Headlines
Google Previews What's Next in Local Search, Shopping & Local Media
Google I/O is often a preview of the near future (and far future, sometimes). This year’s show spotlighted the many ways AI is taking over search and local business discovery.
Mergers & Acquisitions
Station Trading Roundup: 1 Deal, $431,180
The purchase of WWAY Wilmington, N.C., by Morris Multimedia tops the latest list of TV station transactions submitted to the FCC for its approval, according to BIA Advisory Services.
Walmart acquires Vibe.co amid stronger push into connected TV advertising
Less than two years after closing on its $2 billion deal to acquire smart television maker Vizio, Walmart is making another concerted push into connected TV (CTV) advertising by acquiring Paris-based Vibe.co, the companies announced on Monday.
Television
Why ZIP Codes Matter More Than TV Markets Now
For decades, local media's value proposition was simple: own the audience in a market and advertisers would follow. But in an era of location data, programmatic buying, and outcome-based measurement, advertisers increasingly care less about DMAs and more about reaching consumers at the ZIP+4 level.
Big Four Affiliates Bash ABC, NBC, CBS and Fox Networks in Latest Eruption at the FCC
The 700 TV station affiliates say the Big Four broadcast networks are raising affiliation fees, shrinking exclusivity, and imposing 'take‑it‑or‑leave‑it' terms, draining resources from local stations
CTV/OTT
The Future Of Television Will Be Won Before The Screen Turns On
Television remains the dominant video medium across most markets, accounting for 2/3 of video viewing in Europe and Japan, and over half in North America and Latin America.
Media
RTDNA, Media Groups Say Equal-Time Shift Could Chill Coverage.
The Radio Television Digital News Association (RTDNA) and the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press are urging the Federal Communications Commission to maintain its longstanding broad interpretation of the equal-time rule’s news exemptions, warning a narrower approach could chill political coverage and raise serious First Amendment concerns across radio and TV.
FCC
FCC Media Bureau dismisses challenge to news distortion policy
The Federal Communications Commission’s Media Bureau has dismissed a petition that sought to eliminate the agency’s long-standing news distortion policy, ruling that the filing was procedurally defective and not authorized under the commission’s rules.