That’s exactly what former Clear Channel employee Andy Kovacs is attempting to do in Tampa. Kovacs tells The Tampa Bay Times that he wants to take radio back to its roots. Kovacs is running Low Power Radio Station WYPW-FM 99.9, or Power 100, which covers only 14 miles. He’s playing Top 40 music and says he can compete with iHeartmedia and Cox in Tampa. “People are noticing. After only months on the air, we have already begun eroding the competition’s audience.”
Kovacs told The Times that unlike major corporations, he does not answer to shareholders. “We also do not have to pay enormous corporate salaries either. Here, the money stays at the local level. I have over 16 years’ experience in professional broadcasting, gaining knowledge from radio legends. I’m very grateful for this.” And Kovacs is using one of radio’s biggest weaknesses against the big guys, too many commercials. “The people love how we are getting back to the music fast.”
Power 100 is owned and operated by nonprofit New Media Humanity Association. Kovacs explains his mission to the Times. “Simple: Provide an outlet for local charities and other non-profit organizations access to the airwaves, as we have already been doing. Anyone interested in doing a public service show can email us at [email protected]. We also plan on bringing local concert fundraisers to Brandon to raise funds for those in need.”
Picture courtesy Tampa Bay Times
Competition is good.
14 miles? LPFM’s typically get 3 to 5 miles. 100 watts at 100 feet. Now, they can go farther with respect to propagation and antenna height. But those signals tend to only do decently in car and have virtually NO building penetration at all.
They probably mean 14 square miles.
One successful LPFM is in Laguna Beach, CA. Billed as “KX 93.5 Laguna’s ONLY FM, Human Crafted radio” (actually the only station period) they run a professional sounding, promotionally active and exciting radio station. They follow all the rules of LPFM but run it like a mini powerhouse. Tyler Russell was my intern when he was in high school, then attended college, did internships at KRTH and KIIS, got on the air in Palm Springs where he moved up the ladder until getting the Laguna license. All about community and passion. kx935.com streaming.