Saw this want ad...

BEND, OR - KMGX Morning Show Talent
KMGX, Magic 100.7, AC - Morning Show Air Talent....

The Bend Radio Group is a privately owned, 5-station cluster......

Given the size of the market, could each of the five stations in this cluster be profitable as a stand alone, or do they need the shared facilities to make it work? While I use Bend as the example for the thread, this is a more general question.

If clustering is the way radio survives, then can't you conceivably cram the dial with 1000 watt market specific stations, and do away with higher powered regionals. You can pick up Seattle and PDX signals way out of the region, but KIRO certainly doesn't do business in Centralia, Nor does CKLW generate revenue from Cleveland, or the hundrreds of other examples you could think of...........

Sorry,I was bored and thought I would throw this out for discussion..............

So, Roger, apply for that job yet?

Long ago, KGO had a 26 share at night in Portland and sold advertising here! I remember hearing one for a shop on NE 82nd Avenue near Madison High School. This is an example I'm aware of, meaning there were probably others and if so, it's possible that some still exist.

Wannabe, that wasn't the question......

no, I didn't.... I'm just a looky lou now......

The question is if you dismantled clusters, how many stations could survive as stand alones, would it result in spreading stations into "underserved" communities. Some towns had their own stations then lost them to clustering.

Was it because of necessity, or just chasing bigger dollars... I lean toward the latter, at least is many cases.......

IMHO, the result would be fewer stations, I don't know haw many fewer though. I don't think it would be half.

It's all about scale and how over valued the stations are. These factors impact economies of scale. Material things and processes generally scale nicely --it's people that don't do that so well.

Where you have bigger pools of people, you end up with processes and people you don't technically need to get the work done. This is because people cause trouble, are messy, don't always behave in a repeatable way, etc...

That's the why, clusters and the state of people is the way it is. Automation, etc... are all part of maintaining some margin that makes sense.

One other factor --and this is a biggie, but not always considered is the very longer term competetive landscape. Once dollars are flowing, those they are flowing to generally want to keep them flowing. Control then is paramount in the very longer term.

By clustering, merging and litigating / legislating, the larger players --or the more substantial players, can exert control over both the market rules of engagement

(witness the attempts at broadcasters rights on the Internet, non neutral Internet, restricted playlists that favor large interests and their investments, etc...)

,and

diminish competition.

Having to compete also brings with it extra people and processes not technical necessary to get the job done.

These things together impact cost and return on investment. Higher returns may be possible doing these things, but they are not certian to happen and where there is risk, there is cost.

All of that considered explains the structure we have today, with the clusters, high degree of automation, low diversity, low head count.

If the public interest is considered, then competition and rules of engagement designed to prevent scaling en masse, deliver a product and service that is evolving nicely, at a low cost to us. It does not deliver the biggest dollars and the most steady rate of return.

When the public interest no longer mattered, and I don't know just how that happened, but it did, the focus ended up on cost and ROI. So here we are!

Excellent analysis....Though surely there are execs who would dispute your statements...

I do believe that there would be fewer stations, though once the shakeout was underway, I believe there would be more attempts at putting a "new" one on the air. While an overpriced spinoff might not be viable, a new sign-on might be worth the risk in an abandoned market.

Just speculating, then again, kind of pointless to bring it up.

Here's a safe topic.....

So, what is everyone's favorite headphones?

I would love to see those disputes put somewhere point by point.