Entercom Drops USTN… USTN Sues
• Entercom Communications Corp. announced Monday that its reseller agreement with United States Traffic Network (“USTN”) has ended. Entercom notes it “has successfully sold traffic and other short-duration advertising on its own for many years. In April, Entercom took back a portion of its broadcast inventory from USTN and is achieving great success selling that inventory through its own sales channels. The Company expects to build on that success as it begins to monetize the remaining inventory taken back from USTN.”
“We are relieved to no longer be mired by the difficult USTN situation that was inherited as part of the CBS Radio merger,” said David Field (left), President and CEO of Entercom. “We will move quickly to augment our strong internal sales organization to ensure that we realize the full value of this inventory. With leading news brands like 1010 WINS/New York, KNX/Los Angeles and WBBM/Chicago, Entercom has the industry’s most valuable traffic inventory and we are pleased to be in control of our own destiny as we pursue opportunities in this attractive market segment.”
> Now, the fun part — USTN filed a related lawsuit against Entercom last Friday, seeking damages “in excess of $5 million.” In a statement, Entercom “believes the lawsuit is entirely baseless, frivolous and frankly, insulting. Entercom has worked tirelessly and constructively with USTN over the past six months to help USTN work through its significant financial issues. Entercom is owed substantial amounts of money by USTN, and the Company intends to defend itself vigorously and assert all of its rights.”
