Headlines
U.S. Local Radio Revenue’s 2025 Projections Revealed
The projected local radio ad revenue for 2025 is estimated to reach $12.3 billion, encompassing both over-the-air and digital radio. That’s according to data released Wednesday from the RAB, based on BIA Advisory Services’ latest U.S. Local Advertising Forecast.
BIA
Local Radio Holds Top 5 Spot in $171B US Ad Market, Says BIA
Local radio continues to hold its place as the fifth-largest advertising medium in the $171 billion local US ad marketplace.
Mergers & Acquisitions
Deal Digest: Woodward Communications Closes Springfield Deal
Educational Media Foundation has filed a $4.35 million deal to buy variety KDHX (88.1) from Double Helix.
Imagicomm Selling Seven Stations To Rincon
The stations are KAYU-TV, Spokane, Wash.; KFFX-TV Pendleton, Ore.; KCYU-LD Yakima, Wash.; KYMA-DT Yuma, Ariz.; KOKI-TV Tulsa, Okla.; KMYT-TV, Tulsa, Okla.; and WHBQ-TV Memphis.
FCC
NAB Urges FCC to Allow Software-Based EAS
The NAB is requesting the Federal Communications Commission make changes to Emergency Alert System (EAS) rules that would allow but not require EAS participants to use software-based EAS encoder/decoder (endec) technology instead of a legacy physical hardware device to process EAS messages.
Television
Road To NAB: Fits And Starts Mark NextGen TV, RF Advances
ATSC 3.0 remains “a fickle subject” according to vendors, who will arrive in Las Vegas next week amid a mix of gains and stalled ground for the technology.
The End Of Free TV? Broadcasters Quietly Plot An Exit From Over-The-Air Television
This week’s legal petition by HC2 Broadcasting Holdings Inc., the largest owner of low-power television (LPTV) stations in the United States, to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) marks a troubling moment for the future of broadcast television.
Verticals
Auto Tariffs Could Bring Higher Prices, Reduced Ad Spending
The automotive industry accounted for more than $14 billion in measured media last year (according to MediaRadar), but looming tariffs pursued by the Trump administration are poised to reshape the landscape considerably — and not necessarily for the better.