Radio station owner found new money in old towers
New England radio station owner Bob Vinikoor looked past the momentary inconvenience of installing wireless carrier antennas on his AM radio towers (colocation) and saw a steady stream of revenue. The same sight awaits almost any radio station owner willing to look into the matter.
Lawrence Behr Associates can help. We make it possible to generate new revenue from old towers.
Vinikoor – the president of Koor Communications – listened to a proposal from a wireless carrier five years ago and soon thereafter his 200-foot-tall tower for WNTK-AM 1010 was earning him extra revenue. The tower now is home to 4 wireless carrier antennas. In all, three of four towers serving Vinikoor’s stable of radio stations in New Hampshire and Vermont are partnering with wireless companies.
To help Vinikoor reap more income from his existing facilities, Lawrence Behr Associates utilized a patented ColoCoil AM Isocoupler developed by LBA Technology engineers.
“I’ve never had a problem with the CoLoCoils,” Vinikoor says, referring to the original installation and several others that followed on his towers. “I would certainly recommend colocation of wireless and other carriers. It is painless.”
Vinikoor believes many AM radio station owners haven’t offered their towers for colocation because they have never been asked. Why? Wireless carries aren’t aware of their towers. Vinikoor recommends that owners have their towers listed – it’s free – by the Federal Aviation Administration so wireless companies know of their existence.
Vinikoor charges different rates. The higher on a tower an antenna is placed, the greater the premium charged. Vinikoor’s wireless partners pay from $1,600 to $2,400 a month to colocate on his structures.
“There is a little down time during the construction phase, some lost broadcast time,” he says, “but the revenue from the leases more than makes up for the lost time up front.”
