As Seattle Goes, So Goes Detroit

Due to the increasing popularity of Seattle’s new SOUND 94.1, Soft AC, Entercom has flipped another of its stations, Detroit’s 98.7 AMP. The station became “98.7 The Breeze” last week. Numbers for The SOUND, KSWD Seattle continue to rise, a 3.8 – 4.2 – 4.9 share over the past three months. The liners sound similar to the ones Entercom’s KBRD 104 used when that station ran an Easy Listening format, just prior to a flip to the MOUNTAIN 103.7 (the accurate dial position, but who is counting?). RELAXING FAVORITES, what’s old is new again…The FCC is pushing for more rural broadband coverage, along with an increase in upload and download speeds for current customers. The funding for such projects is part of that Universal Service Fee customers see on phone bills. The costs to telephone companies to build-out into remote regions are exorbitant, although we believe they would move faster on this if they figured the payoff to the company would be worth it…In other FCC news, as part of the Commission’s ongoing Modernization of Media Regulation Initiative, the FCC will also consider an order to eliminate certain rules that require broadcast licensees to maintain and display copies of their licenses and other related materials in specific locations, such as at their transmitter sites. FCC Chairman, Ajit Pai says, “Now that licensing information is readily accessible online through the FCC’s databases, these rules are redundant and obsolete.”
Casey Kasem’s family continues to squabble over money and who was to blame for killing the famous radio personality. Kasem suffered from Parkinson’s disease, and all of the drama we heard at the time of his death will be hashed over again on CBS TV’s 48 Hours, which airs this Saturday night (11/24). You may recall that during the chaotic battle over the mortal remains of Kasem, his body lay in the Gaffney Funeral Home in Tacoma for the better part of a week, before being flown to Norway for burial.