A descriptive study of broadcast media brokers

This study was undertaken to learn basic information about the professsion of media brokering. To this point little has been written on this sub-industry of the broadcasting/cablecasting field. A population of 125 brokers was sent a survey to complete and return. Fifty-two usuable surveys were received. From that number, ten brokers were selected for personal interview to further examine the topic. The research indicated most broadcast media brokerage firms have been in business ten years or more. They work primarily with radio and television, with a smaller number dealing in cable systems. These companies usually employ no more than five brokers. The brokerage business is a male-dominated profession. Brokers usually have at least an undergraduate degree with practical experience in broadcast sales and management. Respondents reported twenty-two different commission structures used in charging for their services, but the Lehman formula is most often used. The Lehman formula charges five percent for the first million dollars of a sale price, four percent for the second million, three percent for the third, two percent for the fourth, and one percent for anything more than one million dollars. The percentage of the commission paid to a broker by the company with which that person is associated varies from twenty to eighty percent. Brokers see themselves as more than a vehicle for bringing principals together. They view their roles as negotiators who work out problems that arise between buyers and sellers.