming Rock Microphone” on the concert scene.

Beasley Media has owned the station since 2016. Group Vice President of Talent Development and WMMR(FM) Program Director Bill Weston said, “I’ve never worked with a more beloved air talent.”

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