by [Holly Parker]
Address: 200 East Basse Road, San Antonio, TX 78209
Telephone: (210) 822-2828
Overview
Clear Channel Communications is a private communications company, founded in 1972 and based out of San Antonio, Texas. It is privately owned by Bain Capital and Thomas H. Lee Partners. Clear Channel is most well known for its radio station ownership but the company also owns outdoor advertising around the country. The two main divisions of the company are Clear Channel Media & Entertainment and Clear Channel Outdoor. [1]
Clear Channel Media & Entertainment
Clear Channel Media & Entertainment (CCME) is the radio division of Clear Channel and serves 150 cities through 850 radio stations. Its stations are broadcast on a wide variety of platforms including AM/FM stations, satellite radio, HD radio, and iHeartRadio which streams music on mobile phones and the Internet. CCME has divisons including “radio broadcasting, online and mobile services and products, syndication, music research services and independent media representation.” [2]
Clear Channel Media Statistics [2]
- With 239 million monthly listeners in the U.S., Clear Channel Media and Entertainment has the largest reach of any radio or television outlet in America.
- 100 million listening hours a month
- Over 45 million monthly digital uniques
- 15 million+ fan reach through station and radio personality Facebook pages
Robert Pittman, CEO of Clear Channel
Key Executives [3]
- Robert Pittman, Chief Executive Officer: Mr. Pittman is a giant in the world of media communications. He is the founder of MTV and became CEO of Clear Channel Communications in October 2011. He has helped increase the company’s digital presence and stated that he wants to make Clear Channel’s stations free on as many platforms as possible. [4]
- Tom Casey, Chief Financial Officer and Executive Vice President
- Robert H. Walls, Jr., Executive Vice President and General Counsel
- John Hogan, Chairman and CEO, Clear Channel Media and Entertainment
Financials [5]
- In the third quarter of 2012, Clear Channel Media and Entertainment (CCME) was up 1%, or $7 million, in revenues compared to the third quarter of 2011. This increase was primarily the result of a 3% increase in radio revenues, due to an increase in national advertising, digital radio services, and the iHeart Radio Music Festival in September.
- At the end of the third quarter, CCME had a revenue of $798.8 million, and Clear Channel Communications increased its overall revenue by 2% up to $1.59 billion.
- However, the company may have some financial troubles in the coming years. It needs to refinance more than $10 billion in debt, due in 2016. Its debt by this year will likely outnumber its asset value. This debt has caused some to speculate that the company may have to merge or sell off some of its assets. [6]
iHeartRadio’s website homepage
iHeartRadio Music Festival 2012
The 2nd annual iHeartRadio Music Festival was held this year on September 21 and 22 in Las Vegas, and featured popular musical acts such as Rihanna, Lil Wayne, Taylor Swift, No Doubt, and Aerosmith. The festival was also broadcast on The CW on October 1. The first iHeartRadio Music Festival took place last year and kicked off the official launch of iHeartRadio. Of the festival, CEO Robert Pittman said: “The iHeartRadio Music Festival is an indication of Clear Channel’s ongoing commitment to music and artist development — maximizing artists’ exposure to fans and audiences nationwide.” [1]
Katz Media Group
Katz Media Group is a subsidiary of Clear Channel Communications and a leading media representation company in the United States. Katz’s website explains: “With more than 4,000 radio stations and 500 television stations retaining our services, we are the only media representation company to serve a variety of over-the-air and digital platforms.” [9] Katz recently announced that it set a digital sales record for its Digital Display Network and Online Audio Network, reaching more than 100 million and 66.5 million unique monthly users respectively. [10]
Other Clear Channel Media & Entertainment News
September 27, 2012: Clear Channel made an agreement with Glassnote Entertainment Group, that will “align the companies’ business interests, accelerate growth and innovation in digital radio and enable Glassnote and its artists to share in all Clear Channel radio revenue streams.” [11] The agreement comes in hopes of accelerating the digital music industry. Glassnote, an independent record and publishing company, represents such artists as Mumford & Sons, Childish Gambino, Phoenix, and The Temper Trap. These artists and others represented by the music company will benefit from this deal with Clear Channel.
October 12, 2012: The Australian Radio Network (ARN) announced that they would launch iHeartRadio in Australia and New Zealand, providing a lucrative opportunity for Clear Channel Media & Entertainment to expand their company internationally. The service will launch in Australia and New Zealand in 2013 and will be marketed through Clear Channel International’s media assets. [12]
November 8, 2012: Clear Channel Media & Entertainment announced, in partnership with The Madison Square Garden Company and The Weinstein Company, plans for a concert called 12-12-12, A Concert For Sandy Relief. The one night only concert will raise money for people in the tri-state area (New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut) affected by Hurricane Sandy and will take place on December 12, 2012 in Madison Square Garden. All money raised will be administered to the Robin Hood Relief Fund. John Sykes, President of Clear Channel Entertainment Enterprises, will help produce the event. The lineup for the concert includes huge name musical acts such as Paul McCartney, Eric Clapton, Bon Jovi, The Who, Billy Joel, Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band, Alicia Keys, and Kanye West. [13]
November 20, 2012: Clear Channel will sponsor a series of annual holiday concerts across the country called Jingle Ball 2012. Each year Clear Channel stations across the country host Jingle Ball concerts in local cities, featuring performances by top recording artists and emerging new talent. Washington, DC’s Hot 99.5 and Atlanta’s Power 96.1 are hosting Jingle Ball for the first time this year. Concerts will also take place in Detroit, Los Angeles, Minneapolis, Philadelphia, Boston, New York, Miami, Tampa, San Francisco, and Seattle. [14]
December 3, 2012: Triton released its Online Audio Rankings for October 2012, declaring Clear Channel #2 in ratings behind Pandora. The report lists Clear Channel as having 281,782 Average Active Sessions (AAS). AAS is defined as Total Hours Listening (total number of hours the station/publisher has streamed) divided by hours in the reported time period. Clear Channel is also listed as having 0.61 average hours listening. Above Clear Channel, Pandora has 1,561,757 Average Active Sessions and 0.64 average hours listening. [15]
December 6, 2012: Clear Channel made a number of layoffs in large and mid-sized markets. It is unclear how many layoffs were made, but the company said in a statement that “this creates some new jobs, and unfortunately eliminates others.” The company is continuing to evolve its organizational structure. [16]
References:
1. http://www.clearchannel.com/
2. http://www.clearchannel.com/MediaAndEntertainment/
3. http://www.clearchannel.com/Corporate/PressRelease.aspx?PressReleaseID=1168&p=hidden
4. http://www.tritondigital.com/news-items/pittman-envisions-new-life-for-radio
5. http://www.ccmediaholdings.com/documents/Quarterly/CC-Media-Holdings-Q3-2012-Earnings-Release.pdf
6. http://www.bizjournals.com/sanantonio/blog/2012/12/clear-channel-facing-cloudy-financial.html
7. http://www.iheart.com/about/
9. http://www.katz-media.com/default.aspx
11. http://www.clearchannel.com/MediaAndEntertainment/PressRelease.aspx?PressReleaseID=3148
12. http://www.clearchannel.com/MediaAndEntertainment/PressRelease.aspx?PressReleaseID=3138
13. http://www.clearchannel.com/MediaAndEntertainment/PressRelease.aspx?PressReleaseID=3152
14. http://www.clearchannel.com/MediaAndEntertainment/PressRelease.aspx?PressReleaseID=3157
15. http://www.tritondigital.com/media/default/rankers/oct-ranker-2012.pdf
16. http://www.insideradio.com/Article.asp?id=2588722&spid=32061#.UMETv5PjlKo
17. Logo image: http://typophile.com/files/Clear-Channel-logo%20edit_5618.jpg
18. Pittman image: http://rbr.com/wp-content/uploads/Bob_Pittman1.jpg
19. iHeartRadio image: http://www.iheart.com/
20. 12-12-12 image: http://www.121212concert.org/