[BC] Changes at CBS?

[Mark Durenberger]

You're partially correct about the team relationship issues, Mike, but as 
with all stories there are several other 'sides' that probably won't see the 
light of day.  There were team concerns with the broadcasts (particularly 
clutter and production values)which in some cases could have been worked 
out, had not a couple of the stations taken their relationship for granted.

Mark Durenberger


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Mike McCarthy" <Towers at mre.com>
To: "Broadcasters' Mailing List" <broadcast at radiolists.net>
Sent: Saturday, March 17, 2007 8:34 AM
Subject: Re: [BC] Changes at CBS?


> Be careful there.  I'm not going to suggest Joel didn't make some bad 
> decisions. But...there are two issues here
>
> MLB has been playing with broadcast rights for some time and essentially 
> usurped the team's "rights" to control the exclusive radio broadcasts when 
> they did a deal with XM requiring the feeds be sent to XM.  MLB actually 
> took a cue from the NBA which did this about 10 years ago when they took 
> control of the broadcast rights of all their TV games in response to super 
> stations WGN and WTBS carrying the Bulls and Hawks (and Cubs and Braves) 
> whenever they wanted and against other teams broadcasts.
>
> Everyone to the manager has balked about both situation and many stations 
> have walked away from long term relationships because they no longer have 
> an exclusive franchise and will loose money in new deals. In many cases, 
> the stations have decided the legal extortion the teams are exerting is 
> also not worth the revenue they generate. WBBM's broadcasts of the Bears 
> is SO cluttered with live reads that you have to wonder if there is a game 
> being played because the rights fees are so high.  The pre/post games show 
> have no less than 20 minutes of spots per hour and is no different in many 
> NFL markets. KDKA and WCCO didn't want to pay the astronomical rights 
> fees.
>
> Additionally, in the case of KMOX, the TEAM bought into a station and 
> decided to end the deal with KMOX. The station really didn't have a say in 
> the matter. The same is true in Washington and the Redskins. The teams are 
> realizing they have the resources to produce the broadcasts and simply 
> feed them to desirable affiliates if they don't already have interests in 
> the licensees. Case in point, we do the deal with the White Sox for their 
> games and THEY provide the satellite receiver.
>
> As for Hollender, this really doesn't surprise me.  He took two well cash 
> flowing cows and turned them into dead sticks with the conversion of the 
> oldies format to Jack in Chicago and NYC.  CBS has a 2nd station full 
> market station here which is really fallen to what is considered to be a 
> 2nd tier running lots of brokered programming when it's not running the 
> "Free-FM" format of Opie and Anthony, et al. It was at one time a classic 
> rocker with a 3 share doing 8 digits.
>
> Final note...Hollender inherited a sinking ship from Mel.  Mel ran the 
> station group with such an iron fist (in more ways than one) that stations 
> were under funded and lacking for essential promotional campaigns (among 
> other things) that in the end resulted in declining ratings.  Mel also 
> didn't consolidate the stations in the same manner CC (and others) did as 
> they moved/consolidated studios, offices, and transmitter sites. Mel 
> wanted each station to be functionally separate with only a few common 
> players, such as market or cluster managers. (Thus if a deal came along, 
> the separation process would not be painful to the remaining stations.)
>
> In the end, that proved to be a bad strategic decision as we have found 
> the cost to build out after a sale is announced is far less than 
> sustaining long term duplicative operations. Especially in today's world 
> of easy importing digital quality audio from afar, switcher based studios, 
> IP phones, etc.  One can find space and build something to commence 
> operations in a few months.  Whereas years ago, it would have taken a year 
> or more to build and split.
>
> Hollander started to correct that error, but the configuration of the 
> stations made it difficult to consolidate operations, thus keeping 
> operating costs high. Here in Chicago, all the CBS stations have separate 
> studios on sometimes separate floors and sometimes buildings.  That and 
> you have two distinct technical operations...union and non-union. Union at 
> the legacy original O&O stations and non-union at the stations they have 
> acquired in the past 20 years.
>
> So...in a nut shell...he in part dug his own grave. In others, the coffin 
> was already open.  I don't have any envy for the person who would replace 
> him.  It is not going to be a simple job to operate/navigate that ship 
> through the end of the Mel era leases.
>
> MM
>
> At 10:28 PM 3/16/2007 -0500, Mark Durenberger wrote
>>Not to mention what he did to help disrupt three major sports 
>>relationships: KMOX, WCCO, KDKA, who collectively had more than 150 years 
>>of partnerships with major league baseball teams.
>>
>>Mark Durenberger
>>
>>
>>----- Original Message ----- From: "Gary Blau" <gblau at w3am.com>
>>To: "Broadcasters' Mailing List" <broadcast at radiolists.net>
>>Sent: Friday, March 16, 2007 10:16 PM
>>Subject: Re: [BC] Changes at CBS?
>>
>>
>>>IMHO, how he lasted this long after tanking so many major stations and
>>>so much revenue and having no major successes remains a mystery.  I can
>>>only assume I'm stupid.
>>>
>>>g
>>>
>>>Reader wrote:
>>>
>>>>It looks like Joel Hollander may be on the way out.
>>>>
>>>>The first result of search on the NY Post site was "Hollander for
>>>>Less. Looking for Hollander?"
>>>>
>>>>http://www.nypost.com/seven/03162007/business/hollander_grew_sick_of_moonves_radio_ga_ga_business_peter_lauria.htm
>
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