Industry News

MIAMI — It is being described as “the first-ever studio in Hispanic media exclusively dedicated to serving the growing Latino streaming audiences in the US and around the world.”

And, it is the creation of NBCUniversal Telemundo Enterprises.

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For the first time, audio media company Audacy is taking part in the IAB NewFronts. Additionally, it will have a presence at the IAB Podcast Upfronts.

At each event, the company formerly known as Entercom will preview the latest in digital content and podcast programming.

Audacy says it will be the lone “audio-only company” at NewFronts; Estrella Media was present.

For David Field, Susan Larkin and the Audacy C-Suite, it offers an opportunity for the company “to reinforce the power of audio to move business (or for advertisers)” and —importantly — to reintroduce itself to the industry under its new brand.

Audacy Chief Marketing Officer Paul Suchman noted, “At this year’s IAB events, we will demonstrate the unique ability of sound to connect, immerse, captivate and engage audiences like no other medium.”

The Audacy IAB NewFront virtual presentation was scheduled for, May 5 at 3:15pm Eastern. Virtual experiences from Audacy’s Cadence13, Pineapple Street Studios, and Podcorn companies will be seen at the IAB Podcast Upfronts, scheduled for May 13 at 12:50pm Eastern.

Audacy’s NewFront presentation will open with spoken word artist, poet and 2020 winner of “America’s Got Talent,” Brandon Leake. It closes with a performance by Hot Adult Contemporary chart act AJR.

Audacy’s Podcast Upfront presentation will showcase exclusive launches from Cadence13 and Pineapple Street Studios. This will include global superstar Demi Lovato discussing her forthcoming podcast with Cadence13; Ghostwriter, an upcoming C13Feature from Cadence13’s pioneering scripted studio focused on feature-length fictionalized audio “movies for your ears;” a look at the 2021 audio documentary slate from the Peabody-nominated C13Originals studio; Crooked Media co-founder Jon Lovett on Pod Save America in 2021; and Pineapple Street Studios’ upcoming slate of original series and its branded podcasts from partners including HBO, Netflix, and Nike.

Presentations will also showcase Podcorn’s influencer marketplace, a self-and full-service platform for brands to connect with independent influential podcast creators for native advertising.

“We’re seeing that digital audio campaigns are working harder when a total audio strategy is utilized – across the board – whether the goals are web visitation, sales, or brand lift,” said Ken Lagana, EVP/Digital Sales at Audacy. “Audacy helps brands and agencies take full advantage of a multi-channel ‘total audio’ strategy. Our proposition will resonate well with audiences at the IAB events. It’s easy to buy an impression, but it’s much harder to make an impression. Audacy excels at making an impression by delivering the most engaged audiences at scale.”

Radio and TV broadcast antenna and RF support equipment maker Dielectric has appointed Dan Glavin as its new western region sales manager. He succeeds Steve Moreen.

Glavin will be responsible for sales west of the Mississippi River. He’ll report to Vice President of Sales Jay Martin.

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According to a release, Glavin started with the company in 2018 as an electrical engineer and expanded that job with outstanding performance. Martin pointed to that in the selection of Glavin for the job. “The ability to identify product requirements and respond in a technical capacity is key to this position, and Dan’s level of problem-solving expertise is rare among field sales,” said Martin. It is also noted that he is fluent in Spanish.

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HHB Communications is now the primary distributor for Comrex in the United Kingdom.

“The strength of HHB’s reseller relationships in the UK, Scotland and Ireland and their focus on

customer service make them an exceptional choice to distribute Comrex products,” said Comrex Sales Director Chris Crump in the announcement, made jointly with HHB Head of Sales Matthew Fletcher.

Comrex was incorporated in 1961 and is known for its audio and video codecs, telco interfaces and related products.

[Read more of our recent coverage of Comrex news and products.]

HHB Communications was founded in 1976 and serves pro audio solutions to broadcasters, recording studios, post facilities, and system integrators. Consultation, training and installation are among its services.

The post Comrex Names HHB Its Primary UK Distributor appeared first on Radio World.

Group One Ltd. named James Tunnicliffe as technical support engineer for Calrec products in the United States.

He will be based in Newark, N.J., and report to CEO Jack Kelly and Group One Vice President of Broadcast and Production Chris Fichera.

“In his new role, he will be responsible for providing phone- and IP-based product troubleshooting and repair coordination, onsite service and maintenance calls, system design assistance and trainings, and liaising with Calrec’s headquarters in Hebden Bridge, England,” the company said.

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Group One Ltd. is a U.S. importer and distributor for professional audio and lighting manufacturers including Calrec, whose products include radio consoles.

Tunnicliffe is a former Studer applications specialist with Harman Pro North America and also worked as a field service engineer and product specialist for Euphonix. Prior to those roles he was with Design FX Audio in Burbank and Westlake Audio in Hollywood.

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The post Group One Hires Tunnicliffe for Calrec Support appeared first on Radio World.

Sinclair Broadcast Group has turned to broadcast management company Operative Media for an effort the ATSC 3.0 pioneer believes will “transform the way local and national media is transacted across all digital and linear platforms throughout the industry.”

A multi-year enterprise partnership agreement has been executed, one that will see Sinclair become the first local television broadcaster to consolidate all sellable assets across its platforms and markets into a single ad sales system, creating a unified brand experience for customers and sellers.

The deal calls for Sinclair to use Operative’s advertising sales management technology platform, AOS, to facilitate the movement of all of its inventory types (linear and digital) to a common impression-based currency.

Operative’s AOS platform automates workflows across planning, order management, inventory management, stewardship and billing, driving efficiency into the way Sinclair works internally across its portfolio and externally with its customers.

This will support Sinclair’s current products, such as Compulse 360 and ZypTV.

“We already provide a unique opportunity for marketers to engage consumers of all kinds, and Operative’s technology will further consolidate and simplify our sales process,” said Rob Weisbord, President of Broadcast & Chief Advertising Revenue Officer of Sinclair. “It will bring this concept to our markets in a way that is easily managed by our various sellers and the portfolios of inventory they represent. It will provide them flexibility to dynamically manage audience and spend allocations across Sinclair’s broad asset catalog.”

As Sinclair sees it, the introduction of yield tools helps deliver improved outcomes for both Sinclair and their customers by optimizing inventory utilization, delivery and make goods.

“This is an opportunity to align our proven track record in the broadcast industry with Operative’s technological expertise, to create a simple solution that we believe will change the way advertisers connect with consumers across all devices,” Sinclair Chief Information Officer Brian Bark said. “This new platform will empower advertisers with the ability to optimize campaigns across Sinclair’s distinguished portfolio of content, while altering the way the industry does business — paving the way for other media companies in the process.”

Estrella Media, the fast-growing reborn Hispanic-focused multimedia company formerly known as LBI Media, has selected Google Ad Manager for monetizing its live and on demand streaming TV platforms.

The Burbank, Calif.-based company calls the move “another important step” in its digital transformation and expansion of its content distribution in the streaming and digital universe.

More at www.hispanicradioconference.com

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WASHINGTON, D.C. — Another Congressional session, another statement against additional royalty fees levied against broadcast radio stations for the music it plays over-the-air.

A bipartisan coalition of 77 members of the House of Representatives and eight Senators have joined together to introduce resolutions in both bodies of Congress that oppose “any new performance fee, tax, royalty, or other charge” on AM or FM radio in the U.S.

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On April 13, Grupo Televisa, S.A.B. and Univision Holdings shared for the first time that they plan to merge, with Miami-based Univision — thanks, in part, to Google — making the binational deal happen.

Now, Univision is going to the bond market to finance the deal.

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Aug. 11 will be the date of the first national EAS test since before the pandemic began.

Officials at the Federal Emergency Management Agency officially informed the Federal Communications Commission on Tuesday that it plans its sixth national EAS test on that day. They also plan to conduct a nationwide Wireless Emergency Alert (WEA) test concurrently.

As in the past, FEMA set a backup date in case a national test on Aug. 11 might interfere with actual alerting needs in the country around that time. The backup is Aug. 25.

Al Kenyon, chief of the Customer Support Branch of the IPAWS Program Office, wrote to the FCC that FEMA plans to conduct the Aug. 11 test at 2:20 p.m. EDT (18:20 GMT).

[Read: FCC Releases Results of 2019 National EAS Test]

“The test message will use the National Periodic Test (NPT) event code and be geo-targeted using the All-US (000000) geocode,” Kenyon wrote.

“This year FEMA proposes to originate the EAS portion of the test via the National Public Warning System composed of the FEMA designated Primary Entry Point (PEP) facilities. The intent of conducting the test in this fashion is to determine the capability of the Emergency Alert System to deliver messages to the public in event that dissemination via internet is not available.”

In the most recent national test in 2019, several PEPs did not transmit the alert due to varying degrees of equipment failures. Out of 77 PEP stations, 12 experienced technical issues on test day, according to a post-test FCC report.

Kenyon said that in the upcoming test, full message text and multilingual messaging will not be available due to the over-the-air message delivery and relay used in this system of EAS message dissemination.

“As in past years the national EAS test message will look and sound very much like the regular Required Monthly Test (RMT) messages broadcast every month by all EAS Participants, broadcast radio and television, cable, wireline service providers and direct broadcast satellite service providers,” he continued.

“Concurrent with the proposed 2021 National EAS Test, FEMA also proposes to originate a Nationwide Wireless Emergency Alert (WEA) test by originating a WEA message using the WEA test handling code targeting only cellphones where the user has opted-in to receive WEA test messages.”

An FCC analysis of the 2019 test found that 82% of radio stations participated that year.

While that test generally was deemed a success, the FCC said in its post-test report that some challenges impeded the ability of some EAS participants to receive and/or retransmit the NPT.

Some participants reported problems with equipment configuration, audio quality, alerting source problems and clock errors, among other issues. More than 2,530 test participants didn’t receive the test at all.

Other issues in 2019 included audio issues, power issues, signal issues, internet issues and even lightning — 20 participants reported issues caused by bolts of electricity.

Also, several State Emergency Communications Committees reported that certain areas of their states did not receive the alert. SECCs in Florida, Michigan and Georgia reported delivery problems to the Primary Entry Point (PEP) stations. The FCC also received reports of smaller-scale monitoring source issues in parts of several other states.

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