iHeart Media & Entertainment

Posted on October 16, 2016 by Barbara

Niko Santore and Aria Sivick

[1] iHeartMedia Incorporated logo

Company Overview

iHeart Media Incorporated is an entertainment company who provides radio programming and live entertainment worldwide. Evolving from iHeart Communications Inc, the company now operates Clear Channel Outdoor Holdings and iHeartMedia, whose assets reach worldwide. The two divisions of iHeart Media Inc strive to support each other in advertising and entertainment, covering a record setting 150 markets and operating through 850 stations in the U.S., and supporting 245 million monthly listeners. Including iHeart Radio, the company hosts an impressive array of online and mobile services such as real time traffic services, live concerts and entertainment, and program syndication. The goal of the company is to design a more innovative and dynamic future that supports a strong digital footprint on a diverse, accessible mobile platform. [2]

[3] The iHeart Family

Key Executives

Bob Pittman – Chairman and Chief Executive Officer [17]

Richard J Bressler – President Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer [18]

Wendy Goldberg – Executive VP and Chief Communications Officer [18]

Robert H. Walls, Jr. Executive Vice President and General Counsel [18]

Gayle Troberman – Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer [18]

Scott Wells Chief Executive Officer, Clear Channel Outdoor Americas [18]

William Eccleshare –
Chairman and CEO, Clear Channel International [18]

John Sykes –
President of Entertainment Enterprises [18]

Steve Mills Global Chief Information Officer[18]

Business Module

[4] Clear Channel Outdoor Logo

In the face of a growing digital age, in 2014, Clear Channel Communications renamed itself iHeart Media in an effort to face the competition of Pandora and Spotify. iHeart Media was and is their most successful digital brand, and in order to converge to the digital age (and scoop themselves out of the $20 billion debt left from their equity buyout in 2008) Clear Channel Communications decided that iHeart and its several platforms was the appropriate label for their brand.[5] iHeartMedia works with Clear Channel Outdoor in order to expand their digital footprint and advertise in the most accessible and relatable method to their consumers. The company is one of the world’s top advertising leaders; it operates in more than 40 countries spanning 5 continents. With over 640,000 displays, it reaches 45 out of 50 of the largest markets in the United States. [6]Clear Channel Outdoor’s market reach makes the company one of the most valuable subsidiaries to market, with an increasing operating income of 14.7% to $60.8 million in the third quarter of 2016. [7]

Current News

[8]A featured performance from last year’s Jingle Ball Tour

In time for the Holidays, iHeart Radio has announced it’s line up for the Jingle Ball Tour, sponsored by Capital One. The Jingle Ball Tour is on the company’s largest sources of annual income. Celebrities such as Bruno mars, Justin Bieber, and Britney Spears will be performing. With tickets ranging from $50 to $160, the tour stops will be stopping cross country in big cities such as Dallas, New York, and San Francisco. The tour is integral to the iHeart Radio’s merit and diversity, as it is the number one leading free-all access online audio platform, reaching its 90 million listeners faster than any other digital company, including Facebook. Not only does the tour prove beneficial with exclusive deals for Capitol One customers, the tour also allows the company room for philanthropy networking. For the fourth consecutive year, iHeart Radio will partner with the Ryan Seacrest Foundation to provide an entertaining experience for hospitalized children. The Jingle Ball Tour this year will also prove integral to the subscriber and fanbase as iHeart Radio Plus and iHeart Radio All Access – two new subscription services will be released in January 2017. [9]

[10]Heart Radio All Access Promotional Logo

iHeart Radio All Access, to be released in January 2017, will mark the start of an on demand business module. The brand will now be a top competitor amongst other services such as Spotify, which allow you to listen to any song you’d like at any given time. iHeart Radio Plus will offer a unique enhanced experience to listeners. It is a different subscription service than iHeart Radio All Access, and will allow users to listen ad-supported content as well as give listeners access to other features that competitors such as Spotify do not offer. The company also stated that they are looking to bring music collection and music discovery into one entity, as 73% of consumers report their number one source of discovering music is from radio streaming. [11]

iHeart Radio is certainly the talk of the town of the company, racking in the most news (and profits) with the upcoming music festival and all-access radio streaming. The iHeart Radio app has recently hit 92 million users, according to CFO Richard Bressler. Digital listening only makes up 10% of the market, the other 90% falling under broadcast radio. This statistic, however, only leaves the market more open to the iHeart Radio and its 269 million monthly subscribers. [12]

Finances

iHeart Media’s third quarterly report of 2016 shows a revenue of $847 million (a 2% increase from 2015). Even though their revenue increased, their income before depreciation was close to 2015 at $326 million. Registered users for their streaming application increased by 35 percent (75 million total users), and usage of their application increased by 21 percent in quarter three [13]. iHeart Media’s flat income comes from Clear Channel Outdoor Holdings, “one of the world’s largest outdoor advertising companies, operating in some 30 countries across North America, South America, Europe and Asia-Pacific,” which saw an OIBDAN decrease of 13 percent for their international market [14]. iHeartRadio needs its new streaming services, iHeart Radio All Access and Plus to do well so that it does not fall too far behind Pandora and Spotify. iHeart’s users equate to 14.4 percent of Pandora’s and 23.3 percent of Spotify’s [16]. Even though iHeart is lagging behind Spotify and Pandora, their new take and improvement of radio with iHeart Radio All Access could close the gap between its competitors.

Google.com iHeart Media inc. stock overview [19]

(11/29/16)[15] Current Share Price (11/29/16) : $1.57

52 Week Range : $0.72 – $1.70

Average Volume : 10,910

Sources

[1] IHeartMedia Incorporated [IHeartMedia logo]. (n.d.). Retrieved November 27, 2016, from http://mms.businesswire.com/media/20150408005285/en/437799/5/iHeartMedia-02.jpg?download=1

[2] “About Us.” About Us. IHeartMedia Inc., n.d. Web. 27 Nov. 2016.

[3]IHeart Company Family. Digital image. IHeartMedia. IHeartMedia Inc., n.d. Web. 27 Nov. 2016.

[4] Clear Communications Outdoor. Digital image. MediaVillage. MediaVillage, n.d. Web. 27 Nov. 2016.

[5]Sisario, Ben. “Clear Channel Renames Itself IHeartMedia in Nod to Digital.” The New York Times. The New York Times, 16 Sept. 2014. Web. 29 Nov. 2016.

[6]“Investor Relations for Clear Channel Outdoor Holdings (CCOH).” Clear Channel Outdoor Americas. Clear Channel Communications, n.d. Web. 27 Nov. 2016.

[7]Clear Channel Outdoor Holdings, Inc. Reports, and Results For 2016 Third Quarter. “Clear Channel Outdoors Earnings Call Q3.” CLEAR CHANNEL OUTDOOR HOLDINGS, INC. REPORTS RESULTS FOR 2016 THIRD QUARTER (2016): n. pag. IHeartMedia Inc. Clear Channel Communications, 9 Nov. 2016. Web. 27 Nov. 2016.

[8]Zedd – I Want You To Know Ft. Selena Gomez (Live at the Z100 IHeartRadio Jingle Ball 2015). Perf. Selena Gomez and Zedd. YouTube. Selena Gomez Canada, 12 Dec. 2015. Web. 27 Nov. 2016.

[9]“IHeartMedia Rings in the Holiday Season with the Return of Its Iconic 2016 National “iHeartRadio Jingle Ball Tour Presented by Capital One”.” IHeartMedia Rings in the Holiday Season with the Return of Its Iconic 2016 National “iHeartRadio Jingle Ball Tour Presented by Capital One” | Business Wire. BusinessWire, 11 Oct. 2016. Web. 29 Nov. 2016.

[10] IHeart Radio All Access Promo. Digital image. BetaNews. IHeartMedia Inc., n.d. Web. 27 Nov. 2016.

[11]McAlone, Nathan. “The Biggest Radio Powerhouse in the US Just Took Aim at Apple and Spotify with a New Service.” Business Insider. Business Insider, 23 Sept. 2016. Web. 29 Nov. 2016.

[12]“IHeartRadio Hits 92 Million – Radio Ink.” Radio Ink. RadioInk.com, 10 Nov. 2016. Web. 29 Nov. 2016.

[13] “IHeartMedia 2015 Third Quarter Results.” 1998.59 (1998): n. pag. IHeartMedia. IHeartMedia Inc., 5 Nov. 2016. Web. 27 Nov. 2016.

[14]“Outdoor Advertising.” Outdoor Advertising. IHeartMedia Inc., n.d. Web. 27 Nov. 2016.

[15]“IHRT Stock Quote – IHeartMedia Inc. Cl A Stock Price Today (IHRT:OTC) – MarketWatch.” MarketWatch. Marketwatch, 29 Nov. 2016. Web. 29 Nov. 2016.

[16]“Triton Digital – Press Release – Triton Digital Releases August 2015 Top 20 Ranker.” Triton Digital. Triton Digitial, n.d. Web. 27 Nov. 2016.

[17] Bob Pittman. Digital image. AdvertisingHall. Advertising Hall, n.d. Web. 27 Nov. 2016.

[18] “Our Team.” Our Team. IHeartMedia Inc., n.d. Web. 27 Nov. 2016.

[19] “Iheartmedia+stock – Google Search.” Iheartmedia+stock – Google Search. N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Nov. 2016.

iHeart Media

Posted on March 25, 2015 by Stephanie Zolan

by STEPH ZOLAN

iHeartMedia Logo. [1]

iHeartMedia Headquarters
200 East Basse Road
San Antonio, Texas, 78209
(210) 822-2828

Executives:

Bob Pittman, Chairman and CEO of iHeartMedia

Bob Pittman, Chairman & CEO [2]

Richard Bressler, President, CFO and CEO of iHeartMedia

Richard Bressler, President, CFO, & COO [2]

Wendy Goldberg, Executive Vice President and Chief Communications Officer

Wendy Goldberg, Executive Vice President & Chief Communications Officer [2]

Gayle Troberman, Executive Vice President and CMO [2]

John Sykes, President of Entertainment Enterprises [2]

History:

iHeartMedia began with the purchase of a single FM radio station by Lowry Mays and Red McComb under the name Clear Channel Communications. As the company progressed, they acquired not only more broadcast and digital radio stations, but also Clear Channel Outdoor. In addition, iHeartRadio was launched as a website in 2008, and now acts as a digital aggregator for radio brands. In 2014 the company officially rebranded as iHeartMedia in order to create a more cohesive and connected brand. iHeartMedia is now the largest mass media company in America. [3]

Radio:

iHeartMedia currently owns and operates over 850 broadcast radio stations in more than 150 United States markets. They have over 245 million listeners each month, making iHeartMedia the largest multi media company in the country. In addition, the company’s digital music service, iHeartRadio, allows users to create custom music stations. In January, the service exceeded 60 million registered users. [4]

iHeartMedia also operates Premiere Networks, which produces, distributes, or represents over 90 syndicated radio programs and services for more than 5,500 radio stations affiliates. [5] Some of the radio company’s syndicated programs are produced in house, which cater mostly to local markets. In addition to syndicated programming, iHeartMedia also produces Programming for iHeartMedia radio stations greatly varies in order to reach audiences in many different markets. The different radio formats include Alternative, Urban, Smooth Jazz, News talk, Sports talk, Adult Contemporary, Contemporary Hits, Country, Oldies and Classic Hits, Rock, Spanish, and Religious. [6]

Another technique iHeartMedia uses to draw in listeners, is employing trusted radio personalities. For example, On Air With Ryan Seacrest is a syndicated program that is available on over 150 radio stations across the country, and has made Seacrest a household name. [7] His home station, KIIS-FM in Los Angeles produced the most revenue of any United States station in 2014 earning $65.9 million. iHeartMedia continues to increase the awareness of their radio personalities through events. [8]

[9] One of the most well known radio personalities in the country.

Events:

iHeartMedia is more than just the largest owner of radio stations in the United States. The company also specializes in digital media, outdoor advertising, and event production. The national events are used to promote their top notch radio personalities as well as the most popular music on the radio.

[10] 2015 iHeartRadio Music Awards logo, from NBC.

Most recently, they hosted the iHeartRadio Music Awards. Musicians were not the only ones who brought home awards that night. The event itself won the Nielsen TV social ratings and the top trending show on Twitter for both the night and the entire week. During the promotional period and the show, The iHeartRadio Music Awards generated 14 billion social media impressions, which is a huge increase in comparison to last year’s 8.5 billion. [11] Local radio station personalities were engaging with viewers through social media, helping draw in the audience. This included live Twitter Periscope broadcasts of behind the scenes footage, and an iHeartAwards Snapchat Story that featured audience members, nominated artists, and radio host Ryan Seacrest. [12]

Clear Channel Outdoor Logo. [13]

Clear Channel Outdoor:

In addition to owning and operating radio stations and producing events, iHeartMedia also specializes in outdoor advertising. Clear Channel Outdoor Holdings is a subsidiary of iHeart, and is one of the largest outdoor advertising companies worldwide. They have over 640,000 displays including billboards, street furniture, retail advertising, airport advertising, transit advertising, and posters. Clear Channel Outdoor operates across 40 different countries. [14]

iHeartMedia in the Industry:

As a radio focused company, the main competitors for iHeartMedia are Cumulus Media and CBS Radio in the broadcast radio marketplace. SiriusXM has also become a competitor, and iHeartMedia has purchased two satellite stations of their own in order to expand into the satellite market. Since the company has also increased their digital presence with iHeartRadio, they now compete with Pandora and Spotify as well. [15] iHeartMedia’s ability to stand out is largely attributed to their availability across so many different platforms and formats. The scale of the company allows them to reach a large and diverse audience, and their creativity and tools enable iHeartMedia to effectively target their content and advertisements. [16]

Another factor is brand awareness. In December of 2014, iHeartRadio reached 75% brand awareness, which is a huge accomplishment considering they were at 10% only 5 years ago. iHeartRadio has over 500 million app downloads and 80 million social media followers. [17]

Aside from simply reaching such a large audience, iHeartMedia is able to analyze and more effectively monetize from their radio stations. On April 8^th, 2015 the company announced a partnership with the cloud-based advertisement platform, Jelli. Together, they will work to use technology to target their advertisements programmatically. By automating ad sales, it allows advertisers to make informed advertisement purchases. The system will use psychographics to determine groups that are related to music genres, weather and traffic patterns, and consumer purchase behavior. Advertisements have been programmatically sold online for the past 10 years, and iHeartMedia is now adapting the technique to be used with radio. [18]

Finances:

The majority of iHeartMedia’s revenue is derived from selling advertising times or placements on their radio stations or websites. Between 2013 and 2014, the company’s consolidated revenue increased by $75.5 million, from $6,243,044 to $6,318,533, with $29.9 million attributed to political advertising, traffic and weather, broadcast radio and digital revenues. Unfortunately, their revenue from americas outdoor advertising decreased by $37.3 million, mostly due to lower national account revenues and the nonrenewable airport contracts. [19]

Future:

The next move for the company, is the establishment of iHeartMedia SoundBoard. This entertainment studio will be used to connect brands with iHeartMedia’s available talent and radio personalities to create original audio, video, and experiential content. The studio is primarily audio focused since iHeartMedia is mainly a radio company, but everything that is produced will be accessible across all of iHeartMedia’s platforms including broadcast and digital radio, mobile apps, and live events. The success of this program will be made possible by iHeartMedia’s extensive connections and experience in the entertainment industry as well as the company’s knowledge of both consumers and brands. This development will introduce a new method of creating and distributing content to the market, which may have a large impact on the storytelling industry. When the iHeartMedia SoundBoard studio will launch has yet to be confirmed. [20]

Sources:

[1] IHeartMedia. Digital image. Brradio. Published September 16 2014. Retrieved April 17, 2015.

[2] iHeartMedia Corporate Team. iHeartMedia. Retrieved April 17, 2015

[3] Clear Channel Becomes IHeartMedia. iHeartMedia. Published September 16, 2014. Retrieved April 17, 2015.

[4] About iHeartMedia. iHeartMedia. Retrieved April 17, 2015.

[5] Hampp, Andrew. Clear Channel Changes Name to iHeartMedia. Billboard. Published September 16, 2014. Retrieved April 17, 2015.

[6] Station Search. iHeartMedia. Retrieved April 17, 2015.

[7] All Stations And Times. Tune In. Retrieved April 17, 2015.

[8] Overall U.S. Radio Industry Revenues Remain Steady at $14.9 Billion in 2014. BIAKelsey. Published April 1, 2015. Retrieved April 17, 2015.

[9] On Air With Ryan Seacrest Logo. The Drum. Retrieved April 17, 2015.

[10] iHeartRadio Awards Logo. NBC. Retrieved April 17, 2015.

[11] iHeartRadio Music Awards” Generates 14 billion Social Media Impressions. Digital Media Wire. Published April 1, 2015. Retrieved April 17, 2015.

[12] 2015 iHeartRadio Music Awards Generates More Than 14 Billion Social Impressions. Business Wire. Published April 6, 2015. Retrieved April 17, 2015.

[13] Clear Channel Outdoor Logo. Retrieved April 17, 2015.

[14] Company Overview. Clear Channel Outdoor. Retrieved April 17, 2015.

[15] iHeartRadio Grows Even More: How Will This Impact Sirius XM And Pandora? Seeking Alpha. Published June 27, 2012. Retrieved April 17, 2015.

[16] Sisario, Ben. Clear Channel Renames Itself iHeartMedia in Nod to Digital. The New York Times. Published September 16, 2014. Retrieved April 17, 2015.

[17] iHeart Media Surpasses 60 Million Registered Users Continuing to Demonstrate Accelerated Growth, Engagement and Strong Brand Awareness. Business Wire. Published January 23, 2015. Retrieved April 17, 2015.

[18] Marshall, Jack. iHeartMedia Will Sell Radio Ads Programmatically. Wall Street Journal. Published April 8, 2015. Retrieved April 17, 2015.

[19] iHeartMedia 2015 10-K. United States Securities and Exchange Commission. Published February 19, 2015. Accessed April 17, 2015.

[20] iHeartMedia Announces “iHeartMedia SoundBoard,” A New Multiplatform, Audio-Centric Branded Content Studio That Invites Brands, Talent and Fans To Join in Developing Original Productions. iHeartMedia. Published February 3, 2015. Retrieved April 17, 2015.

iHeartMedia INC.

Link

by Michael Rubloff

Contact Information:

iHeartMedia INC. 200 East Basse Road, San Antonio, Texas, 78209 (210) 822-2828

Company History

iHeartMedia INC. was founded in 1972 with the purchase of a first FM channel in San Antonio under the name of Clear Channel Communications. iHeartMedia expanded over the course of thirty years, and by 1995 owned forty-three radio stations. However, with the Telecommunications Act of 1996, iHeartMedia radically expanded and added several stations. Currently, iHeartMedia owns eight hundred-fifty radio stations in the United States that reaches 150 markets. In September 2014, Clear Channel Communications rebranded itself as iHeartMedia INC. [1]

Clear Channel Logo [2]

iHeartMedia INC. logo [3]

On September 16th, 2014 Clear Channel made a massive commitment to the future by rebranding to iHeartMedia INC. The former name Clear Channel was derived from an AM channel and is no longer relevant. iHeartRadio however, is a massive source of entertainment for millions of people. iHeartMedia better reflects what Clear Channel had built and its goals for the future. iHeartMedia also felt that its name was not well known compared to other services such as Spotify and Pandora even though iHeartRadio provided millions of people everyday with entertainment. This move was made in order to make the brand and the product more synonymous with each other.

Corporate Leaders:

Robert Pittman, Chairman and CEO of iHeartMedia INC. [2]

Robert Pittman, Chairman and CEO of iHeartMedia INC. [4]

Richard J. Bressler, President and CFO of iHeartMedia INC. [2]

Richard J. Bressler, President and CFO of iHeartMedia INC. [4]

Wendy Goldberg, Executive Vice President and CCO of iHeartMedia INC. [4]

Gayle Troberman, Executive Vice President and CMO of iHeartMedia INC. [4]

John Sykes, President of Entertainment Enterprises of iHeartMedia INC. [4]

Financials:

iHeartMedia is a publically traded company in the OTC market (IHRT). Over the past year the stock has remained relatively stable with a year low of $6.10 and a high at $9.40. The high occurred in the week after the announcement of the rebranding to iHeartMedia.[5] Previously, the ticker for Clear Channel was CCO. In its third quarter report, iHeartMedia reported that revenues were up three percent to 1.6 billion dollars. [6]

Past Six Months of Stock Values of iHeartMedia [3]

Past Six Months of Stock Values of iHeartMedia [5]

Competitors:

iHeartMedia’s long-standing rivals have been CBS Radio and Cumulus Media. However, in the past ten years with the emergence of Satellite Radio, Sirius XM has taken over as iHeartMedia’s biggest rival in terms of revenue. iHeartMedia has permeated SiriusXM, as two of the stations featured on SiriusXM, Z100 and Kiis 102.7, are owned by iHeartMedia.

Pandora Logo [7]

Now that iHeartMedia is putting a focus on its online music service, iHeartRadio, it now competes with Spotify, Pandora, iTunes Radio, and Google Play. In this field iHeartRadio has a great deal of catching up to do as Spotify and Pandora dominate the online streaming market.

However, iHeartMedia has an advantage over its competitors because it crosses over multiple platforms. For instance, Other radio giants such as Cumulus or Sirius are limited to their radio stations. On the other hand, Pandora and Spotify are limited to their apps or their website. iHeartMedia is able to cross between these two platforms in order to better serve their customers desires. Because of this, it is able to capitalize on where its competitors are limited.

Events:

iHeartMedia is known for its excellence in creating live events directly catered to specific demographics. On October 2nd, it announced the first ever iHeartRadio Fiesta Latina, a massive concert aimed at Latin music fans.[8] It took place on November 22nd, and was a massive success. This experimental event seems to have been a good investment for iHeartMedia as their Spanish and English radio stations reach “93 percent of Hispanics monthly” [9].

iHeartRadio Fiesta Latina logo [10]

The Fiesta Latina is the newest addition to iHeartMedia’s collection of live events including the Jingle Ball Concert Tour, Country Festival, and the iHeartRadio Music Festival. While it remains to be seen if the Fiesta Latina will be made into an annual event, it most likely will given its success. One week later, on October 9th, the lineups and locations of the iHeartRadio Jingle Ball Tour were announced. This annual tour has become one of the year’s most exciting events. The tour will begin on Sunday, November 30th and finish on Monday, December 22nd. This event is supposed to cater to listeners of the top40 stations on iHeartRadio and reflect what listeners want to see. This year the New York City concert will be streamed exclusively on Yahoo.com for fans who are unable to attend.[11]

October 2014:

October was a busy month for iHeartMedia as it made several business announcements. On October 7th, iHeartMedia announced a $200 million partnership with Omnicom to develop a multi platform device that will give insight into iHeartMedia’s events as well as technologies.[12]

While this will help Omnicom better target customers, the real winner is iHeartMedia. This deal is dangerous for iHeartMedia’s competitors because this project will allow iHeartMedia to see how it can improve on its multi platform features. Essentially, iHeartMedia will continue to widen the gap between what Pandora and Cumulus are able to do. This will help iHeartMedia become a more versatile company and extend its already industry leading reach.[12]

The next day on October 8th, iHeartRadio announced that it would be available on Android Wear beginning on October 15th. This represents another step forward for the integration of iHeartRadio in technology as iHeartRadio had already announced integration with “Amazon’s Fire Phone, Amazon’s Fire TV, Android Auto, Google’s Chromecast, Apple’s CarPlay, Samsung’s Gear 2 Smartwatch, Qualcomm’s AllPlay and new auto partnerships with Subaru, AT&T Drive, GM, Jaguar Land Rover, Kia and Volvo” [13] earlier this year. By spreading across to different manufacturers, iHeartMedia makes itself more accessible, convenient, and well known. This strategy is directly reflective of the rebranding because it exposes more users to the services provided by iHeartMedia.

iHeartMedia did not stop there. On October 15th, Gayle Troberman was named the Chief Marketing Officer of iHeartMedia. This is a new role created with the intention to “connect them (iHeartMedia) more closely to consumers, helping integrate the company’s brands, products and platforms even more deeply into consumers’ daily lives.” [14] This is necessary after the rebranding because it will decrease the amount of time needed for consumers to become familiar with the iHeartMedia brand. This is a fantastic idea and could pay off exponentially for iHeartMedia in the coming years. iHeartMedia is doing a fantastic job of identifying what it needs to improve and is taking logical steps to ensure it remains an industry leader.

What’s in the future:

In the next year, iHeartMedia hopes to continue to reach more customers through social media, live events, and radio. It hopes that its customers will become familiar with the iHeartMedia brand and be able to connect it to popular music events, radio stations, and the iHeartMusic application.

iHeartMedia has embraced the change that is coming to the industry and appears to pioneering the way for other companies to follow it. While the long term effects of rebranding remain to be seen, it has initially been successful. In the next half year, look for iHeartMedia’s competitors to try and catch up with the ability to move across platforms.

Resources

[1] Clear Channel Becomes iHeartMedia. Published September 16, 2014. Accessed November 22nd.

[2] Clear Channel Logo. Published June 26, 2012. Accessed November 29th.

[3] iHeartMedia INC. Logo. Date Published N/A. Accessed November 29th.

[4] Corporate Team. Date Published N/A. Accessed November 22nd.

[5] Stock Information. Updated Daily. Accessed November 29th.

[6] Financial Report. Published October 28th, 2014. Accessed November 22nd.

[7] Pandora Logo. Date Published N/A. Accessed November 22nd.

[8] iHeartMedia Fiesta Latina Announcement. Published October 2nd, 2014. Accessed October 30th.

[9] iHeartMedia Factsheet. Date Published N/A. Accessed November 22nd.

[10] iHeartRadio Fiesta Latina Logo. Published November 22nd. Accessed November 29th

[11] Jingle Ball Tour. Published October 9th. Accessed November 22nd.

[12] iHeart Media Omnicom Partnership. Published October 7th, 2014. Accessed November 22nd.

[13] iHeartRadio Android Wear Integration. Published October 8th, 2014. Accessed November 22nd.

[14] Gayle Troberman named iHeartMedia’s Chief Marketing Officer. Published October 15, 2014. Accessed November 22nd.

Cumulus

Posted on April 8, 2013 by Joshua Campbell

by Josh Campbell

Cumulus Media, Inc.

3280 Peachtree Road, NW Suite 2300
Atlanta, Georgia 30305
TEL. (404) 949-0700
FAX. (404) 949-0740 [1]

Cumulus Media Logo [2]

1.0 Company Overview

Cumulus Media Inc. is the largest “pure-play” radio company in the United States, with roughly 550 stations in 110 cities, including major markets such as San Francisco, Houston, and Dallas. [3][4] Cumulus Media also operates Cumulus Media Networks, a network with over 4,500 radio affiliates to which Cumulus provides content [5]. Cumulus Media Networks syndicates talk shows by popular personalities like Dr. Sanjay Gupta, Mike Huckabee, Michael Savage, and Geraldo. [6] In addition to its radio holdings, Cumulus Media also owns SweetJack, a daily deals service similar to Groupon. [7] Cumulus is using its extensive radio network to market the relatively new SweetJack. [8]

2.0 Key People

Lewis W. Dickey [10]

Chairman, President, and CEO–Lewis Dickey: Lewis W. Dickey received his bachelor’s from Stanford University, and an MBA from Harvard University. In addition to serving in his current capacity at Cumulus Media, Mr. Dickey is also on the Board of Directors of the North American Broadcasting Co. and National Association of Broadcasters. [9]

Director–Alexis Glick: Alexis Glick received her bachelor’s degree from Columbia University and was previously employed as a Principal by CNBC, Inc., and as Vice President of Fox Business Network. [11]

3.0 Financials

3.1 Income Statement [12]

(2012): Revenue: $1,076,600,000 (+51.67%)

Gross Profit: $415,100,000 (+51.13%)

(2011): Revenue: $520,000,000 (+54.50%)

Gross Profit: $203,700,000 (+54.39%)

(2010): Revenue: $236,600,000 (-8.12%)

Gross Profit: $92,900,000 (+2.69%)

Cumulus Media has had several good years, with both revenue and gross profit rising by roughly fifty percent in 2012 and 2011. Much of this increase is likely due to a number of acquisitions that Cumulus has made recently, most notably its takeover of Citadel Broadcasting Corporation. [13] Cumulus is doing well when compared with what is arguably its biggest competitor, Clear Channel. Clear Channel Communications (CCC), while dwarfing Cumulus in revenue, earning $6,246,884 in 2012, lost money last year, pulling in a net income of -$425,500,000. [14]

3.2 Stock History and Target

Cumulus Media (NASDAQ: CMLS) started the year 2013 at 2.66, and has since risen to 3.28 as of April 5, 2013. On April 9, 2012, approximately this time last year, Cumulus Media was traded at 3.32. [15] This shows CMLS stock to be relatively stable in the long term, though there were some fluctuations in the short term. On November 27, Cumulus dipped to 2.16, its low point of this past year (Apr 2012-Apr 2013). Cumulus Media’s target for the end of the year 2013 is a stock price of 4.00. [16]

As a comparison, Clear Channel Communications (OTCBB: CCMO) is currently traded at 2.80. CCC’s stock price has decreased from a year ago, when it was traded at roughly 5.25. Over the past year, Clear Channel’s stock price has fluctuated to a far greater extent than that of Cumulus Media, hitting a high of 6.2 in late April and a low of 1.2 in late July [17]

4.0 Recent Activity

4.1 January

The beginning of 2013 saw legendary New York DJ Don Imus’s old contract with Cumulus expire. However, the well-known personality stayed on the air under new conditions specified in a deal inked with Cumulus in mid-December of 2012. [18]

Nash 94.7 Logo [23]

Possibly the company’s most publicized decision this year, the purchase of WFME from Family Stations for $40,000,000 allowed Cumulus to rebrand the previously religious station as NASH 94.7, a country music station–the first to serve the major New York City area in many years. [19][20] The station has proven that there was a latent market in NYC for country music; by March, NASH was already averaging 1 million listeners each week. [21] Cumulus CEO Lew Dickey has stated that he hopes NASH 94.7 will be just the start of a “multimedia entertainment brand” including not only radio, but also television, online, and publishing. He stated that this will help draw advertisers to the brand by offering one stop shopping for cohesive advertising on all platforms. [22]

4.2 February

Cumulus Media Networks signed a deal to distribute college football broadcasts by Gino Torretta, a former college athlete who currently provides play-by-play and commentary on a college football game each week. [24]

4.3 March

In March, 2013, Cumulus Media had its earning call for Q4 2012, which showed the net income of the company dip slightly, as many analysts had predicted. [25][26][27] Despite this, the stock price of Cumulus Media did not decrease significantly. [28]

4.4 April

In April, 2013, it was reported that the Senior Vice President, Treasurer, and CFO of Cumulus Media, Joseph P. Hannan, purchased 25,000 shares of Cumulus stock at the market price of $3.30 per share. This most recent purchase increases his total holdings in the company to 70,943 shares. [29] Insiders in Cumulus Media tend to buy CMLS stock in far greater quantities and with far greater frequency than competing company’s executives buy their respective company’s stock. This is seen as a good sign by many analysts. [30]

5.0 Future Plans

Lewis Dickey, the CEO of Cumulus Media, recently conducted a series of interviews with Bloomberg TV about the future of Cumulus Media and of the radio industry in general. Mr. Dickey was excited about the future of SweetJack, the previously mentioned daily deals service that Cumulus Media just started offering. Cumulus is optimistic about the future of SweetJack, believing that the “daily-deals” style business model is essentially a sound one. Cumulus has partnered with Clear Channel to air ads for SweetJack on the latter’s stations as well as Cumulus’s own affiliates. [31]

Cumulus hopes SweetJack will allow them to tap into the daily deals market [35]

Dickey also stated that he believes the radio industry is headed towards more consolidation of ownership, made possible by the Telecommunications Act of 1996. Responding to that trend in the industry, Cumulus is planning new acquisitions in the near future. [32] Cumulus industry has been keen on acquiring stations in the past, having orchestrated over 150 acquisitions since their founding in 1997, including the 2011 buyouts of Cumulus Media Partners, LLC and Citadel Broadcasting, which added 32 and 225 stations to Cumulus’s total amount, respectively. [33][34]

The future looks bright for Cumulus Media; The estimated earnings growth for the next fiscal year for Cumulus, at 83.9% are the highest among several large communications companies, including Discovery Communications, Scripps Communications, and CBS. [36][37]

Sources:

[1] http://www.cumulus.com/contact-us/

[2] http://www.allaccess.com/assets/img/editorial/raw/cu/cumulus2011.JPG

[3] http://www.cumulus.com/local-radio-2/

[4] http://www.cjr.org/resources/?c=cumulus

[5] http://www.cumulus.com/cumulus-media-network/

[6] http://affiliates.cumulusmedianetworks.com/

[7] http://www.sweetjack.com/local/

[8] http://www.clarkhoward.com/news/clark-howard/shopping-retail/sweetjack-heats-daily-deal-marketplace/nF3qr/

[9] http://quotes.wsj.com/CMLS/company-people/executive-profile/115649131?mod=WSJ_qtpeople_dir#less

[10] http://sportsrantz.com/media/files/2012/10/Dickey.png

[11] http://quotes.wsj.com/CMLS/company-people/executive-profile/66954?mod=WSJ_qtpeople_dir#less