WUFT TURNS "HD RADIO LEMON" INTO "FM LEMONADE"

HD RADIO LEMONS

 

FM LEMONADE

A decade ago, like many CPB-funded FM stations, WUFT in Gainesville added HD Radio channels.  Now HD Radio hasn’t panned out as was hoped.  This fact-of-life has left quite a few public radio stations stuck with the expense of providing HD Radio channels that reach few, if any, listeners. In other words, HD Radio is a lemon.

Now WUFT [LINK] is creating lemonade by putting it’s HD2 channel on a local FM translator.  These new Instant Stations are no longer HD Radio, they are for-real FM stations.  The one thing that HD Radio is very, very good at is feeding FM translators.

Like iHeart Media, Educational Media Foundation (“EMF” – the purveyors of K-LOVE) and other commercial broadcasters, WUFT is expanding their services by adding FM signals to expand programming choices for Gainesville area listeners.

Check out our other recent columns about other new INSTANT FM stations at:

EMF CREATING NEW “INSTANT FM” STATION IN LA

ANOTHER NEW “INSTANT FM STATION” IN MINNEAPOLIS

INSIDE WUFT’S PLAN

WUFT is licensed to the University of Florida.  The UF College of Journalism and Communications operates WUFT-FM (and it's repeater WJUF-FM), PBS affiliate WUFT-TV, two commercial stations WRUF-FM (Country) and WRUF-AM (ESPN Sports).

WUFT-FM is almost full-time NPR News. WUFT-HD2 is full-time Classical, airing Classical-24 24/7 .It is the cheapest way to run the channel.  Like HD Radio elsewhere, WUFT’s HD2 channel has not attracted much listening. Beginning in October, WUFT’s Classical service will debut on 92.1 FM via translator W2748BT.

WUFT has big plans for it’s new FM station. According to news reports, WUFT will replace C-24 with local hosts. I bet this will work Big Time.  WUFT is providing a model for other public radio stations in similar situations.

(Also this fall, WUFT will debut a second FM translator that will repeat WRUF-AM.)

“Securing these two new FM frequencies for the College is significant,” said Randall Wright, executive director of the College’s Division of Multimedia Properties. “The new WUFT-?FM Classical/Arts will provide a radio broadcast format not currently available in this market, helping to position our public media for another phase of growth from both a membership and underwriting perspective,” he said.

PUBLIC RADIO: MAKE LEMONADE FROM YOUR HD RADIO LEMONS NOW

WUFT is providing an example of what noncom stations, particularly CPB-funded licensees, can do with their HD channels. Many licensees who got into HD Radio agreed to CPB requirements that they keep the HD channels going for years. In many ways these are CPB LEMONS.

Now CPB and the public radio system have the chance to make the LEMONS into FM STATION LEMONADE.  But CPB and other public radio leaders should act quickly.  The word out and public radio is already behind the curve.  Open FM spectrum is in limited supply. Religious broadcasters are gobbling up spots on the FM dial. Public radio: ACT NOW.

We will continue to report of this fast developing story.