LDR Introduces Top Song Feature

10-2-13

Listener Driven Radio announced today the launch of a new Top Song feature for Top 40 and CHR stations. Listeners vote using a station website or mobile app for the top song of the hour, and the #1 song will automatically play at the top of the hour in the station?s automation playout system. LDR displays a station's "currents" in a voting window, where listeners can move songs up and down in the list. Then, the #1 song chosen by the audience, which also passes basic artist/title separation rules set by the PD, will play at the top of the hour.

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Spotify Offers Feature Similar to iTunes

7-3-13

TechCrunch reports that Spotify?s ?Discover? feature is now available on the iPhone. The news feed offers recommendations, songs and playlists based on current listening habits. The feature is powered by algorithms similar to Spotify?s radio for music discovery purposes, but it?s not limited to recommendations made solely based on your plays. Discover will also alert users to New Releases on Spotify, music that?s popular in their area or popular on Spotify more generally, music shared by artists and others you follow, and more. Read the full TechCrunch article HERE

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(NEW FEATURE) Expert In The Wings

by Buzz Knight

Today many media professionals sit on the sidelines ready to blend with any organization and enhance the quality of a brand. Too many. These folks are keeping busy and active with projects but deserving of more recognition for their past, present, and future contributions.

When I approached Ed Ryan, the Editor in Chief of Radio Ink, about a column called "Experts in the Wings" that would highlight these individuals, he was more than willing to give me the space to embark on this column with the hopes of frequent contributions and even more frequent recognition for each of them.

Jay Clark is first up as an expert ready to take on any project that needs a kick start in your organization.

Jay was most recently the Executive VP at Sirius where he was involved in all facets of the Programming Department from Howard to Buffett and everything in between, and the creation of the various VP positions in Music, Talk, and Sports which still exist today.

Beyond his work for Winstar with the Sports Fan Radio Network and Comedy World (an early 2002  dot com broadcast venture), Jay's resume lists some amazing call letters: WRKO, KSLX, WTKS, WWWE,WOMC, WTIC/AM/FM, and WABC. Jay left Sirius some years back to tend to some family issues but when I saw him this past year at the Dallas NAB he indicated he was primed and ready for any challenge.

When I asked Jay what he feels is missing in day-to-day action at radio properties, he said: "Attention to detail, probably due to lack of staffing. With few exceptions no one seems to be working with on-air staffs, critiquing, cajoling, and helping frontline product folks. Web and social media is, in most cases, neglected and dated. On-air streams are not listened to and, in fact, I sometimes wonder if even over the air is listened to by anyone in charge."

Jay in fact feels many operators have "gone overboard in cutting to the bone" when it comes to resources like writers, producers, and Web people. Thinking back over his career, he has had many interesting celebrity encounters but one bizarro moment regarding Jerry Lee Lewis sticks out.

"Jerry Lee Lewis, way after his prime, worked a concert at Heart Plaza in Detroit. That was the day the IRS confiscated his jet plane. He began drinking at about noon and appeared in no condition to go on but insisted. We literally carried him to the stage at 6 p.m., stood him up, and to all of our surprise he walked to the keyboard and went on to do a perfect show. He then walked back to the stage stairs out of sight to the crowd and collapsed. I caught him before he hit the floor and we carried him back to his dressing room where he slept it off until midnight when we got him back to his hotel."

Jay Clark's elevator pitch in his own words: "I want to work for you and if hired you'll have an honest employee with passion and integrity who will work 24/7 to help your company succeed. I have a 'what you see is what you get' personality, am a great people person, love mentoring, and am very good with budgets. I am diversified, creative, and very excited about the opportunities new technology brings to the audio table. I've been successful in all size markets with both music and talk formats and my resume speaks for itself. All I need to know from you is what your needs are so we can get to work. Thanks for listening."

Reach out to Jay Clark by e-mail jay@jayclark.biz
If you want to recommend an "Expert in the Wings" reach me at bknight@greatermediaboston.com

(5/22/2013 12:28:44 PM)
When I met Jay Clark, we were on-the-air disc jockeys at WTRY in the Albany, N.Y. market. A very good top 40 station, we were the market leaders but when Jay took over the all night show (didn’t we all), his on air approach was different enough to get him listeners, management attention and eventually, a promotion to program director. Jay was an “out of the box” thinker, long before that term existed.

His career blossomed and from his resume, you can see he quickly moved up and out and, I tell him to this day, he was a cleanup hitter at the major league level when radio was king. Not only did he stay up there, he climbed a little higher when, as Executive Vice President of Sirius, he helped shape satellite radio into a viable alternative to terrestrial radio.

It’s hard for me to believe that a broadcast executive, with a mile long resume of successes is not gainfully employed. It seems like a no brainer for those independent radio companies who are up against corporate radio, not to look at a man like Jay Clark. Jay is innovative, up to date, has intimate knowledge of how corporate radio works and knows how to compete against them.

I know, as a radio lifer, that Jay Clark will make things happen for your stations as he opens the door to the world of real radio. Live, local, touching the audience with on air talent to draw listeners and advertisers to your stations is how Jay learned the radio business. He knows how it works; his track record is exemplary and he specializes in making your stations sound exciting, relevant and compelling. You will benefit from a conversation with Jay Clark regarding your business, your passion and your company. Don’t miss out on this guy. He is one of the best!

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Outlander To Feature HD Radio Technology

12-3-2012

Mitsubishi Motors has announced it will become the first automaker to integrate audio entertainment and real-time traffic services using HD Radio Technology. The 2014 Outlander will be the first Mitsubishi vehicle to receive both real-time traffic information integrated into its navigation system as well as the upgraded audio and expanded content and features of digital AM and FM broadcasts, all delivered with HD Radio Technology.
HD radio delivers digital-only local FM channels known as HD2/HD3, PSD (Program Service Data), which display song titles and artist names on the radio screen; iTunes Tagging which allows listeners to store song information with the touch of a button for later purchase and download through iTunes; Artist Experience which enables images that match the audio content to be displayed on the radio screen; and now, free lifetime traffic and data information sent directly to a vehicles radio or navigation system. HD Radio Technology is subscription free broadcast radio.

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Radio Show Super Session to Feature Dave Ramsey

5-29-2012
Dave Ramsey will lead a Radio Show Super Session titled "Succeeding in this Economic Environment" on Thursday, September 20 at 9:30 a.m. The session will cover actions that Radio stations can take to succeed in the current economic climate. By age 26, Ramsey had established a four-million-dollar real estate portfolio, but lost it by age thirty. Using the wisdom he gained, Ramsey rebuilt his finances. In 1992, Ramsey founded financial counseling company The Lampo Group, Inc., which he developed into a multi-million dollar company and nationally recognized brand.

Ramsey also created Financial Peace University (FPU) to help people erase debt and develop sound money management habits. One and a half million families have attended FPU classes at their workplace, church, military base, or community group. More than 10,000 educational institutions offer his high school and college curriculums. The "Dave Says" syndicated column is available to more than 17.5 million readers monthly.

The Dave Ramsey Show is heard by 5 million listeners each week on more than 500 radio stations and is streamed on Daveramsey.com. In 2009, he was honored with a prestigious NAB Marconi Award. His four New York Times best-selling books - Financial Peace, More Than Enough, The Total Money Makeover and EntreLeadership - have sold a combined 7 million copies. The Radio Show, jointly produced by the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) and Radio Advertising Bureau (RAB), will be held at the Hilton Anatole in Dallas September 19-21.

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Film House Releases 95 Minute Feature Film

12-12-11

Many broadcasters are familiar with the name Curt Hahn and the company Film House. Back in 1981 Film House produced its first TV campaign to promote a radio station. Since then Film House has produced over 20,000 TV commercials for radio station clients all over the world. Now Film House CEO Curt Hahn is hoping the relationships He's built up over the past 30 years will help him get the word out about his new feature film entitled "Deadline."

Film House secured the rights Mark Ethridge?s novel Grievances over several other bidders according to Hahn. "Mark believed in our ability to tell his story properly." Hahn says the challenge now is to get the word out, which he's trying to do in a rather unconventional way.

"In a reversal of the typical Hollywood studio release, we?re starting with a series of premieres in cities like Miami, Charlotte and Cleveland (as opposed to New York & L.A.) in the hopes that we can attract more media attention in markets where a movie premiere isn?t an everyday occurrence. Radio is a huge part of our strategy. We look forward to connecting with the many radio folks we?ve worked with over the years as we go from city to city. Ideally we?d start  our day visiting the morning shows that would be interested in talking about a movie premiere in their city that evening. Mark and I will be traveling with members of the cast. Deadline?s a powerful  movie about two reporters solving a racially-motivated murder."

You can watch the trailer at http://www.deadlinefilm.com/.

One of the ways Hahn is getting the word out is through his Kickstarter campaign to take our Deadline Premiere Tour to more cities. We?d really appreciate any mentions about this campaign which ends January 8th. The Kickstarter video can be easily added to any website or blog.

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New Cadillac CUE System to Feature Pandora

Pandora announced yesterday that Cadillac is its latest automotive partners. Cadillac announced the launch of its new CUE (Cadillac User Experience) system, featuring Pandora, at the CTIA Wireless Association's Enterprise and Applications conference in San Diego. Pandora will be incorporated into the Cadillac CUE system, which will be in the upcoming XTS and ATS luxury sedans and will be a feature of all future Cadillac vehicles beginning in 2012.

CUE will support Android, BlackBerry and iPhone smartphones.

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Clear Channel's Pandora Feature Rolls Out on The iHeartradio App This Fall.

June 27, 2011

With Pandora now public, all eyes are on that company transitioning from a wildly popular music listening tool to a successful business model that can sustain serious profits for investors for years to come. Much has been written by digital gurus and self-professed Internet experts about whether or not that can happen. Fact is, as time goes by, Pandora may morph several times, finding new ways to generate revenue and profits. At this point in time, as Pandora deals with the high cost of music fees and figures out how to sell more advertising without diluting what listeners love so much, radio's big dog is waiting in the wings with it's own version of music curation.

Clear Channel is working feverishly to integrate Thumbplay into iHeartdaio and the company says a beta version of the revised app will be ready this fall. As the competition wedges into the Pandora space "it might even be harder to find a workable business model for Pandora." Who says that? Clear Channel's Bob Pittman.

The Clear Channel plan is to make the next generation of iHeartradio, with a Pandora-like feature, completely seamless and integrated into the app. It's almost as if Clear Channel is saying we're going to take your entire business model, Pandora, and turn it into a tab on our app. Thank you very much for creating a cool service, but it's really only one piece of the listening experience. It's not "THE" piece.

The question that intrigues us is what happens to Pandora when Clear Channel and its 750 plus radio stations and other marketing platforms begin to promote the new iHeartradio app with listener playlist creation as a "special feature"? Triton Media Group Chief Operating Officer Mike Agovino says "They have extremely large reach and if they promote the feature aggressively I would expect to see a significant jump in downloads and usage of the app. I don't think that their audience gains will necessarily come from Pandora. More likely this move just helps to grow the already growing online audio pie."

Everyone agrees that it's too early to declare winners and losers in the Internet listening game. Tunein.com CEO Bill Moore says "Online listening is still under 10% of all radio.  It?s a massive market, we are on the second batter in the first inning."

ABC's Steve Jones says ?It?s way too early to predict winners and losers in digital radio. One of the most important events was the Pandora IPO. It will be telling to see how the market values that company and, by implication, the other pure-play digital radio companies. (Pandora will begin trading today at $15.37). When you talk to some of these private pure-plays, they?re apprehensive. Pandora?s success could lift all boats. But, if the market is not supportive, broader vulnerabilities for online audio (such as royalties) could be exacerbated.  Still, these are early times and It?s still  very much a jump ball for everyone in this space.? ABC provides exclusive content for Slacker Radio.

In the recent past Clear Channel's Bob Pittman has called Pandora a "playlist on shuffle." Of course time will tell whether that characterization is correct or whether Pandora proves Pittman wrong. An example he's referenced is his experience with AOL's instant messenger, saying it was a successful product but they could never figure out a way to make it a business.

Slacker Radio CEO Jim Cady. "We would agree that Pandora is primarily a playlist generator, where you put in a song or artist and their algorithms produce a playlist that matches that criteria.  Our programming approach, radio practices, content offering and general philosophy is built very closely to that of broadcast radio and we believe that is a considerable benefit over the playlists that Pandora and others lean on for discovery.  It is very difficult to beat a well programmed radio station. Especially one that you, as a listener, can control - this is something we have built our entire service around.  We are very happy to employ some of the best radio programming talent to curate our stations and craft our experience, because radio is an art that does not translate to playlists."

Agovino says Clear Channel has another opportunity, perhaps the next generation of apps for the listener, "If I understand CC's execution correctly it sounds like this technology that comes from Thumbplay is not integrated with the their terrestrial brands. In other words, it's not a personalized Z100 or Kiss 108. If that's true, than I think they've missed the opportunity to take the value proposition to another level. I think a best of both worlds hybrid is the killer app."

For now, Pandora is the success story. They are the one making all the waves and everyone else is just sitting back watching how they do and what they do.

(6/27/2011 9:18:49 AM)
Clear Channel's willingness to take risks has kept the company on the cutting edge of change. It is "clear" that Bob Pittman is carrying on that tradition with the new iHeartradio App. as an answer to Pandora.

Of course, Clear Channel has the best possible promotional platform and the ability through its crowdsourcing efforts to discover and establish new artists both on air, on Web platforms and on other wireless applications.

No one can afford to be "risk averse" when dealing with the “sea changes” taking place in media. Clear Channel management and ownership are clearly placing a premium on vision.

(6/27/2011 5:29:04 AM)
But, I thought that radio is supposed to stop streaming, and put everything into the HD Radio basket. LOL!

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Radio Show To Feature Big Names At Breakfast

Lew Dickey, CEO of Cumulus, Alfred Liggins, CEO of Radio One, Dan Mason, President/CEO of CBS Radio and Bruce Reese, CEO of Hubbard will make up the panel this September in Chicago. Marci Ryvicker, a broadcast analyst with Wells Fargo will provide opening remarks. The panel will be moderated by Lew Paper, a Dickstein Shapiro partner, and will focus on the changing face of radio - increased revenue through more efficient operations, expanded listenership through HD Radio and new technologies, and an infusion of debt and equity financing to support new acquisitions.

The 2011 Radio Show is a co-production between the RAB and NAB and will be held September 14-16 in Chicago.

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