Today's Radio-Info Headlines...

[dumber than a box of hair]

"HD Radio Alliance tells stations "this is yours now" - and removes the sales and format limits on HD-2."

"The 1,000,000th HD Radio will be sold this year."

I'd like some of what they're smoking.

 

[KB1OKL]

A friend passed this little bit of info onto me about it being written by the Alliance themselves. I'm surprised that Radio-Info would print a story like this which was obviously written by The Alliance who is trying to pass it off like it's been written by an impartial journalist, they used this company which is at the bottom of their story:

http://www.prnewswire.com/

Next, faked customer reviews:

Jimmy Sunstruck loves his new HD radio and gushes:

"I love my new iBlock-10MILE radio, it looks really cool next to my computer. It's VERY quiet too."

Or Josefina Tengo Demasiado Dinero who says:

"I live right down the street from that big giant radio tower and I get crystal clear almost MP-3-like reception all the way to the end of my street on my brand new HD Adjacent-band 30Kc Blaster, it's so cool!"

 

[nd2023]

There should be a commercial free limit for at least the next 2 years. More people listen to the HD2s through the Internet than through an HD radio

 

[TheBigA]

Funny...when I clicked on this story, I expected to read about Ferrera's resignation from the Alliance, and all the regulars singing "Ding dong the which is dead." I thought that was the big news today.

 

[radiosanchez]

What I'm having difficulty understanding is (and please correct me if I'm missing something painfully obvious)....How is this new phase of programming different from the previous phase of HD-2 programming??

"Until now, HD Radio Alliance members have coordinated formats among themselves"........says the story...

...so who does it now?? Does it mean that the HD-2 programming now won't suck? Like now they'll be legally allowed to make it locally relevant, because in the past they weren't allowed to or something?

 

[Play Freebird]

What I'm having difficulty understanding is (and please correct me if I'm missing something painfully obvious)....How is this new phase of programming different from the previous phase of HD-2 programming??

"Until now, HD Radio Alliance members have coordinated formats among themselves"........says the story...

...so who does it now?? Does it mean that the HD-2 programming now won't suck? Like now they'll be legally allowed to make it locally relevant, because in the past they weren't allowed to or something?

A couple of years ago, shortly after "The Alliance" was formed, a PD friend and I were at lunch with a corporate executive of a major radio group, and conversation turned to the subject of HD Radio. I asked him how the HD-2 format coordination process was handled and his response blew me away. He told me that the company which owned the "biggest FM signal" in each market got to choose first, then the Alliance worked down the list to the little guys.

How typical. I knew right then that this whole thing would fail. And it has.

Now that format selection has gone "free market", I expect many FM HD-2 channels will simply become simulcasts of sister AM stations, for these reasons:

• It's a cheap way to operate
• There's already a "brand" and an audience for the AM programming -- the HD-2 will just offer another platform
• AM IBOC has so many known technical problems that cannot be solved

Once this happens, I hope these owners will just turn off their AM IBOC exciters and eliminate the interference they been causing.

 

[Play Freebird]

What I'm having difficulty understanding is (and please correct me if I'm missing something painfully obvious)....How is this new phase of programming different from the previous phase of HD-2 programming??

"Until now, HD Radio Alliance members have coordinated formats among themselves"........says the story...

...so who does it now?? Does it mean that the HD-2 programming now won't suck? Like now they'll be legally allowed to make it locally relevant, because in the past they weren't allowed to or something?

A couple of years ago, shortly after "The Alliance" was formed, a PD friend and I were at lunch with a corporate executive of a major radio group, and conversation turned to the subject of HD Radio. I asked him how the HD-2 format coordination process was handled and his response blew me away. He told me that the company which owned the "biggest FM signal" in each market got to choose first, then the Alliance worked down the list to the little guys.

How typical. I knew right then that this whole thing would fail. And it has.

Now that format selection has gone "free market", I expect many FM HD-2 channels will simply become simulcasts of sister AM stations, for these reasons:

• It's a cheap way to operate
• There's already a "brand" and an audience for the AM programming -- the HD-2 will just offer another platform in addition to streaming
• AM IBOC has so many known technical problems that cannot be solved

Once this happens, I hope these owners will just turn off their AM IBOC exciters and eliminate the interference they've been causing.

 

[KB1OKL]

The former AM clears who are ruining the band up and down all over the country and especially on the east coast won't turn them off until they are pried from their cold dead fingers. Why should they? It's not hurting them financially yet and only hurts the other guys and worst of all that would mean admitting defeat which I think is a big part of what this whole thing is about on all sides: too much pride to admit that the IBOC wrechnology has already failed.
Let's hope I'm wrong.

 

[dumber than a box of hair]

What I'm having difficulty understanding is (and please correct me if I'm missing something painfully obvious)....How is this new phase of programming different from the previous phase of HD-2 programming??

"Until now, HD Radio Alliance members have coordinated formats among themselves"........says the story...

...so who does it now?? Does it mean that the HD-2 programming now won't suck? Like now they'll be legally allowed to make it locally relevant, because in the past they weren't allowed to or something?

The so-called Alliance was not legally binding on any company, and couldn't be...a licensee cannot relinquish control of what they air to any other party. My guess is it won't really change much. Programming on which no money is spent is not going to change because some company without any lawful authority decides something.

As for the other headline: Great. They only have 799,000,000 to go.

 

[dumber than a box of hair]

Funny...when I clicked on this story, I expected to read about Ferrera's resignation from the Alliance, and all the regulars singing "Ding dong the which is dead." I thought that was the big news today.

Ferrara's move is of a classic genre: He was kicked upstairs where he can do no more harm. I guess it's possible someone at iBiquity finally got it through their heads that HD is done.

 

[Savage]

According to Inside Radio, ex-CBS dweeb Ferrara says, Diane Warren will head the Alliance as the group adjusts its mission to "aggressive marketing" (presumably that means TWELVE no-cost on-air promos hourly on Alliance stations) which is "a role she is more suited for."

So I guess the purpose of the top Alliance post up to now, could be described as "screwing everything up."

The "Peter Principle" lives - literally.

Ferrara says he will remain with The Alliance "in an advisory capacity." Whew, what a relief. It's good to know that if HD radio sales rise above a dozen a month, Mr. Principle will be there to make sure the most annoying and repellent no-cost on-air spots drive away the tiny handful of potential customers which exist.

 

[Carmine5]

"All major objectives for programming in which the Alliance was founded have now been achieved" (?) What objectives are they talking about?

More listeners? More stations on board with HD Radio? More sales of HD receivers? More creative programming on HD side channels? If those were the objectives for prohibiting commercials on side channels, well...

Talk about first rate bull-spinning from a management mediocrity. This sounds a lot more like pressure from Alliance members to end this experiment.

And like Play Freebird points out it will now free up station group owners to allow them to put their AM stations on HD side channels. This move could prove more successful than running jukebox, commercial-free formats.

C5

 

[pocket-radio]

“it's time for "local markets to step up, bigtime" and take "full-ownership" of the possibilities of the multicasting channels. That means looking for unserved niches in formats (he cites the Irish Channel in Boston. Can't make this up...

The Irish Channel? Isn’t this still about ratings? That niche works for satellite radio and paying customers, but won’t deliver huge ratings in the mass media world. I’m not sure Jazz or Classic Country are hitters either. It’s already been done. So managers are stuck with signals
that deliver little to no audience. And stations lack the resources to make HD multicasting viable. Sadley that state of radio today has Talent being cut and shit canned to make profits look better.
I guess the last great real estate grab was so exciting the radio guys lost their minds.

They’re making the “same mistakes that Fm’s made” Can’t make this stuff up..

And for AM HD works well for 100,000 watt stations, but “it’s a mess for small AM’s” Can’t make that up either..

 

[dumber than a box of hair]

There should be a commercial free limit for at least the next 2 years. More people listen to the HD2s through the Internet than through an HD radio

No, there shouldn't be any such limit. Radio is a business, and businesses which don't pay their own way don't last very long. Radio companies, many of which are in serious financial trouble anyhow, will not sustain money-losing operations indefinitely. At some point, sooner rather than later, those automation systems stuck in closets have to start justifying their existence.

Personally I'm waiting for the day one of the major former-Alliance member companies tries to sell ads on the HD secondaries. Hmmm, let's see...niche formats that the overwhelming majority of radio users can't hear, with no measurable audience. Wow...piece o' cake for the sales staff. Not. When this happens, there's a good chance the emperor will be stripped naked in public.

 

[TheBigA]

Like now they'll be legally allowed to make it locally relevant, because in the past they weren't allowed to or something?

Not exactly.

One of the issues in competitive radio is you often end up with two or three stations in a market with the exact same format. The original plan for the Alliance was to prevent duplication of formats, both between HD & AM/FM and competing HD channels. I imagine this announcement means that co-operation is done. The gloves are off, no more Mr. Nice Guy.

I agree that it's likely that more AM formats will move to FM HD channels, and this will free up the AM band for more religion, foreign language, brokered, and info-mercial programming.

My suspicion is that this "Alliance" is about to fall apart, as stations and groups create their own strategies, rather than follow some organization's guidelines.

 

[Carmine5]

"All major objectives for programming in which the Alliance was founded have now been achieved" (?) What objectives are they talking about?

More listeners? More stations on board with HD Radio? More sales of HD receivers? More creative programming on HD side channels? If those were the objectives for prohibiting commercials on side channels, well...

Talk about first rate bull-spinning from a management mediocrity. This sounds a lot more like pressure from Alliance members to end this experiment.

And like Play Freebird points out it will now free up station group owners to allow them to put their AM stations on HD side channels. This move could prove more successful than running jukebox, commercial-free formats.

C5

Interestingly, I'm not the only one questioning the truthfulness of the Alliance's announcement.

Here is RBR's comment on it:

http://www.rbr.com/media-news/advertising/rich_russo_hd_digital_radio_alliance.html

I especially enjoyed this quote:

"Successful? How are they defining that? I can write forever about the HD radio missteps...The bottom line remains this, they have had 3 years and have had Tens of Millions of dollars of free advertising and there is no awareness, no buzz and no movement. If the broadcasters used those spots to solicit funds for Katrina victims or for a charitable cause, the world would be a much better place."

Says it all.

C5

 

[rbrucecarter5]

"The 1,000,000th HD Radio will be sold this year."

The fine print ought to read:

"The 900,000th HD radio will be returned as defective this year by a consumer who doesn't want to erect an outdoor antenna."

 

[TheBigA]

Interestingly, I'm not the only one questioning the truthfulness of the Alliance's announcement.

Do you not understand the role of PR? Do you not understand the role of trade organizations? Come on! Grow up.

If you want the truth, do your own research. Don't expect to get the truth from a group whose main purpose is self promotion.

RBR evaluates press releases all the time, and gives their take on the story. That's what good journalists do. No problem with that, and the couch their opinion as such.

At the same time, the anti IBOCers are also printing all their stuff. Is it the truth? Of course not. It's my experience that the truth is somewhere in the middle.

 

[Carmine5]

Interestingly, I'm not the only one questioning the truthfulness of the Alliance's announcement.

Do you not understand the role of PR? Do you not understand the role of trade organizations? Come on! Grow up.

If you want the truth, do your own research. Don't expect to get the truth from a group whose main purpose is self promotion.

RBR evaluates press releases all the time, and gives their take on the story. That's what good journalists do. No problem with that, and the couch their opinion as such.

At the same time, the anti IBOCers are also printing all their stuff. Is it the truth? Of course not. It's my experience that the truth is somewhere in the middle.

Don't bust a gut on my account (it's becoming increasingly clear what BigA stands for).

Of course, I understand what PR is and its purpose. But we also know that a lack of candor (along with some self-deception) has been glaring characteristic of HD Radio developers and promoters pretty much from the start. And a "mission accomplished" statement from the Alliance, when the evidence is clearly otherwise, is just more proof of that. They're only embarrassing themselves.

BTW, my sense of humor is completely intact and functions perfectly when something is funny--but not when it's offensive.

C5

 

[TheBigA]

Don't bust a gut on my account (it's becoming increasingly clear what BigA stands for).

Don't take it personally. It wasn't meant that way. But let's face it...if you're looking for truth and candor, any group like that is the wrong place.

But we also know that a lack of candor (along with some self-deception) has been glaring characteristic of HD Radio developers and promoters pretty much from the start.

They are not unique in that situation. Any group, be it the RIAA, the NAB, and MusicFirst, has their agenda, and they are paid to thump their bible loud and hard. And truthfully, I've identified many areas where anti-IBOC groups are equally deceptive in their comments.

BTW, my sense of humor is completely intact and functions perfectly when something is funny--but not when it's offensive.

I don't see how anything I said was offensive. I'm simply stating the obvious.