Lionsgate Entertainment

Posted on December 1, 2012 by careiff

By Charles Reiff

Lionsgate production logo, courtesy of www.hollywoodreporter.com

Founded in 1997, Lionsgate is now a global entertainment corporation that handles film production and distribution, as well as television programming and syndication. Lionsgate also has a strong presence in home entertainment, family entertainment, digital distribution, and new channel platforms.

Once known as Lions Gate Entertainment, the corporation changed its name to “Lionsgate” in 2005. The company stated in a release: “The simplification of Lions Gate into the single word ‘Lionsgate’ represents the ongoing unification of the company’s diversified motion picture, television, home entertainment, family entertainment, documentary film, music publishing and video-on-demand businesses into a single, highly recognizable brand” [13].

Lionsgate has grown immensely in the past few years. In the past decade alone, it has increased revenues eightfold, from $180 million to almost $1.6 billion, its theatrical box office market share tenfold, the size of its library by a multiple of 15, and its television revenues are now 50 times what they once were, from $8 million in 2000 to $351 million in 2011 [1].

The Hunger Games, courtesy of imdb.com

Lionsgate enjoyed unprecedented success with its film The Hunger Games, which has earned $686.5 million around the world in the few months since its March 23rd premier, grossing $408 million at the North American box office. This puts it at the 3rd largest U.S. film of the year and the 13th highest grossing film of all time [12].

Key Executives [2]

Jon Feltheimer: Chief Executive Officer and Director

James Keegan: Chief Financial Officer and Chief Administration Officer

Dr. Mark H. Rachesky, M.D.: Chairman of the Board

Michael Burns: Vice Chairman and Director

Wayne Levin: General Counsel and Executive Vice President, Corporate Operations

Brian Goldsmith: Co-Chief Operating Oficer

Steven Beeks: Co-Chief Operating Officer and President, Motion Picture Group

Recent News

September

The Possession, courtesy of imdb.com

September 3rd, 2012

Lionsgate’s The Possession, a terrifying horror film about a young girl who’s body has been taken over by an evil spirit, was the top ticket seller at the box office over Labor Day weekend. The horror film grossed $21.3 million over the four day-weekend, making it the second-highest Labor Day opening ever, behind only Halloween, which opened with $30.6 million during 2007’s Labor Day weekend. The film was produced by Sam Raimi’s Ghost House Pictures with a budget of only $14 million, and stars Jeffery Dean Morgan and Kyra Sedgwick.

To read the full LA Times article on 2012’s labor day weekend ticket sales, click here [11].

September 17th, 2012

Celestial Tiger Entertainment, one of the largest independent entertainment companies in Asia, announced that it has expanded its content distribution deal with Lionsgate to cover all of East Asia. Now Lionsgate will be represented by Celestial Tiger Entertainment in Greater China and Southeast Asia, and CTE will be distributing all Lionsgate television content and feature films to Japan and Korea [8].

To read the full article by Yahoo! Finance, click here [8].

October

October 5th, 2012

Brian Goldsmith, after serving as executive vice president of corporate development and strategy since 2008, was promoted to co-chief operating officer, alongside Steve Beeks, to handle corporate development for the studio’s platform of channels and digital projects [7]. Goldsmith was recognized for his work in Lionsgate’s acquisition of Summit Entertainment in January, as well as the partnerships with Viacom and MGM in the Epix channel, Sony and Comcast in the FEARnet channel, as well as the output deal with Celestial Tiger Entertainment in Asia [7]. “Brian played a leadership role in many of the initiatives that made 2012 a transformative year for us,” said Lionsgate CEO Jon Feltheimer and vice chairman Michael Burns [7].

For the full article from Variety, click here [7].

October 30th, 2012

Domino’s, a leading pizza franchise that specializes in lightning-fast delivery, made a video-on-demand deal with Lionsgate U.K., in which customers who order pizza from the Domino’s website will also be able to instantly watch Lionsgate titles online. Domino’s sales and marketing director Simon Wallis is excited about their move with the video-on-demand service, as he described pizza and film as “a match made in heaven” [9]. Touching on the service’s universal appeal, Wallis said: “we pride ourselves on offering a vast choice when it comes to pizza, and the same is true of Domino’s Pizza Box Office–whether you’re into action, horror, or romantic comedies, there’s something for every pizza-eating occasion” [9]

Domino’s “Pizza Box Office” venture with Lionsgate, courtesy of tqs.com

To read the full Variety article, click here [9].

November

November 1st, 2012

Lionsgate has made a strong active effort to sign output deals with major distributors. On November 1st the company announced a partnership with Belgium’s Belga Films for release of the studio’s titles in the Benelux. Jerome de Bethune, COO of Belga Films, said “this output agreement provides us with a consistent pipeline of some of the most commercially exiting films in the world, including the next three installments of the blockbuster Hunger Games franchise” [4].

Lionsgate has forged output deals with StudioCanal in Germany, Nordisk Films in Scandanavia, Alliance’s Aurum Producciones in Spain, Roadshow Pictures in Australia and Metropolitan Filmworks in France.

To read the full Hollywood Reporter article on the deal with Belga Films, click here [4].

To read the full Hollywood Reporter article on the deal with Metropolitan Filmworks, click here [5].

Michael Burns, courtesy of www.hollywoodreporter.com

November 5th, 2012

Lionsgate vice chairman, Michael Burns, announced the extension of his contract through October 2017. Burns, after acquiring Summit Entertainment and having such great success with The Hunger Games, is maintaining his position as vice chairman for another five years. “We’re delighted that Michael will continue to help guide Lionsgate’s growth through 2017,” said Lionsgate CEO Jon Feltheimer [6].

To read the full article from The Hollywood Reporter, click here [6].

November 28th, 2012

Lionsgate, in an attempt to further create an international distribution network with top partners around the world, announced yet another output deal, this time with Russia’s West Company. The deal will allow Lionsgate films and television shows to be distributed in Russia and other nations of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) region.”Our Lionsgate and Summit labels have both successfully partnered with West Company on numerous films in the past, including the blockbusterTwlight franchise,” said Lionsgate Motion Picture Group Co-Chairs Rob Friedman and Patrick Wachberger [11]. “This new output agreement for Lionsgate titles is a natural evolution of our alliance that promises significant benefits for both our companies for many years to come” [11].

To read the full press release from Yahoo! Finance, click here.

December

December 3rd, 2012

The weekend from Friday, November 30th to Sunday, December 2nd was the third weekend in a row that Breaking Dawn – Part 2–the final installment of the teen vampire Twilight saga from Lionsgate–led U.S. and Canadian ticket sales, outselling both the James Bond film Skyfall and Lincoln. As of December 3rd, according to Bloomberg’s website, this fifth film in the series has taken in $254.6 million in domestic sales, exploiting a post-Thanksgiving lull in big releases to stay on top of the box-office standings. The five Twilight films have taken in $1.33 billion in domestic theaters, according to Box Office Mojo, making it the eighth most successful film franchise of all time [10].

Works Cited

[1] Lionsgate http://investors.lionsgate.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=62796&p=irol-homeprofile

[2] Daily Finance http://www.dailyfinance.com/quote/nyse/lions-gate-entertainment-corp-usa/lgf/key-executives?source=esadlfltnal0001

[3] Paul Bond http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/hunger-games-boosts-lionsgate-stock-388322

[4] Etan Vlessing http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/lionsgate-inks-output-deal-belgiums-385221

[5] Etan Vlessing http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/lionsgate-signs-output-deal-frances-384726

[6] Etan Vlessing http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/lionsgate-vice-chair-michael-burns-contract-2017-386348

[7] Jill Goldsmith http://www.variety.com/article/VR1118060342

[8] Yahoo! Finance http://finance.yahoo.com/news/celestial-tiger-entertainment-expands-content-130000096.html

[9] Variety Newsroom http://www.variety.com/article/VR1118061416

[10] Box Office Mojo http://boxofficemojo.com/search/?q=twilight

[11] Amy Kaufman http://articles.latimes.com/2012/sep/03/entertainment/la-et-ct-box-office-possession-oogieloves-lawless-20120903

[12] Yahoo! Finance http://finance.yahoo.com/news/epix-kicks-off-2013-worldwide-150000018.html

[13] Brian Brooks http://www.indiewire.com/article/film_company_lions_gate_is_now_lionsgate

CBS Films

Posted on September 19, 2012 by lmkitay

by Lisa Kitay

History and Overview

CBS Films is a division of CBS Corporation, which is one of the original broadcast companies.[2] CBS is a mass media company that produces and allocates entertainment content that reaches the entire world. Today it is one of the largest groups of media content companies as well as it owns the most watched Television station in the United States. The film division is just one of their many facets.[3]

CBS Films is a baby in the large scope of the entertainment industry. It started in 2007. It has many jobs within its company, including development, financing, production and marketing of theatrical motion pictures. It projects to release four to six films of a wide variety of genres per year with budgets no more than fifty million, but has not been able to debut more that two films per year. They released their first film in the beginning of 2010. CBS films manages the global distribution with partners as well as self-distributing the films in the United States. Currently CBS Films has releases nine films: “The Back –Up Plan”, “Faster”, “The Mechanic”, “Extraordinary Measures”, “Beastly”, “The Woman in Black”, “Salmon Fishing in the Yemen”, “The Words”, and “Seven Psychopaths”.[5]

Fall of 2012 Happenings

In October of 2012, CBS Films released Seven Psychopaths. This has been their second release in 2012. Even though it opened in ninth place making $ 4.17 million[7], Seven Psychopaths earned two nominations for Independent Spirit Awards for the Best Original Screenplay and Best Supporting Male categories. Writer and Director, Martin McDonagh is up for the award of Best Screenplay and Sam Rockwell for Best Supporting Male.[8] McDonagh has also written and directed “In Bruges”. In addition he has also produced many short films.[9] Rockwell has been seen on screens in many occasions and will be seen in films to come. Some of his leading roles include “Lawn Dogs”, “Confessions of a Dangerous Mind”, and “Choke”.[10]

Even though this picture is receiving nominations, CBS was disappointed in the response from its audience. The weekend report on boxofficemojo.com said that it earned the “lowest nationwide opening ever for CBS Films”. The demographic for this film is male age twenty-five and up. It only opened in half as many theaters as its competing movies during its opening weekend, which could have contributed to its minimal box office gross. CBS Films predicted it would make forty percent more upon its release. It has not been determined the exact reason for its low outcome, but the small demographic that it appeals to is said to have an impact. [12]

According to boxofficemojo.com, Seven Psychopaths ranked 19 in the quarterly reports. It had a total gross of $14,666,353 and was released in 1,480 theaters.[13]

This film follows Colin Farrell who plays a struggling screenwriter in Los Angeles. He entangles himself in the web of the criminal underworld because Christopher Walken and Sam Rockwell decide to steal a dog.[14]

[16]

Following their release of Seven Psychopaths, CBS Films accomplished something that has never been done before. After long negotiations, four of Hollywood’s most acclaimed actors will be seen on the big screen at once. On November 15th, CBS announced that in late 2013 “Last Vegas” will be released in theaters. With a cast consisting of Michael Douglas, Robert De Niro, Morgan Freeman and Kevin Kline, this film will be the premiere of these Oscar nominated actors on screen simultaneously. This movie, which has a plot that follows the four friends around Las Vegas for the bachelor party of the last friend to walk down the aisle, has a budget of $16.6 billion. CBS is working with Good Universe to produce and distribute this film that Jon Tureltaub will direct and Dan Fogelman will write.[17]

Following a similar trend, CBS Films announced its plan to release another 2013 movie with major stars as its leading actors. Like “Last Vegas”, they have also connected Rachel Bilson and Andy Samberg to a movie coming out Valentines Day of 2013 called “The To Do List“.[19]

They also attempted to attach “Thor” actor, Chris Hemsworth, for the leading role in their production of “American Assassin”, a film based on the novel by Vince Flynn. He reported rejected due to scheduling time conflicts.[20]

Even though Scott Derrickson is not a leading actor in Hollywood, in the directing world he is very highly recognized. He has previously directed projects such as “Sinister” which was released early this year, as well as the Exorcism of Emily Rose.[22] CBS Films has attached him to making the iconic video game, “Deus Ex: Human Revolution” into a screenplay.[23] He will not only direct this film but write the screenplay as well. It will take place in the near future when major scientific advances debut focusing on human augmentation. The main character, an ex-SWAT security specialist, must take on mechanical augmentation to be able to figure out a global conspiracy.[24]

In addition to attaching big name industry personal to their projects in the month of November, CBS also announced that it acquired the distribution rights to The Last Exorcism Part II from studiocanal. This is the sequel of The Last Exorcism, which grossed more than $20 million its opening weekend. Ed Gass-Donnelly will direct this film, which will continue from where the last film left off. Star Ashley Bell, is found abandoned in the woods with no recollection of the previous months. As she begins to live her new life, the evil force possesses her body again stating the exorcism over again. This film is said to be released march of 2013. Scott Shooman, who is the Executive Vice President of Acquisitions and Co-Productions, collaborated with Harold van Lier of Studiocanel. [26]

Money, Money, Money

As a corporation as a whole, CBS has had a 5.4% profit increase from 2010 to 2011 reaching $1,276 billion revenue in just movies, TV production, and video games alone.[28] In 2012, at the end of September, the entertainment segment of CBS had total revenue of $ 1,680 million; compared to the previous year it had $ 1,632 million.[29] Even though there is no concrete source to confirm this, from the comparison between 2011 and 2012, I can assume that CBS’s profit slightly increased from numbers in 2011. And although the third quarter results released by CBS Corporate did not include CBS Films specifically in their entertainment segment with their individual earnings, they are included in the total number given.

The most recent release, “Seven Psychopaths”, ranked sixth making a total gross of $ 14,676,509. CBS Films in total has profited $219,338,027[30] from their entire collection of movies since they opened their doors in 2007.[31]

Rank

Movie Title (click to view)

Studio

Total Gross / Theaters

Opening / Theaters

Open

Seven Psychopaths

CBS

$14,787,728

1,480

$4,174,915

1,480

10/12

–

Chart Courtesy of boxofficemojo.com [32]

Important People

Five specific individuals keep CBS Films active. Wolfgang Hammer[33], who has also been the COO of CBS Films, oversees business, finance, legal affairs and acquisitions. Joining the company in April, Terry Press is head of the creative distribution, marketing and the physical production.[34] On December 5^th, 2012 she was ranked number 71 in The Hollywood Reporter’s Women in Entertainment: Power 100.[35] Steven Friedlander, the Executive Vice President of Theatrical Distribution is in charge of the domestic theatrical acquisitions and distributions.[36] Rik Toulon who has been recognized as a leading attorney for media and entertainment in California and noted in Best Lawyers in America, is the Executive Vice President and General Counsel. As this title he oversees all the legal activities and is involved with the company’s distribution, finance, acquisition, key vendor and strategic alliance arrangements.[37] Lastly, Maria Faillace holds her second job at CBS films as Executive Vice President of Production. There is she in control the production for the division’s homegrown titles.[38]

Coming up in 2013

CBS Films has yet to reach its quota of releasing six films a year, but 2013 will be different. “Last Vegas” is in production now and has a projected release date of Christmas of 2013. “Gambit” is complete and is also to be released in December 2013. “7500” and “Get a Job” are both in post-production now. ” The To Do List” and the “Last Exorcism Part II” are also on the horizon to come to theaters this year.[39]

Sources:

[1] Logo Courtesy of http://www.nerdwallet.com/blog/markets/2012/rich-companies-low-taxes/

[2] http://www.cbsfilms.com/

[3] http://www.cbscorporation.com/

[4] Logo Courtesy of http://aroundthenetworks.com/the-woman-black-featurette/cbs-films-logo-wide-4/

[5] http://www.cbsfilms.com/

[6] Billboard image from http://moviesblog.mtv.com/2012/08/31/seven-psychopaths-red-band-trailer/

[7]http://boxofficemojo.com/news/?id=3546&p=s.htm

[8]http://www.cbsfilms.com/news/seven_psychopaths_nominated_for_two_independent_spirit_awards

[9] http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1732981/

[10] http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0005377/

[11] Image Courtesy of http://www.ineedmyfix.com/2012/11/28/sam-rockwell-has-kidnapped-another-dog/seven-psychopaths-premiere-2-271112-4/

[12] http://boxofficemojo.com/news/?id=3546&p=s.htm

[13]http://boxofficemojo.com/quarterly/?view=releasedate&yr=2012&quarter=Q4&sort=gross&order=DESC&studio=cbsfilms.htm

[14] http://www.sevenpsychopaths.com/#Story

[15] Image Courtesy of boscosgrindhouse.com/2012/10/13/boscos-word-seven-psychopaths

[16] Official Trailer- http://youtu.be/Jbq4nGObfqA

[17] http://www.cbsfilms.com/news/last_vegas_begins_production_in_las_vegas

[18] Image Courtesy of http://www.moviefanatic.com/2012/11/last-vegas-cast-introduced-in-new-still-michael-douglas-bachelor/

[19] http://www.cbsfilms.com/news/cbs_films_reveals_maggie_careys_the_to_do_list

[20] http://www.deadline.com/2012/11/chris-hemsworth-american-assassin-no-deal-casting-cbs-films/#more-369322

[21] Courtesy of http://www.deadline.com/tag/chris-hemsworth/

[22] http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0220600/

[23]http://www.cbsfilms.com/news/scott_derrickson_to_direct_deus_ex_feature_from_iconic_video_game

[24] http://www.deadline.com/2012/11/deus-ex-movie-scott-derrickson-directing-writing-cbs-films/

[25] Courtesy of Google images

[26] http://www.cbsfilms.com/news/cbs_films_acquires_the_last_exorcism_part_ii

[27] Courtesy of http://anythinghorror.com/2012/08/14/big-casting-news-for-the-last-exorcism-2/

[28] http;//adage.com/datacenter/mediatrees2012/#41

[29]http://investors.cbscorporation.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=99462&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=1755755&highlight=

[30] http://boxofficemojo.com/studio/chart/?yr=&view=company&view2=allmovies&studio=cbsfilms.htm&sort=gross&order=ASC&p=.htm

[31]http://boxofficemojo.com/quarterly/?view=releasedate&yr=2012&quarter=Q4&sort=gross&order=DESC&studio=cbsfilms.htm

[32] http://boxofficemojo.com/quarterly/?view=releasedate&yr=2012&quarter=Q4&sort=gross&order=DESC&studio=cbsfilms.htm

[33] http://www.cbsfilms.com/principals/wolfgang_hammer

[34] http://www.cbsfilms.com/principals/terry_press

[35] http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/lists/terry-press-397478

[36] http://www.cbsfilms.com/principals/steven_friedlander

[37] http://www.cbsfilms.com/principals/rik_toulon

[38] http://www.cbsfilms.com/principals/maria_faillace

[39] http://www.movieinsider.com/c1533/cbs-films/

Entercom

Posted on September 18, 2012 by abrayas

by Alina Rayas

Photo Courtesy of logos.wika.com [1]

About Entercom :

Entercom is one of the five largest radio broadcasting companies in the United States, with 100 stations in 23 markets, including Seattle, Boston,San Francisco,Portland,Kansas City, Denver,and Sacramento.[2]

Map of All Entercom’s Radio Stations
Photo Courtesy of Entercom [3]

(click here for a list of all Entercom radio stations)[4}

Brief History:

Joseph Field
Founder of Entercom
Photo Courtesy of The Now Explosion[5]

In 1968, Entercom previously known as Entertainment Communications Inc was founded by lawyer Joseph Field. He quit law and purchased three radio stations . He believed that FM radio had the potential to grow and would surpass the popularity of AM radio. It was through his vision the company grew and in 1973 bought a radio station in Seattle, the first in the top 50 market. In 1980 Field expanded and began redesigning content and formats on its stations to attract larger audiences.[6]

In the early 1990’s, Entercom expanded due to less regulations, the Telecommunications Act of 1996, and a trade deal with Viacom. Entercom became the eighth largest radio broadcast company and the largest in the northwest with eight stations in Seattle and three in Portland.[6]

In 1998 and 1999 Entercom purchased radio stations in Boston, Sacramento ,Kansas City, and Portland. In 1999 Entercom acquired the Sinclair Broadcasting Group for $824.5 million with 46 radio stations in nine markets. Entercom now owned 88 radio stations in 17 markets becoming the fifth largest radio broadcasting company in the US. By 2001 Entercom had acquired 101 stations in 19 markets and brought in $333 million in revenues. Their major markets are Boston, Portland, Denver, Sacramento, and Seattle.[6]

Executive Officers:

Entercom Executives
Click on Photo to learn more
Photo Courtesy of Entercom[7]

Financials:

On Oct 26, 2012 Entercom released its financial results for the third quarter. The company has increased their net revenues for the quarter by 2% or 102.3 million. The company’s EBITDA grew 26% to $33.5 million. However the net income per share decreased 7% to $0.27. Entercom also managed to decrease station expenses drastically 9% or 63.6 million. Although the company’s results show increasing growth, President and CEO, David Field has his mind set on the next quarter. “Fourth quarter pacings look solid and we expect another quarter of solid growth in EBITDA.”[8]

Photo Courtesy of Google Finance [9]

Photo Courtesy of Google Finance[9]

(click here to read full financial data report)[10]

Recent News:

December 2012

Entercom’s New Website Layout
Photo Courtesy of Entercom[11]

12/4/12 – Introducing Entercom’s website makeover, the new website has many new features but its most notable is the incorporation of social media. The homepage has a live Twitter feed directly from all Entercom’s stations. The new layout also makes it easier for visitors to follow the company making Entercom more interactive and user-friendly. Browse through alphabetical links to the stations, buttons to stations apps, and social media buttons.[12]

WAAF’s Rise Up Against Hunger
Click Photo to Donate
Photo Courtesy of radioinfo.com[13]

12/4/12 – On December 4- 6^th 97.7/107.3 WAAF, radio stations owned by Entercom hosted an event named “WAAF’s Rise Up Against Hunger” the purpose of the event was to help raise money for multiple food banks in the Boston, Worcester, and New Hampshire areas. The event featured two radio personalities LB and Spanz who lived on an elevated boom crane for three days. In the past the station has hosted a series of outrageous stunts to encourage listeners to donate to local food banks.[14]

November 2012

Volunteers and Ronald Mcdonald work at 5th Annual “Light the House Radiothon” [15]
Photo Courtesy of KOSI-FM

11/7/12 – Denver radio station KOSI-FM, one of Entercom radio stations, encouraged its listeners to participate in the 5th Annual “Light the House Radiothon”. The fundraising event took place November 13 between 6 am and 6 pm. The donations from the radiothon went to patients at the Rocky Mountain Hospital for Children and family members who stay at The Ronald McDonald House. KOSI listeners had the opportunity to call the station to make donations and pledges while be attended by celebrity guests. Many local businesses also participated by writing checks to the hospital and charity.[16]

11/2/12– David Field, President and CEO of Entercom spoke on November 9, 2012 at the Wells Fargo Technology, Media and Telecom Conference along with Entercom’s Executive VP of Operations and CFO, Steve Fisher. The event was audio streamed on the Entercom website and a podcast version was available for ten days after the conference.[17]

(click here to watch a previous speech by CEO David Field)[18]

Jack Donlevie
General Counsel and Executive Vice President of Entercom
Photo Courtesy of Radioink.com[19]

11/1/12 – Jack Donlevie will retire from Entercom in 2015. Donlevie the General Counsel and Executive Vice President will begin scaling back starting in January of 2013 by relinquishing his role as General Counsel. Entercom CEO David Field credits Donlevie with the company’s success and commends him for his dedication and commitment for his 28 years of service to Entercom. Entercom’s Vice President and Corporate Counsel, Andrew Sutor, will succeed Donlevie as General Counsel in January 2013.[20]

October 2012

10/19/12 – KEZW Studio 1430 AM in Denver, Co is the largest radio station in the US to be powered with solar energy. Entercom Denver and Studio 1430 AM have made history by installing 40 solar panels shifting toward energy efficiency by using the power of renewable energy. This latest project supports Entercoms’s environmental 1Thing initiative for improving our world. This move has already dropped the station’s monthly energy costs by 80%.[21}

Studio 1430 Solar Panels [21]
Photo Courtesy of Entecom

10/2/12 – Over 30 Entercom employees from the corporate headquarters located in Philadelphia’s Bala Cynwyd, dedicated their time to reducing the companies carbon footprint. Employees planted 236 trees at Lower Merion Township’s Rolling Hill Park in Gladwyne in order to neutralize its carbon footprint emitted throughout the year. This environmental conscious company received input about what trees would suit the area and planting the trees in areas with gap or mature trees to benefit the park.[22]

September 2012

9/21/2012 – The National Association of Broadcasters Marconi Radio Awards held in Dallas awarded WEEI Sports Radio with the honor of Sports Station of the Year. This prestigious award recognized WEEI radio for its extraordinary on-air personalities and dedication to excellence. Entercom’s Jason Wolfe, vice president of programming and operations of Entercom Boston was elated to share the honor with WEEI Sports Radio.[23]

Taylor Swift Album Red [24]
Photo Courtesy of Big Machine Label Group

9/20/2012 – Big Machine Label Group has joined Entercom’s broadcast team in a bold move. Big Machine artists will now be able to partake in revenues associated with Entercom’s vast market. Entercom is hoping to build a new business model with the label industry and its band of artists. Big Machine will begin grow its digital business and its community of artists will benefit from Entecom’s terrestrial royalties. Top artists include Taylor Swift and Tim McGraw.[25]

ESPN Radio logo [26]
Photo Courtesy of logos.wikia.com

9/18/2012 – Entercom, ESPN radio, and Boston’s WEII 850 AM have teamed up together to provide top national sports talk and some of the finest play by play available. Highlights will include NBA, Major League Baseball, and college football and basketball’s latest. Dubbed “ESPN on WEII” listeners can access live audio stream through ESPNBoston.com and get the latest ESPN video content.[27]

9/12/2012 – Entercom has chosen WO Traffic, a part of WideOrbit Inc. to run all of its radio stations. This market includes over 100 of its stations throughout the US that covers 23 markets. WO Traffic will customize its product to serve Entercom with more effective and efficient tools.[28]

August 2012

Ric Bucher [29]
Co-host of The Drive
Photo Courtesy of All Access

8/29/2012 – San Francisco radio station, KGMZ-FM, owned by Entercom , signed ESPN analyst Ric Bucher (@RicBucher) to co-host the afternoon weekday show The Drive from 3-7pm. He will work alongside current host Brandon Tierney.(@BrandonTierney) Bucher’s enthusiasm is evident when he stated that signing on will “ feel like I am coming home.” He has signed on to a deal that will include multiple years at the station.[30]

Click to Listen Live [31]
Photo Courtesy of WRUF-FM

8/28/2012 – Entercom announced a seven year partnership with the University of Florida’s College of Journalism and Communications radio stations WRUF-AM and WRUF-FM. The partnership between Entercom and the UF’s College of Journalism and Communications creates a great opportunity for Entercom to increase its sale profile market while providing UF’s Journalism students with experience in multiple daily activities involved in Entercom’s local radio station.[32]

Sources:

[1] Entercom logo http://logos.wikia.com/wiki/Entercom_Communications

[2][7] Entercom About Us Page and Executive Profile Image http://www.entercom.com/about-us

[3] Entercom Radio Station Map Image http://www.entercom.com/contact

[4] Entercom Radio Station List http://www.entercom.com/radio-stations

[5] Image of Joseph Field http://thenowexplosion.com/

[6] History of Entercom http://www.fundinguniverse.com/company-histories/entercom-communications-corporation-history/

[8] Entercom Financials http://finance.yahoo.com/news/entercom-communications-corp-reports-third-115500443.html

[9] Google Finance Graphs http://www.google.com/finance?q=NYSE%3AETM&fstype=ii&ei=Y6PBUMCvBYPL0QGqxgE

[10] Financial Data Report PDF http://www.entercom.com/docs/ETM_financial_data_tables_Q3_12.pdf

[11] Image of New Entercom Wesite http://www.entercom.com/

[12] New Website Layout for Entercom http://www.radioink.com/article.asp?id=2585453

[13] Rise Up Againist Hunger Image http://www.radioinfo.com/

[14] Rise Up Against Hunger Article http://rbr.com/waaf-rises-up-against-hunger/

[15] Light the House Radiothon Image http://www.kosi101.com/pages/14788073.php

[16] Light the House Radiothon Article http://www.radioink.com/article.asp?id=2568797

[17] David Field to Talk at Wells Fargo Conference http://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/11/02/entercom-to-present-at-november-7-wells-fargo-tech/

[18] David Field Previous Speech link http://vimeo.com/7724884

[19] Image of Jack Donlevie http://www.radioink.com/article.asp?id=2565542&spid=24698

[20] Jack Donlevie Will Retire In 2015 Article http://finance.yahoo.com/news/entercom-announces-general-counsel-executive-210000872.html

[21] KEZW Studio 1430 AM Solar Panel Project Article and Image http://www.entercom.com/kezw-studio-1430am-unveils-historic-project-that-turns-sunbeams-into-airwaves

[22] Entercom goes Carbon Neutral Article http://mainlinemedianews.com/articles/2012/10/02/main_line_times/life/doc506b4c7dbec2d554528024.txt

[23] WEEI Wins Marconi Award Article http://www.weei.com/extras/press-release/weei-wins-prestigious-marconi-award-sports-station-year

[24] Image of Taylor Swift Album Red http://www.bigmachinelabelgroup.com/artist/Taylor_Swift

[25] Big Machine Label Group Signs Deal With Entercom Article http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/industry/record-labels/big-machine-label-group-signs-terrestrial-1007954192.story

[26] ESPN Radio logo http://logos.wikia.com/wiki/ESPN_Radio

[27] Entercom and ESPN Radio Article http://www.weei.com/extras/press-release/entercom-and-espn-radio-join-forces-launch-espn-weei-850-am

[28] WideOrbit Inc And Entercom Article http://www.wideorbit.com/company/news/74-news/press-a-news/767-wideorbit-traffic-and-crm-selected-by-entercom-to-manage-more-than-100-radio-stations-across-23-us-markets-

[29] Image of Ric Bucher http://www.allaccess.com/net-news/archive/story/109729/ric-bucher-named-afternoon-co-host-at-95-7-the-gam

[30] Ric Bucher Signs with 95.7 THE GAME Article h ttp://www.957thegame.com/95-7-The-Game-Signs-ESPN%C3%A2–s-Ric-Bucher/14110314

[31] Image of WRUF-FM http://www.country1037thegator.com/

[32] Entercom Partners with University of Florida http://www.jou.ufl.edu/news/2012/08/28/uf-and-entercom-communications-announce-new-economic-and-educational-partnership/

Cumulus Media Networks

Posted on September 18, 2012 by Lauren Rush

by Lauren Rush

Courtesy of All Access Music Group [1]

Executives

Photo courtesy of Cumulus Media Network [2]

Lewis W. Dickey, Jr. – Chairman, President and CEO of Cumulus Media. He co-founded the company in 1997 and became its CEO in June of 2000.

Photo courtesy of Cumulus Media Network [3]

Jonathan G. Pinch- Executive Vice-President and Co-Chief Operating Officer. He joined Cumulus in December 2000 and prior to this was the President of Clear Channel International Radio.

Photo courtesy of Cumulus Media Network [4]

John W. Dickey- Executive Vice-President and Co-Chief Operating Officer. He joined Cumulus in 1998.

Photo courtesy of Cumulus Media Network [5]

Joseph P. Hannan- Senior Vice-President, Treasurer and CFO. He joined Cumulus in April 2008.

Corporate offices:

3280 Peachtree Toad, NW Suite 2300

Atlanta, Georgia 30305

Ph. (404) 949-0700

Overview/History

Cumulus Media Network is a company that runs approximately 525 stations within 110 cities in the US¹. They also have more than 4,500 affiliate radio stations; through these means they reach around 140 listeners above the age of 12 every week². The company was founded in 1998 and works as developers of original content and as syndicators. As of 2011 Cumulus acquired Citadel Broadcasting Corporation, making Cumulus the largest pure-play radio company and the second largest operator of radio stations in the US^{1, 4}. The most famous programs and affiliates that Cumulus airs include: The Mike Huckabee show, A Better Life With Dr. Sanjay Gupta, Perez Nights Live, ABC News Radio, CBS Sports Radio, along with many others³. Furthermore, they now have many Spanish language programs broadcasting across the country. In addition, Cumulus operates national scale digital and mobile platforms with websites that deliver over 70 million page views per month as well as the third largest radio-streaming network, Cumulus Streaming

Courtesy of Billboard [6]

Network, in the US according to Triton Digital¹⁰. Also in 2011, Cumulus partnered with other top radio company, Clear Channel Media and Entertainment, to allow Cumulus network programs to be streamed on Clear Channels iHeartRadio app and website and for Clear Channel to give ad space to SweetJack, Cumulus’s daily deals program⁵. Cumulus prides itself on its local and national advertising space stating, “high-impact local marketing solutions…help our customers build strong brands and tap into over $4 trillion of local spending power”¹.

Finances

Cumulus as of Thursday December 6^th was selling on the New York Stock Exchange for $2.25 a share⁶. However, like many companies in the current economy has been on a steady decline since its being priced around $22 a share in 2004²⁰ On November 5^th Lew Dickey, CEO, announced the third quarter results, which showed an increase in net revenue, up 120.7%, or $1.50.6 million from $124.8 million to $275.4 million⁷. However, earnings declined 5.9% from $59.5 million in 2011 to $56 million this quarter. Dickey pointed out that this quarter was the first anniversary of the Cumulus/Citadel merger and that integration was mostly complete. Plus he also made reference to the fact they the company is hopeful in its “turnaround” of 10 under performing stations that equate to 100% of revenue loss that they believe will be restored to growth in revenue in 2013⁸.

Chart courtesy of Bloomberg [7]

Recent News

Courtesy of Top News UK [8]

In accordance with its new acquisition of Citadel Broadcasting Corporation, Cumulus’s stock price rose to $2.98 in September. This was the highest the stock has been since October 2009. CRT capital Group LCC commented, “the company’s cost-savings forecast with the acquisition may be ‘understated’”⁹.

Another development that happened in September was Marketron’s interface connection between its Network Connect service and Cumulus Media Networks’ traffic system¹⁰. This service automates and facilitates network orders and scheduling at an advanced technological level. Therefore allowing “valuable and efficient workflow” for affiliates and advertisers that work with Cumulus¹⁰.

Courtesy of The Conservative Beacon [9]

On October 17^th, Cumulus announced that it would be adding a new talk show, “Michael Savage’s The Savage Nation”, to air on stations across the country. Michael Savage is an author of 28 books and is ranked as the third most listened to radio talk show over broadcast and is ranked first via online streaming. Savage is a graduate from UC Berkeley. His show consists of politics, American conservative culture and values, and the ways in which these things are changing within the country. Cumulus hopes this acquisition will bring many new listeners and lead them toward their goal of having “radio’s most compelling mix of show hosts”¹¹.

The Savage Nation Full Show from November 26 [10]

Along with progressive talk shows and hosts, Cumulus is trying to compete in the sports format by dropping ESPN radio from 47 stations

Courtesy of CBS Radio [11]

and exclusively syndicating CBS Sports Radio¹² . Beginning on January 2^nd. CBS Sports Radio will air on approximately 100 stations, including the major markets of New York, Boston, and Dallas. These programs are estimated to reach 10 million households¹² . However, it is not clear how much of a success CBS Sports Radio will be because ESPN radio still has more station affiliates and total listeners. Plus NBC also launched a sports radio network this fall with NFL rights¹². However, Cumulus has signed a 12-year contract extension with the San Francisco 49ers football team. This allows the games to continue to be broadcast through 2023 on three Cumulus stations in the Bay Area¹⁰.

Damon Amendolara
Courtesy of The DA Show [12]

Two new changes that will be launching on CBS Sports Radio are “The D.A. Show” and three new hosts for the morning drive^{13, 14}. “The D.A. Show” was announced on November 16^th and will debut Wednesday January 2, 2013. It will be available in 12 major markets across the country, including Boston, Detroit, Dallas, Houston, Washington D.C., and more. The host will be Damon Amendolara who was a previous host on CBS Radio Boston’s WBZ-FM and has had many other positions within the Boston, Miami, and Kansas City areas. He is a graduate from Syracuse University¹³. The new hosts of the morning drive were

Tiki Barber
Courtesy of USA Today [13]

announced on November 26^thand they will include Tiki Barber, Brandon Tierney and Dana Jacobson. Barber was a professional football player with the New York Giants, while Tierney and Jacobson both already have prolific careers as broadcasters and reporters¹⁴.

Along with the third quarter reports Lew Dickey announced that Cumulus received $4.3 million from political ad revenue²³. However, Dickey was disappointed with this outcome since they had received $5 million from the same quarter in 2010. One explanation given for this downturn was the amount of experimentation with social media that occurred during this election, which was greater than ever before. Although Cumulus, and radio in general, did not profit too heavily from this seasons elections, Dickey told the Wall Street Journal that he believes “radio can do a better job of selling itself” in the future and “perhaps we can change [sales] in the next cycle²³.

Cumulus announced on November 26^th that JT Batson would be appointed as the company’s first Chief Revenue Officer. He would direct sales strategy and operations for their broadcast, commerce, events, publishing, and digital platforms. Batson’s previous positions include: Chief Strategy Officer at Mediaocean, an advertising systems provider,

JT Batson
Courtesy of Radio Ink [14]

and facilitation of the merger between Donovan Data Systems and Mediabank. He also worked on marketing for Mozilla Firefox. Batson is a graduate from Stanford University¹⁵. Prior to this major announcement, on November 13^th, Cumulus also announced promotions of Bob Raleigh and Davey Morris to Corporate Program Directors¹⁴.

Along with these corporate announcements Cumulus made some regional changes as well this fall. In September, they launched a new Adult Hits station in Atlanta¹⁶ as well as flipping a Modern Rock station to Active Rock format, also in Atlanta ¹⁷. In October, Cumulus published that it is purchasing WFME-FM in the New York metro area but has not released format plans¹⁸. Plus, Ann McManus was named the Regional Vice President of Northeast Cumulus markets on October 18^th. Markets included are: Bridgeport, New London, Westchester and Poughkeepsie. Some disappointing news came to Cumulus on November 9^th when Steve Borneman, their New York Market Manager moved to Clear Channel Media and Entertainment¹⁹, the only company more prolific in radio than Cumulus and their fiercest competitor. Lastly Scott Jameson replaced Dave Hamilton on December 3^rd as the OM of Cumulus Media’s Minneapolis three-station market²¹.

Most recently many of Cumulus’ AC stations across the country have switched to all Christmas music formats for the holiday season. They will remain on this format 24/7 through December 25^{th 10}.

The Future

Looking towards the future Cumulus is very happy with its new acquisition of Citadel and believes that it will remain a huge player in the radio industry for years to come because of this deal. Dickey, comments that Cumulus is one of really only three major radio corporations in the business and they are looking to expand on numerous platforms in the months to come. Regarding their partnership with Clear Channel, Cumulus is excited about the outcome of more EasyJack airtime and increased efforts towards improving ways of bringing better advertising to consumers and advertisers²². Cumulus’ CEO also does not believe that the radio business will suffer substantial losses in the future because 93% of the population is continuing to listen to radio ^{2, 22}.

Any Future for Radio? [14]

References

¹http://www.cumulus.com/local-radio-2/- Company overview (local).

²http://www.cumulus.com/cumulus-media-network/- Company overview.

³ http://www.abcradio.com/Article.asp?id=341544- List of Cumulus programs.

⁴http://www.allaccess.com/net-news/archive/story/96553/it-s-official-cumulus-announces-completion-of-cita- Acquisition of Citadel Broadcasting Corp.

⁵http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/05/business/media/clear-channel-and-cumulus-form-daily-deal-alliance.html

⁶www.bloomberg.com/quote/CMLS:US/- Stock profile.

⁷http://www.cumulus.com/cmls/– Third Quarter Report given by Cumulus Media Network on November 5^th.

⁸http://www.4-traders.com/CUMULUS-MEDIA-INC-8822/news/Cumulus-Media-Inc-Cumulus-Reports-Third-Quarter-2012-Results-15471263/

⁹ http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-09-19/american-water-jazz-pharmaceuticals-western-gas-u-s-equity-preview.html – Rise in stock price in September.

¹⁰http://news.radio-online.com/cgi-bin/rol.exe/radio_news_search – Cumulus joins Marketron’s Network Connect, Cumulus Names Two New Corporate PDs, Cumulus signs extension with San Francisco 49ers, Triton Digital findings, Christmas format.

¹¹http://adsales.cumulusmedianetworks.com/content/press-release-101712 – Press release given by Cumulus Media Network on “The Savage Nation” on October 17^th.

¹²http://www.nypost.com/p/news/business/espn_radio_sacked_H7pmVZM058sECDWVcQ6sRM- Cumulus/CBS Sports Radio deal.

¹³http://www.cbsradio.com/single-press/1876 -Press release given by CBS Sports Radio on November 16^th.

¹⁴ http://radioinsight.com/blog/headlines/79745/cbs-sports-radio-names-morning-show/ – Press release given by CBS Sports Radio on November 26^th.

¹⁵ http://news.radio-online.com/cgi-bin/rol.exe/radio_news_search – Press release given by Cumulus Media Network on JT Batson on November 26, 2012.

¹⁶ http://www.fmqb.com/article.asp?id=2526179 – New hit station in Atlanta

¹⁷http://www.fmqb.com/article.asp?id=2524521 – Flips stations in Atlanta

¹⁸http://www.fmqb.com/article.asp?id=2553572 -Purchase in New York market.

http://www.fmqb.com/article.asp?id=2555248 – Ann McManus new RVP of Northeast.

¹⁹http://www.fmqb.com/article.asp?id=2571039 – Steve Borneman moves to Clear Channel.

²⁰http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cumulus_Media

²¹http://www.fmqb.com/article.asp?id=2586001 – Minneapolis market

²²http://video.cnbc.com/gallery/?video=3000045781 play=1#eyJ2aWQiOiIzMDAwMDQ1NzgxIiwiZW5jVmlkIjoiT3pUVGFZd3JNekdyRWRucn pPbGdnZz09IiwidRhYiI6InRyYW5zY3JpcHQiLCJ2UGFnZSI6MSwiZ05hdiI6WyLCoExhdG VzdCBWaWRlbyJdLCJnU2VjdCI6IkFMTCIsImdQYWdlIjoiMSIsInN5bSI6IiIsInNlYXJjaCI6IiJ9

²³http://radioworld.com/article/dickey-%E2%80%98radio%E2%80%99s-share-of-political-dropped%E2%80%99/216214 – Political ad revenue.

Image and Video References

[1] http://www.allaccess.com/net-news/archive/story/111718/more-cumulus-media-networks-affiliates-this-week

[2] http://www.cumulus.com/leadership/lewis-w-dickey-jr-2/

[3] http://www.cumulus.com/leadership/jonathan-g-pinch/

[4] http://www.cumulus.com/leadership/john-w-dickey/

[5] http://www.cumulus.com/leadership/joseph-p-hannan/

[6]http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/industry/digital-and-mobile/clear-channel-cumulus-announce-streaming-1005616182.story

[7] http://www.bloomberg.com/quote/CMLS:US/chart/

[8] http://topnews.co.uk/21458-citadel-broadcasting-corp-files-bankruptcy-protection

[9]http://theconservativebeacon.com/the-conservative-beacon-on-the-savage-nation

[10] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hN4ctWMq9Ks

[11] http://www.cbspressexpress.com/cbs-radio/releases/view?id=32726

[12] http://thedashow.com/about/

[13]http://content.usatoday.com/communities/entertainment/post/2010/04/tiki-barber-takes-the-heat-off-jesse-james-tiger-woods/1#.UMIlEERCWfs

[14] http://www.radioink.com/article.asp?id=2581128&spid=24698

[15] http://video.cnbc.com/gallery/?video=3000045781&play=1#eyJ2aWQiOiIzMDAwMDQ1NzgxIiwiZW5jVmlkIjoiT3pUVGFZd3JNekdy RWRucnpPbGdnZz09IiwidlRhYiI6InRyYW5zY3JpcHQiLCJ2UGFnZSI6MSwiZ05hdiI6WyLCoExhdGVzdCBWaWRlbyJdL CJnU2VjdCI6IkFMTCIsImdQYWdlIjoiMSIsInN5bSI6IiIsInNlYXJjaCI6IiJ9

Clear Channel Communications

Posted on September 18, 2012 by grsanson

by [Gabriel Sansone]

Clear Channel Communications Logo [1]

Who is Clear Channel?

Clear Channel Communications is a global entertainment and media company from San Antonio, Texas, that specializes in digital and radio platforms, as well as outdoor advertising. Clear Channel’s radio division, Clear Channel Media and Entertainment, reaches 239 million monthly listeners in the United States, giving it the largest reach of any television or radio outlet in the country.[2] Clear Channel Media and Entertainment has holdings in 150 cities and owns 850 radio stations,[3] which can be heard via AM/FM transmission, Sirius/XM satellite radio, HD digital radio, the Internet, mobile applications on smartphones and iPads, and navigation systems from Garmin and TomTom. Other properties of Clear Channel Media and Entertainment include Premiere Radio Networks, the number one radio network in the country with 90 radio programs in syndication, and Katz Media Group, the leading media representation company in the U.S., with over 500 television and 4,000 radio stations.[2] Clear Channel Media and Entertainment also owns iHeartRadio, a free digital radio service that allows users to listen to more than 1,500 Live Stations.[2] Clear Channel Media and Entertainment is run by Chairman and CEO John Hogan, who graduated from Lake Forest College in 1979.[4]

Clear Channel’s History

Clear Channel Communications was founded in 1972 by Lowry Mays and Red McCombs as the San Antonio Broadcasting Company, and by 1984 Clear Channel had six AM and six FM stations in seven different markets. Clear Channel first entered the television business in 1988, and by 1995 was in control of 43 radio stations and 16 television stations in 32 different markets. With the passage of the Telecommunications Act of 1996, the company acquired 49 new radio stations that covered 20 markets. In 1997, Clear Channel acquired Eller Media Company, helping it to become a leader in outdoor advertising. By 1999, Clear Channel was ranked by The Wall Street Journal as the fifth best-performing stock of the 1990s, and today, under the leadership of CEO Bob Pittman, Clear Channel continues to be one of the leaders in both the entertainment and advertising industries.[5]

What’s Clear Channel Doing Today?

September

On September 27^th, Clear Channel announced that it had struck a deal with Glassnote Entertainment Group to pay sound recording performance royalties to artists signed to the Glassnote record label, whether their songs are played via digital media or over the air.[6] The revolutionary deal, similar to one Clear Channel

Glassnote Entertainment Group Logo [8]

forged with the Big Machine Label Group in June, allows the label to receive a (undisclosed) percentage of Clear Channel’s digital and terrestrial advertising revenue, as opposed to just receiving revenue on a per-play basis.[7] Clear Channel CEO Bob Pittman released a statement to the press, saying that the deal not only allows for Glassnote Entertainment Group artists to participate in Clear Channel’s radio revenues, but “it also creates a vibrant new digital radio business model that we believe will provide more money for the artists and the labels and more digital choices for the consumer.”[7] Popular Glassnote artists that will benefit from this deal include Mumford and Sons, Childish Gambino, and Phoenix.

October

On October 25^th, Clear Channel announced that the company successfully completed a private debt exchange of $1,999, 815,000 for new notes that are worth the same principal amount but due in 2019.[9] As Clear Channel is currently in almost $20 billion in debt,[10] this debt exchange is a step in the right direction for providing the company with “greater flexibility to manage our debt maturities in the future,” says company Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Tom Casey.[9] The offering was reportedly highly oversubscribed, which shows that debtholders are prepared to allow Clear Channel more years to repay some of its debt.[11]

Throughout the week of October 27^th, Clear Channel dismissed dozens of local radio D.J.’s across the country in an effort to revamp their 600 U.S. regional stations. In a company statement, spokeswoman Wendy Goldberg said the firings came about because Clear Channel rethought their regional market strategy and “reinvented our operations in those markets in a way that will let us…succeed using all of Clear Channel’s resources, scale and talent.” However, the layoffs proved controversial, as many media reform groups believe that Clear Channel is sacrificing radio’s integrity by replacing locally produced programs with less costly shows that are syndicated nationally.[10]

On October 29^th, Clear Channel announced that it had stuck a deal with another record label, Naxos. Naxos is America’s largest digital distributor of independent

Naxos Logo [14]

classical music, with over 30,000 albums from various classical labels, including 6,500 on its own labels.[12] The deal is different from Clear Channel’s previous deals with Big Machine and Glassnote, as it only permits Clear Channel to pay Naxos for digital, not terrestrial, radio play.[13] The agreement is representative of Clear Channel’s current desire to continue to help radio permeate the digital world, and as part of the deal Naxos will assist with iHeartRadio’s digital classical station, “Classica.”[12]

November

On November 2^nd, Clear Channel released their quarterly earnings report for the third quarter of 2012, which ended on September 30^th of 2012. Clear Channel Media and Entertainment revenues experienced a 1%, $7 million dollar increase in comparison to the third quarter of 2011. This increase is due in large part to a 3% growth in radio revenues, which occurred as a result of increased national advertising, the growing popularity of digital radio service iHeartRadio, and the iHeartRadio Music Festival.[15]

On November 20^th, Clear Channel announced that its popular digital radio service, iHeartRadio, has been downloaded more than 135 million times and has over 20

iHeartRadio Logo [17]

million registered users. These numbers are particularly impressive, considering that iHeartRadio was launched a mere 13 months ago. In a company statement, Clear Channel Media and Entertainment Chairman/CEO John Hogan said “iHeartRadio has reinvented the digital radio experience and is a key element of how Clear Channel continues to reshape the media and entertainment industry.”[16]

On November 29^th, it was announced that innovative social commerce web site Lockerz made an agreement with iHeartRadio. Lockerz is a website on which users can discover the latest fashion trends and top brands, receive points (called PTZ) for sharing images and videos from the web, and use their PTZ for big discounts on fashion and electronic products.[18] Now, iHeartRadio’s 1,500 live and user-created custom stations are available on Lockerz, and members can earn PTZ for sharing and adding their favorite music and radio stations. Clear Channel hopes the agreement will help iHeartRadio to continue to grow in popularity. “Lockerz has built an incredibly passionate and social user base and is a great distribution platform for us,” said Brian Lakamp, President of Digital for Clear Channel Media and Entertainment.[19]

What’s Next for Clear Channel?

Clear Channel is helping produce the 12-12-12 concert, a show that will take place in New York City on December 12, 2012, with all proceeds from ticket purchases going to the Robin Hood

Poster for the 12-12-12 concert, featuring some of the notable artists who will be playing at the show [20]

Relief Fund to assist the victims of Hurricane Sandy. The concert has already secured distribution to over one billion people via various mediums to maximize awareness and relief efforts, and in a joint statement, event producers James Dolan (Chairman of The Madison Square Garden Company), John Sykes (President of Clear Channel Entertainment Enterprises) and Harvey Weinstein (Co-Founder and Chairman of The Weinstein Company) said the concert and its media distributors “will enable us to create a tremendous and unprecedented fundraising effort on a global scale to benefit the victims of this devastating storm.”[21]

Tickets to the show are currently available on Ticketmaster

Because of its current debt situation, Clear Channel could be experiencing some financial turmoil in the future. According to a Moody’s report released during the week of December 5^th, while Clear Channel should be able to manage the amount of debt they have due through 2015, they could very well be unprepared to deal with the $10 billion of debt that will be due in 2016. Moody’s senior analyst Scott Van den Bosch writes that “the company’s ability to avoid restructuring will be challenging as debt levels will exceed our expected asset value. The possibility of a restructuring or a distressed exchange remains high…in our downside scenario the company is likely to face a restructuring of its balance sheet in excess of $16 billion in debt.” It is possible that Clear Channel will be able to avoid the restructuring, but it is going to “depend on the receptivity of the financial markets and moderate underlying interest rates.” So, in the future, Clear Channel will be very sensitive to changes in the economy.[22]

Contact Clear Channel

Wish to contact Clear Channel Communications?

Web: http://www.clearchannel.com

Mail: 200 E. Basse Rd. San Antonio, TX, 78209.

Phone: (210) – 822 – 2828

Sources

1.http://www.mxdwn.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/clear_channel-logo.gif

2.http://www.clearchannel.com/MediaAndEntertainment/

3.http://www.cjr.org/resources/?c=clearchannel

4.http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/people/person.asp?personId=3155827&ticker=CCMO

5.http://www.clearchannel.com/Corporate/PressRelease.aspx?PressReleaseID=1166&p=hidden

6.http://www.radioinfo.com/tag/glassnote-entertainment-group/

7.http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/clear-channel-glassnote-deal-royalties-radio-374870

8.http://api.ning.com/files/hlQ-vCRmc7HLq7s2h095TW2ASni-7sqYnVv*HTSsNnP*DxoNt4pidwK7SO6S–ofSU6ONB9KxxSHctjKIrDFxMgiYnJq87GE/GlassnoteLogo.jpg

9.http://online.wsj.com/article/PR-CO-20121025-913636.html?mod=crnews

10.http://mediadecoder.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/10/27/clear-channel-cuts-d-j-s-across-the-country/

11.http://blogs.wsj.com/deals/2012/10/25/clear-channels-well-received-debt-exchange-creates-flexibility/?KEYWORDS=Clear+Channel

12.http://www.radioink.com/article.asp?id=2562695&spid=24698

13.http://mediadecoder.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/10/29/clear-channel-goes-classical-sort-of/

14.http://www.europadisc.co.uk/images/additional/Naxos%20Logo%20Square%20200×200.jpg

15.http://www.ccmediaholdings.com/documents/Quarterly/CC-Media-Holdings-Q3-2012-Earnings-Release.pdf

16.http://www.fmqb.com/article.asp?id=2577966

17.http://images.wikia.com/logopedia/images/6/68/Iheart_radio_logo.jpg

18.http://lockerz.com/101

19.http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/lockerz-announces-innovative-agreement-with-iheartradio-181421021.html

20.http://www.msgsoundcheck.com/content/dam/msgsoundcheck/featuredArticles/600x400_121212_soundcheck.jpg

21.http://www.clearchannel.com/MediaAndEntertainment/PressRelease.aspx?PressReleaseID=3162

22.http://blogs.barrons.com/incomeinvesting/2012/12/05/moodys-10b-of-debt-due-in-2016-could-trip-up-clear-channel/?mod=BOL_hpp_blog_ii

CBS Radio/Infinity Broadcasting

Posted on September 18, 2012 by eapanett

CBS Radio – Courtesy of SportsMediaJournal.com

by Elgin Panetto

The media conglomerate known today as CBS Corporation Inc. was created in 1927, when a talent agent named Arthur Judson started his own radio network in order to showcase his own roster. He named his newly created network United Independent Broadcasters, but after a crippling amount of debt was accrued sold it to a man named William Paley for $400,000. [1] Columbia Broadcasting System, or CBS, has gone on to become one of the largest media companies in the world, with ventures in TV, Film, and Radio. In 2006 Viacom Inc., under the leadership of Sumner Redstone, decided to break up its entities to discontinue the age of media conglomerates and improve stock performance. During the split previously named Infinity Broadcasting, with their 179 stations at the time, was renamed CBS Radio and became a part of CBS Corporation under the leadership of Les Moonves. [2]

Company Overview:

CBS Radio currently holds 127 major market radio stations in 28 major markets throughout the United States of America. CBS Radio station formats run the full gamut including news, sports, talk, rock, country, Top 40, classic hits and urban. [3]

CBS Radio’s radio personalities attract almost 70 million weekly listeners. One of CBS Radio’s greatest strengths is their attention to on-air talent, in an age of radio where more automation usually means more dollars. In a recent interview with CBS Radio CEO Dan Mason, he explains the importance CBS Radio puts on the personalities who speak between playing music. “I don’t think the temptation is there to extract talk to add more commercials, the temptation is there to extract talk and thinking that was the clear pathway to get ratings. I believe that there is a fine line, a balance, that can’t be tilted to one side or another…” The rest of that interview with Mark Ramsey can be seen below:

CBS Radios Dan Mason on Radio’s Brands and its Digital Future from Mark Ramsey on Vimeo.

As stated before, CBS Radio stations can be found in 28 different major markets. In many of those markets CBS Radio finds itself with the #1 total rating. The list below, provided in the CBS Corporation 3^rd quarter 2012 Investor Newsletter, shows CBS Radio’s strong performance regarding revenue in some of the largest markets in the country.

CBS Radio Revenue Ranking in Top 10 Markets
New York No. 1
Los Angeles No. 2
Chicago No. 1
San Francisco No. 1
Dallas No. 3
Houston No. 2
Philadelphia No. 1
Atlanta No. 2
Washington, D.C. No. 3
Boston No. 1
[4]

In each of those markets, CBS Radio’s high arching influence over both music and talk format stations can be easily seen. Below are just some of CBS Radio’s most influential channels across the United States.

WCBS-F in NYC
WCBS in NYC
WINS in NYC
KRTH in LA
KROQ-F in LA
KCBS in SF
KYW in Philly

[5]

Executives

CBS Radio has been led by President and CEO Dan Mason for a total of 12 years. Mason started his position at the helm of CBS Radio in 1995 and continued until 2002. After a brief hiatus he returned as CEO in April of 2007. Mason has championed CBS Radio’s industry leading foray into the digital realm. As a keystone speaker at the 2011 RAIN (Radio and Internet Newsletter) Summit Dan Mason talked heavily about CBS Radio’s entrance into digital media, pointing out CBS Radio’s involvement streaming through Radio.com and Last.FM. He also noted that the profits are not coming yet, but success through digital streaming services will come in the long term. [6] Due to his outstanding leadership of CBS Radio, Dan Mason was awarded the National Radio Award in 2012 by the National Association of Broadcasters. [7]

Dan Mason – Courtesy of CBSRadio.com

Finances

CBS Radio’s performance, as a subsidiary company of CBS Corporation Inc., attributes to the stock performance of CBS Corporation Inc.. At the close of the New York Stock Exchange on December 5, 2012 CBS Corporation Inc. was trading at $35.43 a share. [8]

CBS Radio Stock – Courtesy of marketwatch.com

With $5.33 Billion of reported gross income in 2011, CBS Radio saw an increase of $.82 Billion over their reported gross income the previous year. After a steep drop from 2007 to 2009, CBS Radio has steadily increased gross income to the point of surpassing their 2007 mark. [8]

Recent Events

There have been many news-worthy moves by CBS Radio recently, whether it be format changes, new stations, acquisitions, or partnerships.

WODS 103.3 Format Change

At the end of the summer, WODS-FM in Boston changed formats. The switch moved the station from playing hits from the 60s-80s to yet another contemporary hits radio station, or CHR format. CBS Radio Market Manager in Boston Mark Hannon stated, “When looking at the habits of Boston radio listeners, it is clear the music most favored by the biggest group of people is contemporary hit music.” [9] The most recent ratings made available by stationratings.com have WODS-FM as the 12th most popular radio station in the Boston market. [5]

CBS Radio News receives Murrow Award

This past October the RTDNA (Radio Television Digital News Association) awarded CBS Radio News its fourth consecutive Edward R. Murrow Award. CBS Radio News was given the award due to excellence in broadcast and online journalism. At the awards CBS Radio News correspondent Cami McCormick, who was injured while reporting in Afghanistan, accepted the award for all of CBS Radio news. [10]

Edward R. Murrow Award – Courtesy of HuffingtonPost.com

CBS Radio steps up Hurricane Sandy relief efforts

In the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, and the immense damage done to the east coast, CBS Radio used its vast resources and connections in the Music Industry to organize celebrity endorsements for donations to the American Red Cross. Some of music’s biggest stars such as Usher, Katy Perry, Carrie Underwood, Keith Urban, and Kenny Chesney recorded messages imploring audiences for donations. Usher’s public service announcement can be heard HERE. [11]

CBS re-ups contract with the Chicago Bears

For 13 years WBBM Newsradio in Chicago has been the exclusive provider of Chicago Bears live play-by-play announcement. The Chicago Bears have granted CBS Radio an extension of the companies exclusive rights to do the football team’s radio broadcast. The Bears have one of the largest fan bases in the entire sport, a size reflected by the astounding five CBS Radio stations that will simulcast each and every Bears game. [12]

Chicago Bears – Courtesy of RadioInk.com

CBS Radio buys 101.9 WRXP in New York

In early November CBS Radio announced the purchase of 101.9FM in New York, NY from Merlin Media for the sum of $75 Million Dollars. CBS Radio purchased the station in order to begin simulcasting WFAN on the higher definition 101.9FM. WFAN became the first ever all-sports talk station in 1987, and has pioneered the now insanely popular and lucrative 24/7 sports radio news cycle. WFAN houses many of sports radio’s biggest stars, including Boomer & Carton, Mike Francesa, and Joe Benigno. It also is the sole broadcaster of the Super Bowl champion New York Giants, New York Mets, Brooklyn Nets, and New Jersey Devils. This move by CBS Radio signals a response to ESPN NY’s recent decision to simulcast on 98.7FM. [13]

WFAN Logo – Courtesy of newyork.cbslocal.com

CBS Radio announces launch of CBS Sports Radio Network

Perhaps the biggest news in the radio industry in the past few months has been CBS Radio’s announcement of CBS Sports Radio. In their press release the company called the newly created station, “the largest major market sports radio network in the nation.” The network will launch on January 2, 2013 in at least eight stations full time. At the time of the announcement the station was reported to be carried part time in 14 more stations, and through a distribution deal with Cumulus Media Networks an additional 47 Cumulus stations. [14] Since then it’s been announced that the station will be on around 100 stations, with a reach of about 10 million households. While its estimated that ESPN Radio will continue to dominate with 350 full time stations in 30 million households, Dan Mason stated, “ESPN affiliates are in small markets. Maybe you find that adds up to a lot of audience.” [15]

CBS Sports Radio – Courtesy of CBSPressExpress.com

Footnotes

[1] Museum of Broadcast Communications

[2] Infinity Broadcasting to Become CBS Radio

[3] http://www.cbsradio.com

[4] CBS 3rd Quarter 2012 Investor Newsletter

[5]http://www.stationratings.com/Default.aspx

[6] Dan Mason at RAIN Summit

[7]Dan Mason to Receive National Radio Award

[8]http://www.marketwatch.com/investing/stock/cbs/financials

[9] WODS Changes Format

[10]CBS Radio Takes Murrow Award

[11]CBS Assembles Big Names for Storm Relief

[12]CBS Extends Contract With the Bears

[13]CBS Purchases WRXP

[14]CBS Launching Sports Radio Network

[15]CBS Sports Radio to Compete with ESPN Radio

Trinity Broadcasting Network

Posted on September 18, 2012 by ecthom01

by Eli Thomas

Courtesy of tbn.org

Courtesy of The Orange County Register

Key People

CEO/ President/Board member/Founder: Paul Crouch (left)

Vice-President/Founder/Director of programming: Jen Crouch (center)

(Pictured: Brittany Koper, right)

History:

Trinity Broadcasting Network was started by Paul Crouch, Jan Crouch, Jim Bakker, and Tammy Faye Bakker in 1973 on the rented airtime Santa Ana California UHF TV station. The station almost went bankrupt in the first two days, however the channel slowly began to spread to cable and satellite distribution. Jim Bakker left TBN to start Praise the Lord, which collapsed in 1987 due to a sexual harassment and embezzlement scandal involving Jim Bakker [2]. TBN acquired many TV Networks to create its “family” of eighteen networks that span the globe [3].

About/Assets:

Trinity Broadcasting Network, the world’s largest Christian television network, has five thousand television stations operating on cable and thirty-three satellites. It is a non-profit religious organization that provides twenty-four hour religious programming for Protestant, Catholic, and Messanic Jewish – a combination Evangelical Christian theology and Jewish practice – faiths. It boasts eighteen networks that operate in thirteen different countries and continents including, Europe, the Middle East, Central Africa, Russia, India, Southwest Asia, and Brazil. The Christian programs include Gospel music, Live coverage of major Christian events, talk shows, and services of different churches in America. This also includes children’s programming such as Smile of a Child, offered in various languages across the globe as well. [3]

coutesy of fimbaza.net

TBN has several assets including Trinity Music USA located in Trinity City, Hendersonville, Tenessee. This includes a 2,000 seat Trinity Music City Church. TBN also has virtual reality theaters, two more of which they plan to build in Hawaii and Jerusalem, where they play famous ministry services and movies produced by TBN. TBN has produced twenty movies such as “The Revolutionary” (1995) and “The Revolutionary II” (1996), which are about the life of Jesus Christ, through its production company Gener8xion Entertaintment, which was headed by Matthew Crouch until mid 2010 and is currently under the direction of Jan Crouch. [5] [22]

Revolutionary (1995) produced by Gener8xion Entertainment. Image courtesy of Amazon.com

TBN also has The Holy Land Experience, a family-related park in Orlando, Florida designed for people to experience Jesus Christ’s life. It is ranked 78 out of 156 of the attractions in Orlando by Trip Advisor, on which it has a 3.5 out of 5 rating [6].

TBN has a program for prison inmates called Second Chance in which they show them TBN programming in order “…to offer America’s inmates a second chance to make good choices by providing positive, life-affirming television programming 24 hours a day.” [8] The program was started in 2007 and its most recent addition was installed in California’s San Quentin State Prison on August 20, 2012. The program is currently installed in prisons in thirty-one different states. The satellite dish, equipment, installation and broadcast is all donated by TBN. The program offers the TBN station as well as The Church Channel, which provides twenty-four hour sermons, as well as JCTV, the network for viewers ages 12-29, and Enlace, TBN’s Spanish-language religion channel. [9]

Recent News

November 2012

courtesy of enlace.org

Nov. 25; Enlace, TBN’s Spanish-Language religious station, taped its annual Noche De Paz (Night of Glory) Christmas program, a Christmas music event. This will be broadcasted during Christmas week on both DirecTV Latin America, and Enlace in Latin America and the U.S. [12]
Nov. 30; Enlace’s Facebook page reached one million likes [13]

October 2012

Oct. 10: TBN purchased London Production Facility near Wimbledon. TBN states that it will use this production facility for its London chapter of TBN Europe, and other international TBN networks. Dr. Raafat Girgis stated that the new facility will help TBN reach out to Muslims. [14]

Oct. 11: Scott Strapp of Creed will be on the program Praise the Lord on the TBN netowrk, and talk about his book “Sinner’s Creed” and how he changed from a rock star’s lifestyle to being saved by jesus. [15]

September 2012

Sept. 28: TBN announced that its program Second Chance, that donates programming to prisons for inmates, will start a pilot program providing TBN’s JCTV (Jesus Christ Television) to one of West Virginia’s twelve juvenile correctional halls. [16]

Sept 26: TBN purchased property for a studio in Jerusalem. The studio space will be used for producing programming for and broadcasting TBN shalom, a program started in TBN Russia, that will soon be based in Jerusalem. [17]

Sept 24: TBN won a bronze Stevie lifestyle award in the American Business Awards for their mobile app, iTBN, which allows for access to all 18 of their networks as well as on demand programming. The Stevie award is a business award with multiple categories extended to sixty nations that was started in 2002. [18] [19]

Finances:

Courtesy of Ministry Watch.

TBN is a religious non-profit organization that made over $200 million in the year 2010 and

Courtesy of Ministry Watch.

had $92.5 million in donations. It is classified as a 501(3) (c), a religious non-profit, by the IRS. Independent non-profits such as Ministry Watch keep records on TBN’s fiscal year in order to advise possible donors. Ministry Watch has given TBN an “F” in their “donor alert” section of the TBN profile due to a transparency issue from conflict in the Crouch family and information released about the abuse of donor funds and TBN finances in general. [20]

This has erupted from the lawsuit Paul and Jen Crouch’s granddaughter, Brittany Koper, 26, who was in charge of TBN’s finances, has launched on the founders of TBN. Paul and Jen Crouch have responded by suing Brittany Koper for drawing attention away from her and her husband’s own financial “sins”. Mr. and Mrs. Koper borrowed money from TBN for a down payment on a house, bought a condo, and extended a $650,000 loan to her uncle. Although all the loans have clear repayment terms with Paul Crouch Sr.’s signature,

Brittany Koper in front of her grandmother’s home in Newport Beach, CA. Courtesy of The New York Times.

TBN claims that Crouch’s signature was forged. In addition there are reporter letters from fall of 2011, when these loans were made, where Brittany Koper apologizes for lying and loaning herself company money. Mrs. Koper and her husband, Michael Koper, who also worked at TBN managing airtime sales, were fired from TBN after the network accused them of also stealing $1.3 million from the company for purchases of real estate and expensive cars. [21] [22]

Janice Crouch’s home in a gated community in Newport Beach, CA. worth $5.6 million. Courtesy of The New York Times.

Mr. and Mrs. Crouch each have a mansion one block away from each other in Newport Beach, CA, paid for by donations and tax-free revenue from TBN. Ms. Crouch’s mansion is worth $5.6 million. Mrs. Crouch rarely slept in the house, preferring a large company house near TBN’s amusement park, The Holy Land Experience, which Mrs. Crouch runs on the side. There were many empty houses owned by TBN in Texas, private corporate jets worth $8 and $49 million each bought and used for personal use by the founders of TBN, and a mobile home purchased supposedly for the use as an office, worth $100,000 that was actually used by Mrs. Crouch solely for her two Maltese dogs. [21] [22]

Brittany Koper’s Ordination. Many of the TBN employees were ordained as ministers to avoid paying social services and justifying giving family members houses often listed as “parsonages”. Courtesy of the New York Times

A former executive of TBN, Troy Clements, who was sales director and eventually personnel director until he resigned in 2008, reported Mrs. Crouch renting two adjacent rooms in the Loews Portofino Bay Hotel from 2008 to 2009 while they were remodeling the amusement park The Holy Land Experience. One was for herself, the other for her Maltese dogs and clothes. Matthew Crouch (son of Paul and Jen Crouch) racked up a food bill of $300,000 in one year alone, from “business dinners”. Mr. Clements, and several other TBN employees, reported that Mr. and Mrs. Crouch attributed these extravagances to them doing the lords work. A TBN spokesperson also stated that the executive salaries, established by an independent consulting firm, were $400,000 for Mr. Crouch as president, and $365,000 for Mrs. Crouch, as vice president, in 2010. [21] [22]

Colby May, TBN’s lawyer, denied all of these claims. Mr. May stated that all of the houses bought for Matthew Crouch, and those in Texas and Newport, were used for housing traveling employees and guests. The house that Mrs. Koper and other ex-employees of TBN claimed was for Matthew Crouch, was reported by Mr. May to have been a house used for filming the TBN program “Smile of a Child”. Mr. May addressed the extravogant spending as being necessary “…to convey the ministry’s position of accomplishment.”[21] [22]

Being a 501(3)(c) TBN could potentially loose tens of millions from the lawsuit should the label as a religious non-profit be retracted by the IRS. TBN will therefore be unable to accept any donations (of which they accepted $92.5 million of in 2010) and will have to pay taxes on all income they receive ($175.5 million total revenue in 2010). [21]

References

[0] TBN logo http://tbnnewswire.com/tbn/

[1] Paul and Jan Crouch http://taxdollars.ocregister.com/2012/05/15/extravagant-spending-a-pervasive-issue-for-trinity-internal-review-says/154873/paul-and-jan-crouch/

[2] http://broadcasting.wikia.com/wiki/Trinity_Broadcasting_Network

[3] http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/156936-TV_s_Religious_Revival.php

[4] Gener8xion Entertainment logo http://www.filmbaza.net/indexes/index-logos/g-g_logos.htm

[5] http://www.imdb.com/company/co0059564/

[5.1] http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41N0YKQZ7YL._SL500_AA300_.jpg

[6] http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g34515-d318444-Reviews-Holy_Land_Experience-Orlando_Florida.html

[7] http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=Na5Z_XcrrUg

[8] http://www.tbnsecondchance.org/mission.php

[9] http://tbnnewswire.com/tbn/second-chance/

[10] http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=nqQBTV0A_rA

[11] http://www.tbnnetworks.com

[12] http://www.standardnewswire.com/news/101897798.html

[13] http://www.standardnewswire.com/news/357217823.html

[14] http://www.tbn.org/announcements/trinity-broadcasting-network-announces-purchase-of-major-london-production-facility

[15] http://www.tbn.org/announcements/tbn-s-praise-the-lord-welcomes-scott-stapp-of-multi-platinum-rock-band-creed

[16] http://www.tbn.org/announcements/pilot-program-takes-tbn-s-jctv-youth-channel-to-west-virginia-juvenile-facility

[17] http://www.tbn.org/announcements/trinity-broadcasting-network-purchases-property-for-studio-in-jerusalem

[18] http://www.stevieawards.com/pubs/awards/403_2654_21618.cfm

[19] http://www.tbn.org/announcements/trinity-broadcasting-network-recognized-with-stevie-award-for-innovative-mobile-app

[19.1] Revenue and Expenses Balance sheet for TBN http://ministrywatch.com/profile/trinity-broadcasting-network.aspx#balance

[19.2] Functional Expense Breakdown of TBN http://ministrywatch.com/profile/trinity-broadcasting-network.aspx#balance

[20] http://ministrywatch.com/profile/trinity-broadcasting-network.aspx#5star

[21] http://taxdollars.ocregister.com/2012/05/20/tbn-extravagance-read-internal-memos-for-yourself/155188/

[22] http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/05/us/tbn-fight-offers-glimpse-inside-lavish-tv-ministry.html?pagewanted=2&_r=2

[22.1] Brittany Koper in front of Jan Crouch’s house http://www.nytimes.com/slideshow/2012/05/04/us/20120505_TBN-6.html

[22.2] Jan Crouch’s House in Newport Beach, CA http://www.nytimes.com/slideshow/2012/05/04/us/20120505_TBN-8.html

[22.3] Brittany Koper’s certificate of Ordination http://www.nytimes.com/slideshow/2012/05/04/us/20120505_TBN-13.html

Sinclair Broadcast Group

Posted on September 18, 2012 by tmvansic

by [Taylor Van Sickle]

[1]

Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc.

10706 Beaver Dam Road

Hunt Valley, Maryland 21030

(410) 568-1500

www.sbgi.net

[2]

David D. Smith, President and CEO of Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc.
[7]

Executives

David D. Smith: President, Chief Executive Officer, Chairman of the Board and Director – David D. Smith has held his position as President and CEO since 1988. Prior to working for Sinclair he founded Comark Communications, Inc. He played a very important role in the creation and success of Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc [2].

Frederick G. Smith: Vice President and Director

J. Duncan Smith: Vice President, Secretary and Director

David B. Amy: Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

David R. Bochenek: Vice President and Chief Accounting Officer

Barry M. Faber: Executive Vice President and General Counsel

[2]

History

Sinclair Broadcast Group started out as one station in Baltimore, Maryland. The original station was created in 1971 by Julian Sinclair Smith, but it wasn’t until 1986 that his four sons came up with the idea of the Sinclair Broadcast Group. After only 10 years Sinclair Broadcast Group became the largest commercial television broadcasting company not to be owned by a network in the country. Sinclair Broadcast Group faced some rough times during 2001, but was able to make it through and by 2006 had become the largest FOX and MyNetworkTV affiliate groups. They also became the second largest ABC affiliate and the third largest affiliate for the CW network in the United States. The success of Sinclair Broadcast Group in the past is not surprising when looking at their continued success in 2012 [4].

Company Overview


Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc. Network Affiliates [3]

The Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc. is headed by President and CEO, David Smith. David Smith has been President and CEO since 1988 and has contributed exponentially to the company. He has also served at Chairman of the Board since 1990. He has helped build Sinclair Broadcast Group since the start of the company. As one of the leading television broadcasting companies in the United States, Sinclair Broadcast Group manages 74 television stations within 45 markets. The broadcasting company includes FOX, ABC, CW, CBS, MTV, NBC, MyTV, and Azteca affiliates. Sinclair operates 20 FOX stations, 18 MyTV, 11 ABC, 14 CW, 9 CBS, 1 NBC, and 1 Azteca. With these networks Sinclair is able to reach about 26.3% of households in the country [3]. Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc. continues to grow in size and range. They reach a large amount of households in the country and continue to increase the number of people that they reach.

Competitors

Media General, Inc.

Hearst Television Inc.

Local TV, LCC

[6]

Recent News

August 13th, 2012 Sinclair Broadcast Group’s retransmission consent agreement with Dish Network was about to end and the two companies were in talks to either create a new one or Dish would stop carrying some of Sinclair’s stations. To be exact if the companies did not create a new retransmission consent agreement Dish would stop broadcasting 70 of Sinclair’s stations. Later Sinclair Broadcast Group announced its agreement with Dish Network to create a new retransmission consent agreement [5].

September 19th, 2012 Michael Simon was named Director of Advanced Technology for Sinclair Broadcast Group. Previous positions include Manager of Advanced Technology for Rohde & Schwarz, Lead Application Engineer for Harris Corporation, and Chief Engineer for Sinclair’s Pittsburgh market. In this position Mr. Simon will be in charge of developing new technologies to further advance the broadcasting company’s business. Sinclair’s Vice President of Advanced Technology, Mark Aitken said that, “Sinclair is probing the fundamental technologies that will enable us to leverage future business-enabling technologies,” which Mr. Simon will contribute to greatly [5.1].

October 12th, 2012 Sinclair Broadcast Group decided to close their previous contribution of $500 million of senior unsecured notes. By closing this offer, Sinclair Broadcast Group used the profits to then buy multiple stations from Newport Television LLC. Also, they intended to use the profits from this to pay off outstanding debt and for other company purposes [5.2].

November 13th, 2012 Sinclair Broadcast Group announced an exciting partnership with DataSphere Technologies. DataSphere Technologies is a marketing company that focuses mainly on local businesses to help them gain exposure. The two companies made an agreement that Sinclair will promote event calendars, and small business marketing solutions over 21 of their markets in the country. This partnership is important for both DataSphere and Sinclair. It offers DataSphere an opportunity to promote their services and get more business. The deal offers Sinclair a way to connect with local businesses in their markets and get advertising for their stations and website [9].

December 1, 2012 Sinclair Broadcast Group has obtained several more stations, while also getting rid of some of its previously existing stations. Through their deal Sinclair gained 6 new stations from Newport Television LLC. Along with the stations Sinclair also purchased Newport’s rights under the local marketing agreements with two stations. Sinclair also obtained Newport’s non-license assets for their station in Rochester for $54 million. While gaining stations, Sinclair also sold some of its preexisting stations. Sinclair made a deal with Deerfield Media, Inc. selling them their station in San Antonio and Cincinnati. Sinclair also sold them license assets to two of their stations. With these stations gains Sinclair added stations to four markets that they presently existed in and added two new markets to their business. The total deal cost them $459.7 million [8].

Finances

In Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc.’s quarterly numbers, they are doing significantly well this year. Their total revenue over a three-month period this year was $260,489 as opposed to last year’s total revenue of $181,042. Also their total revenue over a nine-month period increased between this year and last year as well from, $552,511 to $736,817 [10].

In November the Board of Directors at Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc. stated that the company’s Class A and Class B stock will have a $1.00 dividend per share and a quarterly dividend of $0.15 per share [5.3]. Also the company announced that for the third quarter of this year the earned $0.32 per share. This earning did not, however, match the estimated amount of $0.35 per share [10].

Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc. Stock Information [11]

Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc. Income Chart [12]

Future

Sinclair Broadcast Group Stock [12]

With their newly obtained stations Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc. plans to keep expanding their hold on television broadcasting. The company is well versed in the television broadcasting business and they understand what they need to do to stay successful. Their revenue numbers show increased success throughout the fourth quarter. The company’s stock from the last month has decreased but over the course of this year it has stayed steadily in the same region. Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc. has been a strong company since its humble beginning as one station in Maryland. There is no doubt that Sinclair Broadcast Group will continue to be a major player in the television broadcasting spectrum.

Sources

1. Google: http://images4.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20110515151804/logopedia/images/6/67/Sbg.gif

2. Sinclair Broadcast Group Website: http://www.sbgi.net/corp_governance/officers.shtml

3. Sinclair Broadcast Group Website (Company Profile): http://www.sbgi.net/about/profile.shtml

4. Sinclair Broadcast Group Website (History): http://www.sbgi.net/about/history.shtml

5. Sinclair Broadcast Group Website (News Releases): http://www.sbgi.net/site_mgr/temp/Dish%20Aug%202012%2D2%5Fdsrp65vp%2Eshtml

5.1 Sinclair Broadcast Group Website (News Releases): http://www.sbgi.net/site_mgr/temp/Simon%5Fwfbylrjx%2Eshtml

5.2 Sinclair Broadcast Group Website (News Releases): http://www.sbgi.net/site_mgr/temp/2012%20Notes%20Offering%20closing%5F46lhc5gp%2Eshtml

5.3 Sinclair Broadcast Group Website (News Releases): http://www.sbgi.net/site_mgr/temp/CS%2012142012%5Fqvd16wqb%2Eshtml

6. Hoovers: http://www.hoovers.com/company-information/cs/company-profile.Sinclair_Broadcast_Group_Inc.16dff58899664af8.html

7. http://www.bizjournals.com/baltimore/news/2012/04/17/sinclair-broadcast-ceo-smith-gets-16.html

8. Bloomberg: http://www.bloomberg.com/article/2012-12-03/a5oA5IyRyJak.html

9. Bloomberg: http://www.bloomberg.com/article/2012-11-13/a9hfDdS2uETk.html

10. New York Times: http://topics.nytimes.com/topics/news/business/companies/sinclair-broadcast-group-inc/index.html

11. New York Times: http://markets.on.nytimes.com/research/stocks/tools/analysis_tools.asp?symbol=SBGI

12. Bloomberg: http://www.bloomberg.com/quote/SBGI:US

Scripps Television Group

Posted on September 18, 2012 by kschultz

by Kayla Schultz

Scripps logo via TheLAW.TV

“Give light and the people will find their own way” [1]

The E.W. Scripps Company (NYSE: SSP; Price Per Share: $10.54) is a multimedia enterprise that owns 19 television stations in major cities across the nation and serves 13 different markets with locally owned newspapers. Scripps has expanded its reach in the media universe by venturing into digital strategies and social gaming. The company is also host to the annual Scripps National Spelling Bee. [2]

The Scripps Television Group is comprised of major network affiliates as well as independently owned stations. This make up is broken down into 10 ABC affiliates, 3 NBC affiliates, 1 independent, and 5 Spanish language stations. Scripps provides television services to the following cities: Bakersfield, CA; San Diego, CA; Cincinnati, OH; Cleveland, OH; Tulsa, OK; Lawrence, KS; Tampa, FL; West Palm Beach, FL; Denver, CO; Baltimore, MD; Phoenix, AZ; Kansas City, MO; Indianapolis, IN; Detroit, MI. [3]

KEY PEOPLE

Image courtesy of Scripps. [4]

Richard A. Boehne, President and CEO

Image courtesy of Scripps. [4]

Timothy M. Wesolowski, Senior VP, CFO, and Treasurer

Image courtesy of Scripps. [4]

Brian G. Lawlor, Senior VP of Television

CONTACT [5]

Headquarters: 312 Walnut Street 2800, Scripps Center, Cincinnati, OH 45202

Phone: 513-977-3000

RECENT NEWS

September 2012

On September 3, 2012, Scripps announced an exciting new venture for its local TV programming. Rather than purchasing the popular syndicated staples Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy!, the television group decided to fill the time slots with original content. The two new shows were to be called Let’s Ask America and The List. According to Broadcasting & Cable, an accredited television business website, Scripps made a “massive bet on the programs, a game show and newsmagazine, that its top execs say fit right into the company profile of educating and entertaining the public.” Though the endeavor was considered to be a long shot by most critics, Brian Lawlor, Scripps senior vice president of television, was confident in the company’s ability to produce quality content that would appeal to each of its well established, locally owned markets. The new shows were set to release on September 17^th of that year, but faith in the company’s innovative new plan was hard to find. Critics of the new strategy stressed network-affiliate relations and how original creative content being aired on the affiliate station could cause even more tension to what is often considered a particularly tense relationship. Another concern was the possible failure of either program. Scripps didn’t have many syndication options to fallback on after dropping the two most popular syndicated programs in American television history from its repertoire. To make matters worse, Jim Paratore was signed on to executive produce Let’s Ask America but unexpectedly passed away in the midst of production. Scripps made the decision to forge on without the acclaimed EP and hired 60 new people to take charge of the newsmagazine show in stations all over the country. Clearly, the company believed in the project regardless of what the critics had to say; to Scripps, is was much better to own its content than to rent it. [6]

Let’s Ask America logo via newsnet5.com

On September 17, 2012, Scripps aired its two new programs to seven of its TV markets. [7]

October 2012

October 2012 was a particularly slow month for Scripps Television Group. The company operated as it normally would, with the exception of their new original programming. Despite the relative normalcy of October, Scripps made a newsworthy contribution to the mobile television discussion, which seems to constantly be preoccupying the conversations among leading TV conglomerates. Scripps made it known that they were in full support of the mobile TV movement and were willing to contribute the time and energy that its innovation requires. The Chicago Tribune reported that the E.W. Scripps Company, along with Fox, NBC, Cox Media Group, Garnett Broadcasting, and Hearst Television, partnered up with Dyle mobile TV, which offers 90 stations in 35 markets. [8]

Dyle on the Samsung Galaxy S Lightray 4G courtesy of gottabemobile.com

November 2012

While October proved to be a not-so-newsworthy month for the Scripps Television Group, November brought the company multiple headlines that highlighted its overwhelming success. Whether it was talk of the quarterly revenue report, the newly acquired financial support of Cincinnati, or the beautiful sight of a risk paying off, Scripps found itself in the news constantly and for good reasons.

On November 9, 2012, multiple television business websites reported the remarkable 79% increase in Scripps’ station revenue according to the company’s third quarter reports. The television group reported $125 million for Q3 of 2012. Apparently, the increase in earnings was “fueled by [Scripps] acquisition of McGraw-Hill stations,” as well as the unexpected success of “its two homegrown access programs, Let’s Ask America and The List.” [9] Arguably even more influential on the group’s financial gains was the money generated from local, state, and national elections in early November. Political advertisers spent $28 million to endorse their candidates on Scripps’ multiple stations. The 2011 election campaigns only brought in $2 million for the TV group, so political advertising alone made a huge contribution the company’s overall increase in revenue for the third quarter. [10]

As a contributing member of Cincinnati’s booming economy, the E.W. Scripps Company received $750,000 from the city so that it could grow its digital sector. The goal of the city was to have Scripps “create at least 112 jobs within three years and maintain 184 existing jobs.” The expansion of Scripps’ digital group could only be beneficial to the TV side of the company. With its continuing efforts to support mobile television and promote its new original programming, an expansion of the digital sphere would potentially open up an array of new possibilities for the TV group. [11]

On November 13, 2012, the E.W. Scripps Company announced a partnership with Arizona State University that will include an innovative new journalism program. Together, Scripps and ASU have formed the Scripps Cronkite Journalism Career Program that will directly connect aspiring broadcast journalists to one of the country’s leading broadcast journalism companies. Keeping with the company’s theme of educating the people of America, Brian Lawlor believes that this new partnership will “harness the creative energy, skills, and enthusiasm of recent ASU grads and channel it into shaping tomorrow’s storytellers.” [12]

The Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication courtesy of Wikipedia

On November 14, 2012, the gamble that Scripps took by dropping Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy! appeared to be paying off for the TV group. The new original shows were consistently exceeding the company’s ratings goals, based on the Nielsen live-plus-same-day ratings. They did particularly well among 25-54 year old women which put them ahead of the game financially according to vice president of TV content Bob Sullivan. With this newly established viewer base, Scripps will easily be able to sell more advertisements and make long-term deals with companies who wish to target that particular demographic. TVNewsCheck, a broadcasting business website, suggests that the more money that the shows rake in for the TV group, the more likely Warner Brothers, a 50-50 partner on Let’s Ask America, is to distributing the original content to multiple non-Scripps stations. The company seems to be thrilled with the current success of its new content, but so is the competition, which picked up Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy! in the seven vacant markets. [13]

On November 20, 2012, Audiovox Electronics announced plans for a new mobile TV “rear-seat car entertainment system” that would be fully “Dyle-enabled.” Since Dyle is the mobile distributor of the Scripps TV Group, the new product launch would expand the company’s modest network to 35 markets and reach “approximately 55 percent of the U.S. population,” according to Broadcast Engineering. [14]

Audiovox rear-seat entertainment system courtesy of Voxx International

On November 30, 2012, Scripps announced the exciting new acquisition of Brian Bracco, former vice president of news for Hearst Television, Inc. The long-time TV executive will be leading Scripps Kansas City station, which is a place that Bracco is particularly familiar with from his work with Hearst station in KC. Brian Lawlor believes that “Bracco will provide strong leadership as KSHB” and that “he is vastly qualified to motivate and inspire his staff to become the go-to source for news and investigations in the market,” according to The Sacramento Bee. [15]

FINANCIAL PROJECTIONS

Due to Scripps enormous success in Q3, the talk of projected fourth quarter revenue has been extremely positive. The current projection is that “TV revenues will be up about 80%,” according to TVNewsCheck. The high percentage will mostly be attributed to the previously mentioned newly acquired McGraw-Hill stations. Surely the earnings won’t come close to what the TV group raked in during the third quarter, with the election providing a lot of ad revenue, but the December month is sure to provide a good look at the “first pure month without political influence,” says Brian Lawlor. Even without the boost from McGraw-Hill, Scripps’ revenue has been on a positive incline, estimating a 35-40% independent of the newly acquired stations. [16]

REFERENCES

Scripps – Our Mission & Motto
Scripps – About Us
Scripps – Brands: Television
Scripps – Our Leaders
Scripps – Contact
Malone, Michael (September 3, 2012). “Station Groups Spin Wheel on Homespun Shows”. Broadcasting & Cable.
Scripps – Timeline
Morris, Chris (October 2, 2012). “Mobile TV searches for breakthrough”. The Chicago Tribune.
Malone, Michael (November 9, 2012). “Scripps Station Revenue Up 79%”. Broadcasting & Cable.
Friedman, Wayne (November 9, 2012). “Election Money Fuels Big Gains For Scripps”. Media News Daily. Media Post.
The Enquirer (November 9, 2012). “City Oks $750,000 for Scripps jobs”. The Community Press & Recorder.
PRNewswire (November 13, 2012). “Scripps and Arizona State join forces to create innovative career initiative”. equities.com: Global Financial Network.
Downey, Kevin (November 14, 2012). “Scripps Stations Survive Without Top Syndies”. TVNewsCheck.
McMahon, Franklin (November 20, 2012). “Audiovox launches rear-seat Dyle Mobile TV experience”. Broadcast Engineering.
The E.W. Scripps Company (November 30, 2012). “Bracco to lead Scripps stations in Kansas City”. The Sacramento Bee.
Messmer, Jack (November 9, 2012). “TV Soaring For Scripps In 4Q After Record 3Q”. TVNewsCheck.

Liberman Broadcasting

Posted on September 18, 2012 by dfgrove

by Daniel Grove

Liberman Broadcasting Logo Courtesy of Nasdaq

{1}

Liberman Broadcasting Incorporated

Contact
Address: 1845 Empire Avenue,
Burbank, CA 91504
Phone: (818) 729-5300
Website: www.lbimedia.com
Email: LBIinfo@lbimedia.com {2}

Overview

Founded by father-son duo Jose and Lenard Liberman, Liberman Broadcasting, Inc. (also referred to as LBI) is the largest privately held, minority-owned Spanish-Language television and radio broadcaster in the United States. With a primary concentration on the hispanic demographic, the company provides advertising opportunities to local markets and communities through product integration, talent sponsorships and appearances, and longform advertising. {3}

The company owns and operates Empire Burbank Studios and develops roughly fifty-six hours of programming a week, consisting of comedy, music, game, talk, and news shows, on their Spanish-language network: EstrellaTV. LBI also hosts the annual Premios De La Radio awards show featuring several hispanic artists. {4} These are broadcast via the following stations:

An Overview as to what stations LBI Broadcasts Through on the United States West Coast

Important Figures {5}

-Jose Liberman: Co-founder and President
-Lenard Liberman: Co-founder, Executive Vice-President and Secretary
–Eduardo Leon: Vice President of Programming
–Winter Horton: Vice President of Programming for KRCA ch62 Television
–Blima Tuller: Chief Financial Officer

Major Competitors

–Univision Communications Inc.
–Telemundo: Owned by NBC
–Entravision Communications Corporation {7}

Company History

Founded in 1987, LBI began as small cluster of independent Radio and Television stations scattered throughout the Los Angeles and Houston city limits. Within the 1990’s the company then began to expand into San Diego and Dallas as they began to draw in more Revenue.

The company truly began to take off in the mid 2000’s with the catalyst being the $95 million purchase of five Dallas radio stations from Entravision. This gained LBI the ability to provide a variety of different programs towards Hispanic audiences throughout Texas, ultimately gaining them a strong grasp over the aforementioned demographic. {8} In the year 2007, Liberman Broadcasting purchased a UPN (now the CW) station KPNZ for $10 million in Salt Lake City Utah allowing them to expand eastward. LBI then began to expand down into Phoenix, Arizona in 2008 after a deal with Latin America Broadcasting for $1.25 million over a local Station, KVPA-LP. {9}

Estrella TV logo, courtesy of Estrella TV Reno

{10}

On July 1st, 2009, Liberman announced the launch of their brand new, exclusively Spanish-speaking network, Estrella TV, which then made its worldwide debut on September 14th that same year. The programming of this new network currently focuses on the 18-49 demographic, airing a variety of different shows in highly populated Hispanic markets. The introduction of this company showed (and still currently shows) a significant threat to both Univision and Telemundo, as it had both a station in every top 20 market and made itself a potential option for ad buyers as the current revenue in Spanish-language TV was rather dull growth in comparison to prior years. {11}

In recent years, Estrella TV has managed to become the 2nd highest rated network within Los Angeles after Univision, and with it has produced two of the highest rated shows within Spanish-language Televison {12}: “El Show De Don Cheto” and “Estudio 2“.

“El Show De Don Cheto” is a talk show starring “el hombre del vozarrón” (the loud-voiced man) Don Cheto where he interviews with Latino celebrities, parodies of famous viral music videos, and features popular Hispanic artists on to perform, much like that of “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno“.

Acting as LBI’s biggest show on EstrellaTV, “Estudio 2” is a variety show featuring live musicians, comedians, and other forms of entertainment from the Los Angeles region. The show has received high amount of praise from critics due to its original programming in comparison to other programs produced by rival companies. The show currently attracts men between the ages of 18 to 34 and allowed the network to reach out to 76 percent of Hispanic households. {12}

About 5 months after the purchase of a WWTO-TV (now WESV-LP) in Chicago, LBI faced its largest PR crisis in the history of the company.

In the beginning of April, 2011, several organizations across the country sent letters to the FCC due to the outrage sparked by popular LBI show, “Jose Luis Sin Censura“, due to its crude nature and tendency to insult the homosexual community. {13} This led to both Time Warner and AT&T to pull its advertising away from the program {14}, and which ultimately caused the show’s cancellation on August 9th, 2012. {15}

Recent News

September:

-09/12:

One LBI’s newest and most popular shows on EstrellaTV, “Mi Sueno Es Bailar” (or my dream is to dance), premiers for its third season. {16} The show stars several celebrities within the Latino community, such as Nora Salinas and Jose Luis Gonzales, and pairs them with highly trained dancers in a multi-round, elimination contest to see which celebrity shows the highest skill on the floor (much like ABC’s “Dancing with the Stars“). Outside of the competitive aspects, each episode involves the winning couple granting a wish made by one lucky Hispanic family. {17} The series aired its finale on November 16th.

October:

-10/04:

Liberman Broadcasting announces that they will bring the “El Shaka“, a drama that portrays the constant drug war within Mexico under the control of the drug lord”El Shaka”, and it 36 episodes to MIPCOM, the global market for all entertainment content. {18}

-10/08:

Estrella TV launches a brand new comedy series, “A2D3” (an abbreviation for “A Dos de Tres”), based around the sport of Mexican wrestling, or Lucha Libre. The program focuses around the character of Elverio Gudino, a man who wishes to become a professional wrestling under the pseudonym “El Veri Gud” (which ironically is the complete opposite of his status in the sport) and his strive to protect his identity from criminals who are trying to collect money from him. The series only ran for eight episodes, each one hour long, {19} and ended November 17th, 2012.

-10/11:

Investigative news magazine show “En La Mira con Enrique Gratas” (On target with Enrique Gratas) premiers on EstrellaTV. The show features famous Latino news Anchor Enrique Gratas and journalist Myrka Dellanos discussing popular stories that occur throughout both the United States and the world. {20}

November:

-11/04:

Estrella TV launches an advertising campaign with Toyota of Southern California by awarding a Toyota Tundra to a fan of the Network, specially designed and customized by Mexican-musical sensation, Gerardo Ortiz. The campaign involved both the network and its website using Ortiz within interactive content developed by the advertising and marketing team at Estrella TV and Toyota, as well as Castells Hispanic ad agency. {21}

-11/07:

In response to the large popularity of Psy‘s, music video, Gangham Style, Don Cheto launched a parody of it entitled: “Ganga Style”. The video contains several elements that are reminiscent of the South Korean rapper, but with Spanish lyrics and cultural elements and stereotypes of Mexican society. The video became viral instantly and led Cheto to move away from radio broadcasting, due to the low ratings he has received in the past few months, and into the internet medium via Youtube and Facebook. {22}

-11/12:

Logo for the 2012 “Premios De La Radio” awards ceremony, courtesy of Ticketmaster.com

{23}

Broadcast live from the Empire Burbank Studios, Estrella TV hosted the 13th Annual Premios De La Radio award show. After receiving a total of 562,000 viewers between the hours of 7 to 11 pm, it became the most watched program in Estrella TV’s history as a network. The show also ranked second in its highest total for the viewers within the 18 to 49 demographic, as it managed to bring in approximately 303,000 within the group. {24}

-11/19:

Kristoff Raczynski Tatomir, courtesy of Quien.com

{25}

Televisa Star, Kristoff (Krzysztof Racqynski Tatomir), leaves the company for EstrellaTV. Kristoff, who was one of the largest personalities for the Televisa, moved networks as Liberman Broadcasting provided him a deal to work as the host of their “bloopers” show. This led to massive lawsuit between the two companies, as members of Televisa found Kristoff accepting money from LBI to work for their company, which caused a massive breach in the exclusivity provision his contract (by which Kristoff is only allowed to host shows that are run by Televisa). {26} As of now, no news has risen regarding the case.

December:

-12/04:

Liberman Broadcasting announces that they have extended the expiration of private exchange offers and solicitation of consents to December 7th, 2012, at 5 p.m. A total of $207 million Old Notes and consents in the Discounts Notes Consent Solicitation will no longer be allowed to be withdrawn. {27}

Upcoming Projects

Currently, Liberman Broadcasting has three new shows that are still currently in the works. The first one being “La Supermodelo Latina”, a reality show produced by Michael Ohoven, in which sixteen beautiful Latina women are forced to live in a mansion with one another for several weeks while partaking in competitions for a chance to become a supermodel. The second show in production is “Chalino”, a drama miniseries that illustrates the life of the man who founded the Banda movement of the 1980’s, Chalino Snachez. Finally, there is “El Sueno Americano” (or “the American Dream”) starring and be produced by actor Hector Suarez and his son. The show would be a sitcom about a family just moving to LA and facing all the challenges that come from living in a foreign country. {28, 29} No set air date has been announced for any of these shows.

Works Cited:

{1} http://www.nasdaq.com/markets/ipos/filing.ashx?filingid=2713436
{2} http://www.lbimedia.com/contact.html
{3} http://www.lbimedia.com/about.html
{4} http://www.yellowpages.com/burbank-ca/mip/empire-studio-30609825
{5} http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/private/snapshot.asp?privcapId=643286
{6} http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/cbs-dominates-broadcast-cable-shows-showing-strength-in-ratings/2012/12/04/99354e0c-3e55-11e2-8a5c-473797be602c_story.html
{7} http://www.hoovers.com/company-information/cs/company-profile.Liberman_Broadcasting_Inc.de35e9d98bfffd35.html
{8} http://www.bizjournals.com/dallas/stories/2006/07/31/daily42.html
{9} http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/115113-Deals.php
{10} http://www.estrellatvreno.com
{11} http://www.medialifemagazine.com/coming-a-new-force-in-hispanic-tv/
{12} http://www.lbimedia.com/Media/PressReleases/09.17.10%20–%20Estudio%20Beats%20Telefutura%20media%20alert%20-%20FINAL.pdf
{13} http://www.glaad.org/releases/040611jlsc
{14} http://www.glaad.org/2011/06/02/at-two-broadcasters-drop-programat-dos-estaciones-transmiso/
{15} http://www.towleroad.com/2012/08/spanish-language-talk-show-jos%C3%A9-luis-sin-censura-dropped-after-glaad-and-nhmc-protest.html
{16} http://www.cynopsis.com/editions/cynopsis/091212/
{17} http://www.c21media.net/archives/93527
{18} http://www.cynopsis.com/editions/cynopsis/1042012/
{19} http://www.cynopsis.com/editions/cynopsis/100112/
{20} http://www.cynopsis.com/editions/cynopsis/100512/
{21} http://www.portada-online.com/2012/11/12/sales-leads-nissan-dominos-heineken-wendys/
{22} http://hoylosangeles.com/news/2012/dec/06/el-empujon-que-necesitaba/
{23} http://www.ticketmaster.com/Premios-De-La-Radio-tickets/artist/1505367
{24} http://www.cynopsis.com/editions/cynopsis/111212/
{25} http://www.quien.com/photos/2012/05/02/sserur-175024-009.jpg
{26} http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/thr-esq/kristoff-sparks-legal-battle-between-392008
{27} http://www.marketwatch.com/story/liberman-broadcasting-inc-lbi-media-holdings-inc-and-lbi-media-inc-announce-extension-of-the-expiration-date-of-private-exchange-offers-and-solicitation-of-consents-2012-12-04
{28} http://www.cynopsis.com/upfront-2010-2/estrella-tv/
{29} http://telemundomediakit.com/2012/05/21/2012-upfronts-a-closer-look/

Principles & Practices

Website by the students of TRF235

Category Archives: TRF235.1 Fall 2012

Lionsgate Entertainment

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About Entercom :

Brief History:

Executive Officers:

Financials:

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Cumulus Media Networks

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Liberman Broadcasting