You're comparing two very different things. Radio Disney was a failed format, that assumed children wanted to hear linear style radio like their parents. The SiriusXM app gives users access to all Sirius channels (and more) on their device without need of satellite.
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SiriusXM projected to have lower subscriber gains later in 2023
- Thread starter davideduardo
- Start date
You're comparing two very different things. Radio Disney was a failed format, that assumed children wanted to hear linear style radio like their parents. The SiriusXM app gives users access to all Sirius channels (and more) on their device without need of satellite.
As BigA mentioned; Radio Disney's target audience was children 6+, and by associated distance in the car, their parents also listening. The entire idea was to promote Disney content, movies, artists, swag, cruises, and theme parks. SXM is a pure subscription play.
The SXM app is very intuitive. For example, I can change presets going down I-95 on my motorcycle. It's literally a one-button press, just like old fashioned radio preset buttons.
Sure, especially when you have Apple Carplay. All the channels or presets are right there on your vehicle display. Of course, not on vchimp's car, because AM-FM radio's with 8 track players wouldn't support Apple Carplay...
So far I can't make the presets work with Siri so I'm stuck with whatever I pick until I pull over. Maybe the update will change that.
Interestingly, in much of Latin America, Radio Disney became a co-production with local radio operators. But the concept was changed to be AC songs, nearly 100% in English, aimed at young mothers. Sort of "soft AC" but with much more current music by artists that all pre-teens and many younger teen girls would like (the "infinite genders" concept has not reached Latin America yet).
The stations do very well in both ratings (generally at the lower part of the Top 10 stations) and in revenue (likely due to the image of the brand). Since nearly all the listening is in A, B and C+ socio-economic levels (using the A to D scale often employed in Latin American consumer research), it is an attractive buy for advertisers.
It's not directed a kids, but, rather, at the mothers of kids with music that would not make those mothers cringe when played for "the little ones".
OK, if it was a failed format it really failed when they took it online-only. They still had listeners when they were on the airwaves. If they had listeners online, there apparently weren't enough of them to make it worthwhile, even when the online-only service cost less to operate than OTA (no 10KW and 5KW transmitters running 24/7 to pay for, and eventually no airstaff to speak of).
Really? On all those AM radio stations? Do you have figures?
Once again you're comparing one station with an online subscription service. For example, Spotify has 450 million users.
They had listeners. How many of them, I don't know. The numbers weren't stated in the press. I know they stated that when they went online (and HD radio) only, that 16% of their listeners were listening to the AMs. So they had enough listeners to try the online only formula (I doubt anyone listened to the RD HD-FMs), which they touted as the future. Which, as we all know, failed.
Spotify has 450 million listeners, but how many of them are paying? Either way, I don't see Sirius XM lasting long once they go all online, which it looks like they plan to do eventually. There is too much competition, and a lot can change in 10 years. I give them credit for trying, though. OTA radio is doing the same thing -- gearing up for an eventual, online only future.
Given the way the internet is taking over all forms of media distribution, none of them really have much other choice.
Funny you should ask. They just past 200 million paid subscribers.
Spotify Hits 205 Million Paid Subscribers, Topping User Growth Targets for Q4 With Record Total Quarterly Gain
Spotify packed on 10 million Premium customers in the last three months of 2022 to stand at 205 million, topping its previous guidance.
variety.com
Try to understand that SiriusXM makes more money in a year than the top 5 on-air radio companies put together.
SiriusXM 2022 Q4 Revenue Flat; 2022 Up 4% Over 2021
SiriusXM reports results from the fourth quarter of 2022 as well as the year in full. For Q4, revenue was $2.28 billion, flat compared to the same period in 2021. For the full year of 2022, revenue…
talkers.com
But they are in a different business. OTA radio is in the advertising business, while Sirius/XM is in the services business.
Radio sells its product to advertisers. Satellite sells its product to consumers. Radio's product is consumers; satellite's product is audio entertainment.
Depends. Non-commercial radio is in the same business, and all kinds of radio compete for the same set of ears.
What RD had was commitments, not listeners. RDI had purchased, and were licensees of several derelict mostly-AM stations. When running any radio station group, there's a lot of back-office and legal support required to maintain it. RD never made a dime, nor was it intended-to. As I mentioned prior; it was an extension of the Disney marketing arm. And like any large business, a structure inside of Disney was created to run it. From a cost standpoint; RD was a rounding error on the Disney books, but like anything-business, eventually management needs to know the return on investment. Streaming, and on-line was where the audience they were trying to reach went, so why would a company keep some old and substantially more expensive form of media that NONE of your target audience lived?
I've heard that Disney allowed them to move RD on-line plus a handful of HD-2/3 leases to shed the cost of operating useless AM stations, while assessing whether any audience left made the move. Remember, there is also a cost of producing programming for RD, whether the delivery method is radio or streaming. The question was; is RD more viable if you changed the delivery method to where the kids are?
Traditional radio network with affiliates. This was 1990, pre-TCA. They owned one station in Minneapolis and about 30 affiliates. Disney was an advertiser. Then one day they realized rather than sponsoring, they should do their own. So they launched RD in 1996. They already owned ABC (which they bought in 1995). Radio Aahs sued Disney for stealing their idea.
I think @DavidEduardo succinctly answered that question earlier - highlighted in bold:
Different for a reason.
Stations like SiriusXM Hits 1, Pandora Now and TikTok Radio are usually way in front of the current music out there. By the time some of the songs play on terrestrial radio, it’s been weeks if not at least a month that they played on SiriusXM channels.
TikTok Radio is the most intriguing of these channels since a lot of what they play has gone viral on their app. They are essentially creating their own hits.
I have a cassette player. I always forget that, but when I started on this site I had a car that didn't even have that.
I keep looking for a new car but i don't like the way cars look now and the ones I like are all being driven by smeone who probably doesn't want to sell.
Not exactly true. Songs are released to all radio services at the same time. Nobody has an exclusive on songs. There are decisions radio stations make based on chart rules that don't apply to streamers. So it's possible that radio stations will play a song early and not add it to the playlist. And you're comparing national services with local radio stations. But we have documentation that everyone has access to the same songs at the same time.
That makes sense. But it’s one thing to have access and another to actually play those new songs. Perhaps that’s where chart rules come into play?
Or it's one thing to play those new songs and another to put them into a more active rotation that requires you to officially add them to the playlist. I compared the Pandora Now playlist with the Mediabase list for Z100, and they're very similar. The difference is in spin numbers. Pandora Now ONLY plays new songs, while Z-100 mixes in re-current and gold. Everyone has access to the same songs, and everyone knows what everyone else is playing.
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