All of E.W. Scripps stations will use Comscore’s television currency and will also use Comscore’s advanced automotive and political demographic currencies to sell the value and relevance, rather than just the size, of its audiences.
With the closing of the $8 million sale of eight stations to Lotus Communications, Scripps has gotten out of the radio station business. Selling all its stations brought in $83.5 million.
The new multiplatform network, to debut in May 2019, has secured over-the-air distribution agreements with major local TV station group owners including Tribune, Scripps and Univision, giving Court TV coverage of more than 50% of U.S. television households at launch. Vinnie Politan will be the network’s lead anchor.
E.W. Scripps has closed its $150 million acquisition of Triton, a global provider of digital audio technology and measurement services. “The Triton acquisition aligns with the Scripps strategy of fueling […]
Scripps Open To Further Acquisitions
Five years ago, said Scripps Local Media President Brian Lawlor, Scripps owned only 13 television stations. “When we close on our recent acquisitions, we’ll have 51 stations in 36 markets stretching across the country.” The plan, he said, is to build “a stronger and more durable station portfolio.”
Scripps 3Q Local Media Revenue Grows 23%
The boost to $231 million was attributed to political advertising revenue of $40 million plus $78.8 million in retrans money. Local Media profit was $67.4 million, compared to $30.4 million in the year-ago quarter.
Exclusives
Scripps Buying 15 Cordillera Stations For $521M
The deal will bring the Scripps station portfolio to 51 stations in 36 markets with a reach of nearly 21% of U.S. TV households and includes three duopolies — in Helena and Great Falls, Montana, and Corpus Christi, Texas. Cordillera is selling its remaining station, NBC affiliate KVOA Tucson, Ariz., to Quincy Media.
The station group says it expects 2018 political advertising revenue to beat its $75 million from 2014 and $101 million from 2016.
Each of its stations will 100 minutes coverage each week prior to the midterm elections. In addition, Scripps has renewed its Sunday political news show The Race, which debuted during the 2016 election season.
The plan is to buy $25 million of its Class A common shares, which it expects to be completed by the first quarter of 2019.
Scripps 2Q Local Media Revenue Grows 6%
The gain to $213 million was driven by retrans plus political advertising revenue of $14.9 million, more than double the $7 million of pro forma political revenue in 2Q 2014, the last midterm election year.
The complications of dynamic ad insertion is one factor keeping local broadcasters from making a bigger run at OTT. But with the promise of higher CPMs from ad targeting as motivation, broadcasters and vendors say solutions are on the horizon.
She most recently was director of revenue strategy for Scripps, supporting the sales strategy of the group’s 12 local TV markets in the Western United States.
Frank Friedman will oversee Scripps’ portfolio of local media brands by focusing his consumer and advertising background on local market strategic plans and executions. He will manage teams including analytics and insights, marketing and creative. He also will lead Scripps’ involvement in the testing and implementation of the growing automated advertising marketplace.
Broadcast leaders who’ve come up through their companies’ digital ranks have a different vantage point than their C-suite peers. Leaders from Raycom, E.W. Scripps, ABC Owned Television Stations are Capitol Broadcasting say their experience with digital media risks, failures and the process of constant iteration has shaped their approach to the broadcast helm for the better.
Scripps Bonuses Faced Stiff ’16 Comparisons
President-CEO Adam P. Symson, President/Local Brian G. Lawlor, EVP-CFO Lisa A. Knutson and former EVP-CFO Timothy M. Wesolowski all received one-time retention bonuses in the wake of the retirement of former Scripps CEO Richard A. Boehne.
According to most pure-play station groups, this recent sluggishness by auto dealers has been replicated in their automotive advertising sales, which typically account for around a quarter of their spot revenue. However, some group execs see things improving as the year progresses.
Laff, the E.W. Scripps-owned comedy multicast network, has acquired the television rights to Home Improvement from The Disney/ABC Television Group. In the multi-year licensing agreement announced today, Laff acquires the rights […]
Ex-WXYZ Reporter Sues Over Harassment
WXYZ Detroit anchor Malcom Maddox repeatedly propositioned a colleague for “deviant” sex, according to a sexual harassment lawsuit filed Tuesday. Former reporter Tara Edwards sued the station and parent company Scripps Media, in federal court, four months after Maddox temporarily was placed on administrative leave amid allegations involving an unnamed colleague.
Scripps 4Q Local Media Rev Falls 17%
The reorganized company finds that increases in core and retrans can’t offset lower political money.
Big Data Portends Big Changes To Spot Buys
Ad sellers — broadcasters and cable networks — are wading deeper into data pools so that they are helping advertisers and their agencies program-target their buys and avoid undervaluing their time.
The E.W. Scripps board has declared a cash dividend for the first quarter of 2018. Shareholders of record as of March 1 will receive 5 cents per share, payable on March 26. This will be the company’s first quarterly dividend since 2008. “The decision by our board to initiate a quarterly dividend is a sign of confidence in the state of our business and faith in our strategy for the future,” said Adam Symson, Scripps CEO. “We’re focused on strengthening our local media operations, anchored by our television stations, while we support the long-term value creation we see in the high-growth businesses we have in Katz, Midroll and Newsy.”
Scripps Donates 100,000 Books To Children
The restructuring is designed to save more than $30 million annually and put a “high priority on configuring a more durable TV station portfolio during this period of changing local market regulations.”
Groups Likely To Expand Program Production
The trend of station groups creating and syndicating their own shows has proven itself as a worthy way to create cost-effective programming that speaks to local and regional audiences, according to a panel of executives who spoke Wednesday at NATPE.
The new service is designed to help political campaigns and agencies develop smart media campaigns and convert voters.
Making News Millennials Will Want To Watch
One of the biggest challenges for news operations is stopping young consumers’ thumbs from moving from a new story to other distractions on mobile devices. Techniques that news organizations are testing to attract and retain millennials include fresh presentations, voice interfaces, automation, augmented reality and creating chat-like apps.
Knutson becomes EVP-CFO after serving as interim CFO and Lyons is now the company’s to SVP, controller and treasurer.
Cord-Cutting Cuts Into Scripps Retrans Take
Scripps top TV exec Brian Lawlor says retrans-paying cable and satellite subs are down 2%-3%, but that new carriage-fee revenue from OTT skinny bundles should eventually offset the losses. In any event, retrans will grow 15% next year, while net retrans grows in low double digits.
Scripps 3Q TV Revenue Drops 9%
The decrease to $180 million is pegged to lower political and core local and national advertising that weren’t offset by retrans revenue that grew by $10.6 million.
It’s looking for a successor to Tim Wesolowski who left the company this week.
Since Scripps was already a 5% owner in a portion of the business, its net purchase price is $292 million for the multicast networks Bounce, Grit, Escape and Laff.
Laff, the Katz-owned comedy multicast network that’s being acquired by E.W. Scripps, introduced the multiple Emmy-winning sitcom That ’70s Show to its lineup with a daylong marathon on Sunday, Sept. 24. The marathon […]
WFTX Goes Far To Supply Local Irma News
After deciding it had to evacuate its Cape Coral station in advance of Hurricane Irma, Scripps’ Fox affiliate in a technical tour de force continued to provide full local coverage with an anchor desk in Tampa (above), news production in Detroit and master control in Indianapolis.
Tech To Court Next-Gen At NewsTECHForum
AP’s Andy Carvin, Quartz’s John Keefe, The E.W. Scripps Co.’s Rob McCracken and GateHouse Media’s Penny Riordan will look at how social platforms, bots and voice-enabled technologies are building audience engagement and loyalty among cord-cutting millennials at TVNewsCheck’s sixth annual NewsTECH Forum on Dec. 11-12.
Larry Blackerby, the VP and GM at Indianapolis’ Scripps-owned WRTV has been ousted with a staffer attributing the move to the station’s low ratings. Blackerby, who held the job for almost seven years, has been replaced by Jeff Block, a Scripps special consultant, on an interim basis.
The moves follow Adam Symson’s move to president-CEO earlier this month. The moves are promotions for Brian Lawlor, Laura Tomlin, Lisa Knutson, Tim Wesolowski and William Appleton.
WXYZ Revs Up For Dream Cruise Coverage
It’s time again for classic cars and chrome. Scripps-owned ABC affiliate WXYZ Detroit (DMA 13) will broadcast exclusive coverage of the Woodward Dream Cruise presented by Ford, on Saturday, Aug. […]
Short NBA Series Shorts Scripps 2Q Results
Two fewer championship series games took a toll on revenue, as did lower political dollars, but some of that was mitigated by strong gains in retransmission consent revenue.
E.W. Scripps 2Q TV Revenue Inches Up 1%
With all categories of advertising down, a 24% increase in retrans revenue keeps things in the positive column. Digital division 2Q revenue was $19.3 million, up 27.2% from a yer ago.
