Two months after control of several radio stations owned by California broadcaster Ed Stolz was put back into the hands of a trustee, a deal is close at hand that would see a new programmer take over. Trustee Michael Carmel has asked a bankruptcy court judge to approve his deal with Kurt Nilson’s AutopilotFM to program FMs in San Francisco and Palm Springs, CA and an AM/FM combo in Las Vegas.
In a petition filed in federal bankruptcy court in Las Vegas, Carmel says the programming agreement for the stations would allow him to use revenue generated from operation of the stations to “recoup expenses incurred in operating them” and he would split any net revenue remaining with AutopilotFM. While it appears in court filings that Nilson would not directly pay anything to lease the stations, the trustee likely believes he would benefit by having the stations on the air and generating billings so as to attract a buyer.
Under the tentative agreements, AutopilotFM would program San Francisco market KREV (92.7) and Palm Spring’s KRCK-FM (97.7) – as well as the Palm Desert, CA-licensed translators K238AK(95.5) and K251BX (98.1). In the Las Vegas market, AutopilotFM would program KFRH (104.3) and KBET (790), as well as the Las Vegas-licensed translator K276GX at 103.1 FM that simulcasts the AM.
