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iHeartMedia facts for kids
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Formerly
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| Traded as | NASDAQ: IHRT (Class A Common Stock) OTC Pink Current: IHRTB (Class B Common Stock) |
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U.S.
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Key people
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| Revenue |  US$2.6 billion (2019) |
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Operating income
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 US$506.7 million (2019) |
| US$113 million (2019) |
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| Total assets | US$11 billion (2019) |
| Total equity | US$2.9 billion (2019) |
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Number of employees
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9,588 (2021) |
| Divisions | iHeartMedia (sans "Inc." suffix; formerly Clear Channel Media and Entertainment, Clear Channel Radio, et al.) |
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iHeartMedia, Inc. is a big American mass media company. Its main office is in San Antonio, Texas. It's the main company that owns iHeartCommunications, Inc.. This company was first started by Lowry Mays and Red McCombs in 1972.
In 2008, a couple of investment firms, Bain Capital and Thomas H. Lee Partners, bought the company. This made it a private company. Later, in 2014, the company changed its name from CC Media Holdings, Inc. to iHeartMedia, Inc.
Contents
What iHeartMedia Does
iHeartMedia is mostly known for radio broadcasting. It also works with podcasts, digital media, and live events. The company owns over 850 AM and FM radio stations in the U.S. This makes it the biggest owner of radio stations in the country.
The company is also involved in internet radio and podcasts. They do this through their digital platform called iHeartRadio. This platform is where the company gets its current name. In the past, iHeartMedia also managed live events and out-of-home advertising (like billboards). However, they later separated these businesses into other companies. These are now Live Nation Entertainment and Clear Channel Outdoor.
Company History
Starting in the 1900s
Clear Channel Communications bought its first FM radio station in San Antonio in 1972. They bought another important AM station, WOAI, in 1975. By 1976, the company started buying stations outside of San Antonio. They added stations in places like Tulsa, Port Arthur, Texas, and El Paso, Texas.
In 1992, the U.S. government made rules for owning radio stations a bit easier. This allowed Clear Channel to buy more than two stations in one city. By 1995, the company owned 43 radio stations and 16 television stations. When the Telecommunications Act of 1996 became law, it changed media ownership rules even more. This allowed companies to own many more stations than before. Clear Channel then bought over 70 other media companies and individual stations.
Sometimes, after buying a competitor, Clear Channel had to sell some of its stations. This happened if they owned too many stations in certain cities. In 2005, courts even made them sell some "border blaster" radio stations. These were stations near international borders, like XETRA-FM in Tijuana/San Diego.
In 1997, Clear Channel grew its business by buying Eller Media. This was a company that managed billboards. In 1998, the company expanded outside the United States. They bought a big outdoor advertising company in the UK called More Group plc. Clear Channel then bought many other outdoor advertising, radio, and live event companies around the world. These were all renamed Clear Channel International.
In 1999, the company bought Jacor Communications, another radio company. They also invested in a new satellite radio service called XM Satellite Radio. This gave them the right to create some stations for the service.
The 2000s and Beyond
In 2000, Clear Channel bought SFX Entertainment. This company organized concerts and live events. In 2005, Clear Channel separated its live events business. This became a new company called Live Nation.
In 2006, Clear Channel announced it would become a private company. Two investment firms, Thomas H. Lee Partners and Bain Capital, bought it for $26.7 billion. This included taking on $8 billion of Clear Channel's debt. As part of this deal, Clear Channel also planned to sell all its television stations and many smaller radio stations.
Because of money problems in 2007, Clear Channel had trouble selling some of its radio stations. The company also faced challenges selling its television stations. However, the sale of the TV stations was eventually completed.
In 2008, Clear Channel's shareholders agreed to a new offer of $36 per share. This valued the deal at $17.9 billion plus debt. The company then decided to make its programming more central. They also had to reduce their staff by about 7% in 2009 due to tough economic times and debt.
By 2010, the company was facing serious financial challenges because of its large debt. In 2011, Robert W. "Bob" Pittman became the CEO of CC Media Holdings. In 2013, Clear Channel sold its small share in Sirius XM satellite radio.
In 2014, the company changed its name from Clear Channel Communications to iHeartMedia. This new name came from its iHeartRadio platform. It showed the company's focus on digital media and internet radio. The old name, "Clear Channel," came from a type of AM radio station. These stations have special rights to their frequencies at night. CEO Bob Pittman said the company was doing "progressive stuff" but still had a name linked to old AM radio.
From 2008, iHeartMedia struggled with its large debt. In 2017, the company warned investors it might not survive. On March 15, 2018, the company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. This is a legal process to reorganize debt. They reached an agreement to reduce their debt by $10 billion.
In 2018, iHeartMedia bought the HowStuffWorks podcast network. They also planned to buy Jelli, a company that helps with radio advertising. In January 2019, a court approved a plan for iHeartMedia to leave bankruptcy. This plan reduced the company's debt a lot. It also included separating their outdoor advertising division, Clear Channel Outdoor.
iHeartMedia officially came out of bankruptcy in May 2019. They kept their leaders, CEO Bob Pittman and president Rich Bressler. Instead of selling new shares to the public, they chose to list their shares directly on the Nasdaq stock exchange.
In January 2020, iHeartMedia made big changes to how it was organized. This was to "modernize" the company and use new technology. These changes led to many staff members changing roles or leaving the company.
What iHeartMedia Owns
iHeartMedia has bought parts of, or fully acquired, many companies in media and advertising. Here are some of their main businesses:
Radio Stations
iHeartRadio's offices and studios in Denver, which houses KTCL, KDHT, KBCO, KRFX, KOA, KBPI, KHOW, KDFD, and KWBL
With 855 stations, iHeartMedia owns the most radio stations in the United States. They also earn the most money from radio. Their stations reach over 110 million listeners every week.
In 2012, the company announced a new way to pay performance royalties. These are payments to record labels and musicians when their songs are played. Instead of a flat fee, they share advertising money from all platforms, including digital.
Outdoor Advertising
Clear Channel Outdoor (CCO) is an advertising company that used to be part of iHeartMedia. It was separated from iHeartMedia in May 2019.
Television Stations
Clear Channel Television was a television broadcasting company. It was part of Clear Channel for almost 20 years, from 1988 to 2008. It owned over 40 TV stations.
The company started buying TV stations in 1988 with WPMI-TV in Mobile, Alabama. Over time, Clear Channel Television became one of the largest independent TV groups. In 1995, Clear Channel bought its first station that was part of a "Big Three" network (like CBS, NBC, or ABC). This was WHP-TV in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.
In the 2000s, Clear Channel started using old radio station names for some of its TV stations. For example, KMOL-TV in San Antonio became WOAI-TV in 2002, matching its sister radio station WOAI-AM.
In 2007, the company agreed to sell all its television stations for $1.2 billion. This deal was completed in 2008. These stations were then owned by Newport Television. Later, Newport Television sold all its stations to other TV groups.
Music Charts
iHeartMedia owns Mediabase. This company creates music charts based on how often songs are played on radio stations. Many stations that report to Mediabase are iHeartMedia stations.
News and Information
iHeartMedia provides many news and information services. They have a 24/7 News Source and local news networks in many U.S. states. They also own Premiere Networks, which distributes many radio shows.
They provide traffic and weather reports through Total Traffic & Weather Network. These reports are used by many GPS navigation systems. iHeartMedia also has a sports radio network called Fan Radio Network.
Around the World
iHeartMedia owns parts of radio groups in countries like New Zealand, Mexico, Norway, and Australia. They also own outdoor advertising companies in many countries, including Brazil, France, Italy, and the United Kingdom.
Bicycle Rental Systems
iHeartMedia also runs bicycle sharing systems in several European cities. These systems allow people to rent bikes for short trips. Examples include Bicing in Barcelona, Spain, and Velo Antwerpen in Antwerp, Belgium.
Broadcast Towers
iHeartMedia has a division called Vertical Real Estate. This division manages about 1,500 broadcast towers across the U.S. Other companies, like cellular providers, can use space on these towers.
Radio Programming
iHeartMedia runs the country's largest radio show syndication service, Premiere Networks. This means they distribute many radio shows to different stations. They also have their own shows that they share with stations. These shows help stations save money because they don't need a large sales team.
Many of iHeartMedia's radio stations have similar branding and programming.
Format Lab and HD2 Formats
The Format Lab was a special team that created new radio products and services for Clear Channel (now iHeartMedia). Starting in 2000, they developed 84 different radio formats. These formats were used on AM/FM/HD radio, satellite radio, and online streaming. In 2002, the Format Lab launched "The New Music Network." This service helped unsigned artists share their music online.
iHeartRadio
iHeartRadio is a free platform for broadcast, podcast, and streaming radio. It brings together over 850 local iHeartMedia radio stations from across the United States. It also includes hundreds of other stations from different companies.
Different Music Styles
iHeartMedia has stations for many different music styles:
- Alternative Stations: These stations often use names like "Radio" or "ALT." They play alternative rock music.
- Hip-hop, Rap, R&B, and Rhythmic Stations: Many iHeartMedia stations play music popular with black Americans. Some focus on Hip Hop and newer rhythm and blues. Others mix in older Soul music from the 1970s, 80s, and 90s. These stations might be called "Real," "Beat," or "Power." They also have stations that play "Classic Hip-Hop" or "Throwback" songs from past decades.
- Smooth Jazz: iHeartMedia shares the Smooth Jazz Network. These stations play smooth jazz music.
- Dance and EDM: While they don't have many full-time dance music stations, iHeartMedia has digital platforms like Evolution that play Electronic Dance Music (EDM). They also have Pride Radio, which serves the LGBT community with a broader music mix.
- Country Music: Country stations often use names like "The Bull" or "Big." They usually play syndicated shows like After Midnite and The Bobby Bones Show. iHeartMedia also has an annual iHeartRadio Country Festival.
- Oldies and Classic Hits: These stations play older songs, usually from the 1960s and 1970s. They might be called "Big" or "Kool."
- Rock: Rock stations play a mix of new rock and harder classic rock. Many are called "The Fox" or "The Brew."
- Spanish: In some areas, iHeartMedia has FM stations that play Hispanic music. This can be contemporary tropical music or Mexican music. Some stations play a style called Hurban, which mixes Spanish dance music with R&B and Hip Hop.
- Religious: A few iHeartMedia stations play religious programming. Some play Gospel music that appeals to black Americans.
News Talk Stations
News talk stations owned by iHeartMedia usually have a mix of local and syndicated hosts. Syndicated shows are programs that are broadcast on many different stations. Popular shows include The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show and The Sean Hannity Show. Many of these shows are part of Premiere Networks.
iHeartMedia has also started to broadcast its AM news/talk stations on FM stations. This helps keep them popular as AM radio becomes less common. In 2020, iHeartMedia launched a new all-news radio brand called Black Information Network, which focuses on news for African Americans.
Sports Talk Stations
Most of iHeartMedia's sports talk stations are connected with Fox Sports Radio. Some are also linked to ESPN Radio. In 2020, iHeartMedia launched the iHeartSports Network.
Images for kids
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Clear Channel's logo
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Billboards at Yonge-Dundas Square in Toronto, owned by Clear Channel, in 2005
See also
- iHeartMedia radio stations
- Clear Channel UK
- List of radio stations owned by iHeartMedia
- List of songs deemed inappropriate by Clear Channel following the September 11, 2001 attacks
- TuneIn