So what's the alternative?

[Radioboy989]

I was thinking...yes, it hurt.

FM2 never came to be...amStereo never moved the earth, streaming on the web is still developing and is restrictive due to listener internet access.

What's the next unexplored base of broadcast freedom? Where do we go from here?

Is there anything on the horizon or in the imagination that might allow local people, local owners, local broadcasters to do what we love or are we in an XM, Sirius, ClearChannel universe for eternity?

 

[pbf1]

Yes

Webcasting

 

[V.Riley]

Ditto! Take it to the Internet. It's already accessible via most work locations, home, and even cell phones, and Car Radios in the near future are expected to have it.

 

[Radioboy989]

I'm still not sold on the webcasting idea in it's current state. There are a couple of big budget stations that stream but getting that stream is kind of a crapshoot at times. If they and their deep pockets can't get it consistently and/or correctly, I don't hold out much hope for small operators.

 

[V.Riley]

It's rare that I find a station I can't get a good stream from, and I listen almost all day to Internet Radio. The exception being the short time that I'm in the car, but when they have Internet Radio for cars, I may be grab one what ever the price.

I've been listening to Internet radio since about 1998 and it has improved greatly over the years. Sounds great connected to my home stereo.

 

[boyphenom]

I was wondering whether the answer might be to take the AM frequency and use that spectrum for additional FM broadcasting. With a "line of sight" signal as opposed to an oscillating one, that would theoretically take the negative attributes of AM off the table, maybe? What good is most of the AM band these days anyway? Take all the WCOL's of the world and give them a REAL signal ....... leave the healthy AM's alone. Seems you could clean out all of the 1,000 watt local stations this way (or simulcast the healthy ones until it's time to phase out the former).

 

[V.Riley]

In todays release of RAIN (Radio And Internet Newsletter) they quoted a study from Paragon Media Strategies. The following is a snippet from the study.

The next generation of 25-54 year olds is saying that listening over the Internet is a significant reason for listening to radio less. While iPods/MP3 Players’ and personalized CDs’ market penetration may have peaked, the threat to terrestrial radio from the Internet appears ominous. It behooves radio stations to be part of the menu as young listeners go to the Internet for a significant part of their audio experience.

Source: http://www.kurthanson.com/archive/news/111207/index.shtml

 

[Bill Harmonic]

The web is where it's at without a doubt! You can find more new ideas and directions being tried on the internet than any place else and when it gets into our transportation, it could become the dominant source of listening for many. At this moment the younger audience accepts and uses the technology more than the older demos do but that will change in the next couple of years when the hardware gets in place. If you have an idea, stream it! It's also a great teaching tool because I've heard and seen so many fantastic things that I never had the foggiest could even be pulled off, but there it is right in front of you sparking your imagination. I've been doing my website (www.harmoniclounge.com) for some time now and if nothing else, I get a place to work out my creativity and have some fun. Did I get in to it to be rich? No, but I also see the opportunity to make a few bucks in the future when it becomes more common place. Have I spent some moolah on it? Yes, but it's not going to happen by itself or because I want it to. I believe that the web will be one of the main reasons that radio as we know it will have to change in the future. It's back to the creativity and fun that got most of us into this business in the first place and don't worry about the "money" thing right at this moment. That creativity that used to be rampant in radio just went underground and that cycle is about to come back around on the internet. I can remember when broadcasting companies did not know what to do with that new fangled thang called "FM". It was all about "AM' and everything else was secondary. The web right now reminds me of the early days of "FM". The whole idea is be there working on your ideas when the medium makes it's break! I'm certainly not the sharpest tack in the box but a couple of friends of mine who are a lot farther out there than most on the "Long Tail" always tell me that at least I'm in the game which is more that can be said of most. Remember that a lot of the companies we work for have wounded the goose that laid the golden egg, but that does not mean the whole thing is down the drain. It just means that the thought process is going through a ton of change and you can either get in the game or watch. Don't forget that no matter what the technology is, the whole thing is about "Choice" and "Content". Both are being delivered on the internet!

 

[Inventor989]

WiMAX is being built out by cell carriers, phone companies, cable systems, even some municipalities as we speak. When this "Super Wi-Fi" is in place, auto manufacturers will be building internet radio right into the dashboard, just as cellphones and PDAs are starting to roll out with internet radio-capable chips. At that point, stick value will really plummet as the bulk of listening moves off of broadcast for good. Right now, the only good reason to buy a radio station is as a platform to grow onto the internet.

Then everyone will have to pay to listen to the radio.

 

[xianbroadcaster]

I agree that Internet Radio is the way to go without a doubt.

I am curious about how I would go about making a living at it?

How is an Internet based radio station sold and what sort of money can it generate for the individual netcaster who wants to make a go of it? Or does it make money from different revenue streams other than advertisers?

How does an individual netcaster compete with the corporations who are already in the mix who have a large amount of resources?

This is the way to go but the steps to take are a bit blurry.

 

[V.Riley]

I'm always keeping an open ear to this subject as there is always more to learn, however here is what I've found out so far.

• Very few Internet Radio Stations make a profit (currently)
• Income can be made via website advertising and Streaming ads
• You must be licensed through ASCAP, BMI, SESAC and Sound Exchange, so that royalties and such are paid

As for competing with big corporate radio, although they can outspend you, the upper hand may be yours in your freedom of format. Corporate Radio would most likely try to pigeon hole their stations into pre-designated format structures, which would make them just like Terrestrial Radio. When you run your own station you can decide what the format is, and what you will and will not play. You may also be more responsive to your listeners than a corporate radio station. How would you make a living at it? Well, right now it may be just a case of getting your foot in the door and start carving out your niche. Making a living off of it may come in the following months/years as Internet Radio takes hold. What do you charge for advertising? That is a good question, right now I say what the market can bare, and that depends on who your advertisers are. Since unlike corporate radio, you most likely won't have a big studio that you have to pay rent on, so in comparison, your cost may be lower and your ad space could be more more affordable to the advertisers/sponsors.

 

[Radioboy989]

Now, can anyone speak the the operational costs of all those licensing fees? How are they paid? How are they determined? This is gettng REALLY interesting!

 

[V.Riley]

I was checking a couple months ago, so hopefully my info won't be outdated. Best to check there websites.

SESAC cost around $262.00 annually
ASCAP cost between $288.00 to $340.00 (covers up to $11,250.00 of your revenue)
BMI cost around $295.00 annually (covers up to $15,000 of your revenue)

The ones that are "$$ of your revenue" increase as your businesses revenue increases.

As for Sound Exchange, that is the sticking point currently the rate is being contested.

The new rates essentially apply a fee of $0.0011 per performance. That may not sound like alot, however, each hour the average radio station plays about 16 songs. That's about 1.76 cents per hour, PER LISTENER. A station with a 500 listener average would be hit with fees of $211 per day or $6,336 month or $76,000 a year. This rate was just recently introduced, and would bankrupt many if not all Webcasters.

Webcasters are asking for the same rate that Satellite and Cable Radio pays which is between 7.25 - 7.5% of revenue. Sound Exchange is also pressuring Terrestrial Radio to pay as they don't feel Radio serves a promotional value. But anyway, if SoundExchange plays fair, the rate should be around 7.5% of your revenue. See http://www.savenetradio.org for more information about this subject.

Hope that answered your questions.

 

[Bill Harmonic]

Riley is pretty much on the mark. I'm a thousand and some change each year for the past couple of years in music rights fees. But I'm only doing 14 songs a week (one hour) right now. The Sound Exchange thing is the wild card for the future. Bought a board, processor and mic for home. Put the show together on Cool Edit on my computer. Cost me about $1500 to own the name (Harmonic Lounge). Got the logo design, equipment put together and various other things like web hosting from friends (call in those markers or beg). Next thing is a bigger (and newer) computer to go full time in 2008. That is a truly different thing from just doing an hour a week and presents a slew of new problems. Like I said before, just start slow, but at least start.