The "business plan" isn't the issue. You don't like the way the platform works. That's OK. There are very few products that everyone loves.
As I've said, you can also stream Simone at iTunes. What's wrong with their business plan?
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Bye-bye Mark Simone
- Thread starter wadio
- Start date
The "business plan" isn't the issue. You don't like the way the platform works. That's OK. There are very few products that everyone loves.
As I've said, you can also stream Simone at iTunes. What's wrong with their business plan?
You don't know their business plan.
Iheart lost a lot of people that downloaded the mp3 files from their website when they stopped providing them. Many of their popular hosts realized this and have a 3rd party uploading their shows to itunes and other mp3 download sites. I had several e-mail exchanges with Joe Pags when iheart stopped posting the mp3 for his show. He had no clue that they stopped until I sent him an e-mail from 1 iheart station in Missouri that explained the new policy. I told him that it was sad that only 1 out of 850 radio stations explained the change. I use to check their website to see if a show was on a certain day. Since the change, I have not gone to their website for 3 months. I hope that the people that listen online offsets the number of people that went to their website to download mp3's.
Just my $0.02
Just my $0.02
All iHeart talk shows are on iTunes. No third party doing that.
Before that, you said they should focus on ears and impressions, not clicks. That was the business plan you wanted. The next post, you want them to use online advertising, which is based on clicks. Make up your mind. You can't have it both ways. Either you're part of the club, or you're just another click. Take your pick.
The equivalent of a "paywall" for TV doesn't seem to be working well in the long run. Pay TV subscriptions have dropped 5 percent in just three years, according to one article I read in USA Today. Too much competition, and although the pie is still large, the slices are getting smaller and smaller.
"Paywall" as in Netflix and Hulu are in a fairly high growth mode. The decline is in cable, not on demand.
OK, let's go over this again.
Show me a quote where I said, "online advertising." I said AUDIO advertising and I was careful to put AUDIO in caps to make it very clear.
This is becoming a classic "Who's on First" routine!
This headline is click-baity and misleading. I clicked thinking I'd find out that Simone was off the air, and instead it's... whatever all this is.
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Joe Pags has a guy named Chris2 get his show mp3's to itunes.
You seem like a fairly bright and knowledgeable person so I can only assume you're trolling me here.
But one final point about iHeart's protectionist attitude toward their content (pulling it from TuneIn, Streema, etc.) What happens if or when Cumulus and other content owners decide to pull WABC, etc. from the iHeart app?
iHeart apparently wants their app to be the go-to place for audio streaming but it seems to me they need to play ball for that to continue to happen.
"Play ball" with who?
Come on, you really don't get it? Alright, let me explain it again with an example using two NYC talk stations: WABC and WOR.
In 2016, both stations were available on a variety of platforms: iHeart, TuneIn, TalkStreamLive, Streema, MyTuner, etc.
1n 2017, iHeart has made WOR unavailable to the non-iHeart platforms, but WABC is still available on iHeart. See the problem?
In 2018, if iHeart refuses to "play ball" - to make a reciprocal arrangement where WOR remains available on the other platforms - and as a result Cumulus decides to pull WABC from the iHeart site and app, then:
1. the listener loses because it's more difficult to find content - it requires site switching and site switching - no collective place for "favorites."
2. WOR loses audience penetration
3. iHeart loses because, since the other apps will have a greater number of choices, listeners are less likely to stay with the platform than they were when WABC was there.
Both stations can benefit by being available on more than one platform. It increases their audience, resulting in higher potential ad rates. "Out of town" is not a factor because local ads can be slip-streamed and the revenue divided between the platform and the station. A piece of the pie is often better than no pie.
Look, you might disagree with this but please don't pretend you don't understand it. It's just a rough sketch of how things might or might not pan out in the future of the streaming world. Neither of us can say for sure one way or the other but isn't it worth talking about?
In 2016, both stations were available on a variety of platforms: iHeart, TuneIn, TalkStreamLive, Streema, MyTuner, etc.
1n 2017, iHeart has made WOR unavailable to the non-iHeart platforms, but WABC is still available on iHeart. See the problem?
In 2018, if iHeart refuses to "play ball" - to make a reciprocal arrangement where WOR remains available on the other platforms - and as a result Cumulus decides to pull WABC from the iHeart site and app, then:
1. the listener loses because it's more difficult to find content - it requires site switching and site switching - no collective place for "favorites."
2. WOR loses audience penetration
3. iHeart loses because, since the other apps will have a greater number of choices, listeners are less likely to stay with the platform than they were when WABC was there.
Both stations can benefit by being available on more than one platform. It increases their audience, resulting in higher potential ad rates. "Out of town" is not a factor because local ads can be slip-streamed and the revenue divided between the platform and the station. A piece of the pie is often better than no pie.
Look, you might disagree with this but please don't pretend you don't understand it. It's just a rough sketch of how things might or might not pan out in the future of the streaming world. Neither of us can say for sure one way or the other but isn't it worth talking about?
It's nice to be philosophical about it, but it's not the way the overall entertainment business is moving. Some record labels are refusing to allow their music on certain streaming platforms, some cable companies are having battles with certain stations over carriage, and some radio companies are keeping their content on their own platform. That's what CBS Radio did as well. I'd like to watch Netflix movies on standard basic cable, but right now that's not happening. Some Thursday night NFL games are only on the NFL Network, and that's usually not on basic cable.
As I said earlier in this thread, as of now Cumulus doesn't have a digital plan, so they're using iHeart. They also use other outside companies for their podcasts. Given their finances, they don't have the investment money they'd need to start their own. There's a lot of speculation about what will happen with CBS Radio once it gets bought by Entercom. Entercom isn't very active in the digital area either. But CBS has their own Radio.com platform.
The general feeling is "Content is King." If you love a certain kind of content, you'll do whatever it takes to get it. That's how Howard Stern got rich. He went to satellite, and you have to pay $15 or more a month to hear him. Does that limit his reach as compared to what he had when he was syndicated on FM radio? Probably. That's why he added a TV show. Bill O'Reilly doesn't have a TV show on Fox anymore, but his fans are paying to hear him online. You probably can think of other similar examples.
The biggest problem I see with Mark Simone is he's only on in New York. He isn't syndicated like Rush or other talkers. So his potential online audience is mainly drawn from NYC. It doesn't matter how many digital platforms he's on. That means his digital numbers are probably lower than the national guys. If they're lower, he may not be triggering the minimum numbers to get online sponsorship. My people tell me you need a minimum of 10,000 listens a week of a podcast before you get your first pre-roll ad. That's a lot of listens. Each platform has its minimum, so you're better off concentrating your listens on one platform than five in order to meet the minimum. His website needs to get over 30,000 impressions a month before it triggers minimum numbers for ads. I know some national shows that struggle to meet that. Even after 30,000 hits, it may only make them $20 after the split.
So you see, the money isn't there in digital, especially if you're not a nationally syndicated host. When I was selling digital, the only number advertisers were interested in for direct sponsorship was Million. If you can give them a million impressions, they might advertise with you. If the demographics are right. And everyone wants a cut. Google AdWords wants a cut, the agency wants a cut, and the syndicator wants a cut. What's left for the talent? Get the picture?
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^^^^^^ Thanks for your patient and excellent explanation.
It's difficult to understand the economics of digital delivery that the stations and individual programs actually face.
From a listener's perspective, there's nothing like using Tune-In and finding a bazillion stations geo-blocked, to see the limitations of digital online radio.
This is when online radio was once advertised as being limitless. Like much of the internet was.
Now we see the limits.
It's difficult to understand the economics of digital delivery that the stations and individual programs actually face.
From a listener's perspective, there's nothing like using Tune-In and finding a bazillion stations geo-blocked, to see the limitations of digital online radio.
This is when online radio was once advertised as being limitless. Like much of the internet was.
Now we see the limits.
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