With everyone talking nonstop about a possible Congressional bailout of Wall Street, another Congressional bailout story is going unnoticed. Internet radio startups like Pandora have been sweating bullets for over a year now, in regards to their own financial and legal challenges. But in this case, The House acted unanimously to pass legislation that favors the emerging streaming media industry. Hey, when it's rock …
Free Personalized Radio, Anytime, Anywhere
According to Adweek, Pandora is scoring big with the release of its iPhone App. Pandora has streamed 3.3 million songs to iPhone users since the launch of its new mobile application, making it the third most popular such app for the red-hot device. As of July 14, the company had registered 180,000 new users, and more than 200,000 new stations had been created on the iPhone. Pandora executives claim that the company …
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Rush to the Bank
At lunch today I was reading The New York Times business section. On the front page of that section there's a big photo of Rush Limbaugh (not available online) and an article that reveals his newly negotiated income. I don't mind saying it grossed me out. Limbaugh, who has 20 million listeners a week on 600 stations, signed a new eight-year contract for $400 million. His $50 million a year paycheck represents a …
iLike R.E.M.
Radio, like newspapers, is being hit with body blows from the internet. Here's the latest round: iLike, a social network for music fans, is scoring big today with the pre-release of R.E.M.'s new album. The roll-out, the first of its kind for a major act, will allow fans to stream and share Accelerate in its entirety beginning March 24, a week ahead of the album's April 1 release date. "It was one of those ideas that …
All Bruce All The Time
Sirius, with its multi-channel lineup is able to take a couple of deep dives into the world of a particular artist. In addition to the Boss' channel, Sirius also offers a Grateful Dead channel. …
Web Advertising Overtakes Radio
From Forbes: U.S. Internet advertising spending is poised to overtake radio advertising for the first time, providing a reminder that broadcasters need to be more aggressive in their embrace of online opportunities. U.S. radio ad spending is expected to inch up 1.5% in 2007, to $20.4 billion, short of online ad expenditures of $21.7 billion, which will be up 22% from last year, eMarketer senior analyst Ben Macklin …
Diversity Threatened By Institutional Greed
I went to stream some indie rock on WOXY this morning, but none came through. Today is a The Day of Silence, an international protest against exorbitant royalty rates that threaten the existence of all but the most well funded webcasters. The Internet Radio Equality Act has recently been introduced in both the House and Senate to save the Internet radio industry. Webcasters are hoping The Day of Silence will …
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Stream On You Crazy Diamonds
The New York Times investigates increased online activity at many of the nation's mainstream radio stations. These moves to stay relevant and reach listeners where they live come at a tough time for all who would dare to stream audio, as the federal Copyright Royalty Board is intent on levying monolithic fees for such use. After ceding ground (and potential advertising dollars) for years to an army of autonomous …
Stocking The Stream
Venture capitalist, Fred Wilson, explains his firm's latest investment and the business opportunity in internet radio. Streaming radio is very popular already. A recent comScore study reported the cumulative monthly audience of the top four online radio networks at 6.2mm US listeners. If you include all internet radio, that number is certainly well over 10mm montly listeners and could be larger than the subscriber …
Radio By The Hour
The New York Times is reporting on an innovative move in the Dallas radio market, at a time when traditional radio is faced with increasing competition from satellite radio and iPods (which are often equipped for the car). Clear Channel Communications is trying something radically different at a commercial radio station in Texas: getting rid of the commercials. As of today, KZPS in Dallas — on the dial at 92.5 FM or …