Thousand stand in line for Iphone/HD Radio Zero

[TheBigA]

When I was a kid in the 70’s radio was local.

When you were a kid in the 70s, there were 4000 radio stations, no internet, limited cable, no cell phones, and AM was starting a long decline.

Now there are 14,000 radio stations, competing against thousands of other media (most of it national).

It ain't the 70s. Don't even try to compare today to 35 years ago. Not the same thing.

There are lots of radio stations still trying to act like it's the 70s. Some play the same music. Lots of local news, personality, and information. None of those stations are growing. If that kind of radio was the cure, every company would jump on it like mud on a pig.

This is not about content. It's about function. It's about convenience. It's about combining various things in the same device. The cell phone has become a Swiss Army knife. Back in the 70s, everyone carried them. They included lots of things, including scissors, bottle opener, and cork screw. If you want to compare today to the 70s, remember the Swiss Army Knife. Do you still carry one?

 

[Carmine5]

Well it may be popular beyond belief, but so were Napster and Kazaa.

http://www.portfolio.com/views/blogs/the-tech-observer/2008/07/18/save-pandora

According to Cande Nast, they are not viable without regulatory relief. Just like XM/Sirius.

Funny. Terrestrial Radio IS viable unless they change the rules.

Who knew.

Clouseau

Uh....yeah. You do know that radio stations can stream their audio on the web, don't you?

The idea's been around a while. Maybe you've heard of it.

C5

Yep, I've heard of it. I'm just wondering what that comment is in response to. That Pandora can't survive without regulatory relief or that terrestrial radio is viable.

Ponderous, Man, Ponderous.

Clouseau

The point I'm making is that putting a radio tuner into a device that already gets radio by way of the internet is redundant. I have no doubt the folks at Apple see it that way also.

Granted, terrestrial radio is much more economical than the internet for those receiving it. But undoubtedly that will change because the public will demand that it change (in much the same way they're demanding an all-in-one, interactive device over a one-trick pony like a radio).

Even the NAB recently acknowledged that they should have pushed harder for better royalty fees for internet streaming because they too see it as radio's future. Now that the satcaster merger is almost a done deal perhaps they will focus their lobbying efforts to this issue.

In the end, the public will have what it wants. It's up to the radio industry to be where they are.

C5

 

[KB1OKL]

When I was a kid in the 70’s radio was local. Radio was a source people turned to for up to the minute local news and information. When you traveled you could tell what city you were in simply by listening to radio stations that were unique to that area.

Today we have jukebox fm’s, from city to city they all sound the same. Don’t believe get in your car and travel from Fl to Maine. It all sounds the same.

“Local Radio” sounds more like national programs. And Am sounds like repeaters for Rush, Bortz and Hanity.

Radio was local dream on because it’s not any more.

Google, blogs and countless web pages provide more and better local content than radio.

Sorry... radio lost the local war too..

Exactly, radio was your friend back then, now it's a faceless thing playing music out of a void, radio was cool. I considered the jocks on my local WBCN to be my friends, I felt that I knew them and COULDN'T WAIT to turn on WBCN when I got home and I'm talking the 70's also. Now what do you hear? Lame boring krap for the most part. I listen to my motor more than my radio in my car or silence sometimes now as I'm not a right winger and that is all there is even here in Ted, Bobby and Jack's home state. (sorry Bob, nothing personal ;D) I don't want to listen to that krap, the music is boring, there are three or four classic rock stations around here and they all play basically the same stuff, one's slanted this way, another is slanted that way but it's all the same stuff. One of them has jocks that actually have personality's, but the damn station is so tightly programmed their is NO spontaneity at all. That is what is most boring of all, the tight programming. I remember when jocks could actually play some of the music they liked, could discover new bands, could play local Boston bands, in fact they had a local top ten. They actually played the records and actually made mistakes, were actual human beings that you liked, were funny and man could they talk, they had PERSONALTY like the old song says ... damn that seems like eons ago. Too bad because that is what radio should be, leave the musical juke box scene to the ipods, the computers, the Satrads, there is a place for that too but radio should do what it does best, be your (local) friend.
Actually the only place I can find that now is local public radio, you can call them and request tunes and they will play them, you can talk to the actual person who plays the records and talks live over the air just like 30 years ago. I've actually set up in WCUW's studio several times with different bands and have played live over the air, I remember when WBCN used to go down to some of the local concerts and do that.

 

[clouseau]

Yep, I've heard of it. I'm just wondering what that comment is in response to. That Pandora can't survive without regulatory relief or that terrestrial radio is viable.

Ponderous, Man, Ponderous.

Clouseau

The point I'm making is that putting a radio tuner into a device that already gets radio by way of the internet is redundant. I have no doubt the folks at Apple see it that way also.

Sorry I was a little snippy. I see what you are saying. I think you are partially wrong, though. Several stations in my neck of the woods do not stream. Streaming at live sporting events is a real problem as well, due to the "longer than even HD radio" delay. Despite many assertions to the contrary, there are many things available on terrestrial not available on the internet. I wouuld suggest that Apple leaves terrestrial out of the mix because they are working to become a music distributer. I-Tunes is a big revenue stream for them.

Granted, terrestrial radio is much more economical than the internet for those receiving it. But undoubtedly that will change because the public will demand that it change (in much the same way they're demanding an all-in-one, interactive device over a one-trick pony like a radio).

I'm inclined to agree with you. And I do agree the public will desire the cost structure to change for streaming costs. How that will ever get monetized in another thought, however. Streaming is currently benefitting from a feverish (and good) rollout of broadband. How that could be converted to a no cost solution is difficult to imagine, however. At least it is for me.

Even the NAB recently acknowledged that they should have pushed harder for better royalty fees for internet streaming because they too see it as radio's future. Now that the satcaster merger is almost a done deal perhaps they will focus their lobbying efforts to this issue.

I would suspect that may be the case. As I see it, the NAB is going to try to get the HD power increase through, and then turn to that.

In the end, the public will have what it wants. It's up to the radio industry to be where they are.

I agree. I suspect that the public will need to cough up some cash somewhere, though. I just don't see how internet streaming is going to be totally free and especially totally free and portable. Internet and free don't seem to go together. Remember Netzero. What's their name now, NET$14.95?

Clouseau

 

[TheBigA]

Exactly, radio was your friend back then, now it's a faceless thing playing music out of a void, radio was cool.

Maybe. I went to college in a medium market in the 70s, and almost all of the radio stations were automated in one way or another. The only rock station was a station that ran the Schulke Hits format, with the same disembodied voice 24 hours a day. He never introduced himself, gave his name, or said anything friendly. Just "that was" and "this is." This was before satellite, so they got their format via reel to reel tape.

I got a part time job at the local beautiful music station. All on tape, from Bonneville in Tenafly. No live announcers. I racked tapes and took in the weather, which was phoned in from PA.

All this was long before deregulation. And it wasn't unusual. I read somewhere that more than half of the radio stations in the country operated this way during that time.

 

[KB1OKL]

Exactly, radio was your friend back then, now it's a faceless thing playing music out of a void, radio was cool.

Maybe. I went to college in a medium market in the 70s, and almost all of the radio stations were automated in one way or another. The only rock station was a station that ran the Schulke Hits format, with the same disembodied voice 24 hours a day. He never introduced himself, gave his name, or said anything friendly. Just "that was" and "this is." This was before satellite, so they got their format via reel to reel tape.

I got a part time job at the local beautiful music station. All on tape, from Bonneville in Tenafly. No live announcers. I racked tapes and took in the weather, which was phoned in from PA.

All this was long before deregulation. And it wasn't unusual. I read somewhere that more than half of the radio stations in the country operated this way during that time.

WBCN Boston was one of the first "underground" FM stations in the country, it changed in 1968, it stood for Boston Concert Network and played classical music like 99% of the rest of FM radio did back then. It was all live or very nearly so until probably about 1979 when it was bought which prompted the station to go on strike on strike. When it ended which was I think a compromise it was still good but never the same and gradually lost it's audience until it changed formats sometime during the late 90's when I was living out of state. It was a GREAT radio station and I have have heard nothing like it since. Most of the rock stations around here had personality back then, WBCN, WCOZ, WAAF (which was automated when it first went on the air, B-O-R-I-N-G), this is what is sorely lacking in today's radio. The on air personality's back then had that ability to make you love the radio and feel that you were in a special place, they were the coolest guys and girls around, that intimate part of radio is gone.

Here is a very short story of the sad demise of one of the country's greatest stations:

http://www.bostonradio.org/stations/26897

much better "feel" for the station here and many other links:

http://lcmedia.typepad.com/theamericanrevolution/

 

[TheBigA]

WBCN Boston was one of the first "underground" FM stations in the country, it changed in 1968

The first was KMPX in San Francisco. Yes I know the whole story.

The fact is that there may have been 25 or so such stations on the air in the 60s and 70s, mostly in major markets. By the end of the 70s, many of these stations had tasted the money, and were heavily formatted and consulted. By the 80s, most were rock jukeboxes with tight playlists and music directors who had picked up some bad habits.

My point being that it was a small minority of stations that did this, and they did it for a short time. The vast majority of radio at this time was exactly like radio today.

 

[KB1OKL]

WBCN Boston was one of the first "underground" FM stations in the country, it changed in 1968

The first was KMPX in San Francisco. Yes I know the whole story.

The fact is that there may have been 25 or so such stations on the air in the 60s and 70s, mostly in major markets. By the end of the 70s, many of these stations had tasted the money, and were heavily formatted and consulted. By the 80s, most were rock jukeboxes with tight playlists and music directors who had picked up some bad habits.

My point being that it was a small minority of stations that did this, and they did it for a short time. The vast majority of radio at this time was exactly like radio today.

I agree with you but these were the trend setting stations that all the other tired to emulate, these stations are what made FM what it is today. I don't know if you're old enough to have listened to this kind of radio in it's prime, but it was awesome, inspiring. It invited intense loyalty, your station was the BEST in the U.S. no if ands or buts. We even had John Gorman as a musical director here on WNTN 1550 AM, a local progressive AMer from Newton, MA, it was weak but when I was near Boston my AM car radio was on WNTN. This was a great station and if more AMers had followed it's lead who knows what could have happened.

 

[TheBigA]

I agree with you but these were the trend setting stations that all the other tired to emulate, these stations are what made FM what it is today.

At the end of the day, though, those trend-setting stations changed. KMPX moved to KSAN, Donohue got a little tired, and let others run the place and it soon became a boring jukebox. Same with WNEW-FM in New York. One by one, they all gave in to their greed, and their desire to get ratings. Those trend-setting stations got awful ratings. And some were owned by some major companies. Metromedia and Malrite were not interested in being trendsetters. They wanted the cash. And by the time those stations became popular in the 80s, they were all shadows of their former selves. And everyone forgot the idealism of the 60s. They all had mortgages and ex-wives to pay. Which brought us to the 90s, and what FM is today.