In a very short time, Nassau Broadcasting has become a big
name - maybe the big name - in Maine radio.
Since last fall, the New Jersey-based company has bought
nearly a dozen stations in the state and put together a
seamless string of stations that winds from Down East Maine to
Montpelier, Vt. And they're not putting away the checkbook
yet.
"We're not finished," said Louis F. Mercatanti Jr., the
chairman of Nassau Broadcasting, in a phone interview. "We
have announced transactions that take us to 33 stations, and I
would expect within the next couple of months, we'll add to
that and be in the 40 (station) range."
Mercatanti said he was intrigued by the possibilities
offered by the northern New England market, which he sees as
similar to New Jersey, where Nassau began with a cluster of
stations outside of New York and Philadelphia.
The broadcasting company's philosophy calls for avoiding
big-city stations, but looking for opportunities just outside
metropolitan areas aimed at capturing key demographic groups
in affluent suburban areas. In other words, Baby Boomers with
money to spend - listeners that advertisers want to reach.
It's not so important to be the top-rated station overall
in a market, he said, as it is to be tops in the key
demographic segment the stations are targeting. That's why his
company's Maine stations are mostly airing "classic rock"
along with talk formats.
And putting together a chain of stations going after the
same market allows the company to offer advertisers a number
of options, from advertising on one station, to five or to the
entire cluster, Mercatanti said.
For instance, he said, a local car dealer could simply
advertise on a local station. Or a group of Maine dealers
selling the same brand could decide to advertise on all the
Maine stations. Or the dealers' group for that brand
representing northern New England could air ads that cover the
three states, Mercatanti said.
The wide coverage should also appeal to national
advertisers, he said.
Nassau's entry into the market began in early December,
when the broadcasting group bought six FM stations from
Mariner Broadcasting. The stations, which all broadcast
classical music, stretch from Bar Harbor to Kennebunkport.
Then, less than a week later, Nassau announced it was
buying five more stations from Radio Partners of Maine. The
stations were WMTW-AM and -FM, which serve greater Portland,
two Lewiston stations and an Auburn station.
Mercatanti said that once he focused on the decision to buy
stations outside the Boston orbit, "we jumped on it right
away. We're a fairly aggressive group."
He said the decision to put on Air America, a new
politically liberal talk format, was a reaction to the success
of broadcasters such as Rush Limbaugh and Bill O'Reilly, who
have cultivated conservative listeners.
Air America's recent launch "had to do with broadcasters
thinking of all the talk formats that are out there that are
very conservative and how well they've done," he said. "Maybe
the more liberal side or more moderate side is not being
served."
Mercatanti said the cluster arrangement can also help with
one of the biggest problems radio faces - keeping talented
broadcasters from jumping ship to a bigger opportunity.
With a variety of stations, from fairly small to moderately
large, Nassau Broadcasting can offer talented employees a way
to move up without necessarily moving out, he said.
"Having such a large footprint, it provides building
blocks" for a career, he said.
Staff Writer Edward D. Murphy can be contacted at
791-6465 or at: emurphy@pressherald.com
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