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Why Radio Is Making A Comeback & The AI Influence

They still are, but for most people, the home entertainment system is primarily a video device with a gaming system.

Here's the Best Buy black Friday ad. I don't see any "home stereo systems" or radios.

Dammit I was hoping to score a Marantz system with the huge speakers.
 
I think it's telling that the photo in the article shows a 60 year old Pioneer receiver

If most radio listening is done using radio receivers, it's no wonder that PUM numbers are so low.
They should have asked every respondent which radio(s) they used for non-automotive listening by make and model. Simple requests to photograph their receivers' rear labels would have sufficed to have an A.I. do mass OCR analysis and spit out a database of makes and models with integrated year data queried from other databases.

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Since quality and even decent systems are no longer being sold in average retail stores, it would be insightful knowing how many that were originally bought by boomers and generation X are getting passed down to generations Y and Z.
 
That would be "TM Stereo Rock", which (despite the name) was an adult top 40 format.
Remember that, from the mid 50's through the 60's and into the 70's Top 40 stations were called "rockers" as they played "Rock 'n' Roll". That was one of the terms applied to the music dating back at least to "Rock Around the Clock".
 
Since quality and even decent systems are no longer being sold in average retail stores, it would be insightful knowing how many that were originally bought by boomers and generation X are getting passed down to generations Y and Z.

Once again, if it's true that most AM/FM listening is done on receivers, and most receivers are owned by boomers & GenX, that explains why most popular formats are for older music formats.
 
Once again, if it's true that most AM/FM listening is done on receivers, and most receivers are owned by boomers & GenX, that explains why most popular formats are for older music formats.
I don't follow this.... every radio is a "receiver" whether it be a car radio, a portable, a clock radio, etc.

Are you referring to the fact that most AM and FM listening is done on a stand-alone radio as opposed to a multi-function device like a cellular phone or an iPad?
 
Whatever the basis is here:
Larry's folks are certainly having an issue with terminology. Even a cellphone with that can pick up FM stations (as is more common outside the U.S.) has a "receiver" built in. So does the "tuner" in those big 70's era component stereo systems.

But, I guess, saying "receiver" is easier than saying "stand alone radio" or something similar. And then a term like "stand alone" would be confusing in regards to the radios most users employ today that have a car attached to them.
 
Everyone may come to their own conclusion, but if you look around or do some research, some things are happening.

- People are increasingly getting sick of TV apps. They are getting fed up with where to find a football game and knowing they are getting hit with credit card charges monthly from apps they never remember having

- Many car companies are doing away with Apple CarPlay in their dashboards.

- The social media platforms from YouTube to Facebook are becoming less believable. Much of what you see now is fake, or AI generated. That is going to get worse. In a few years, nobody will know what to believe on these platforms, and advertisers will want nothing to do with them

- Smart phones are already being made to represent a flip-phone again.

- People have already started to get their info from AI, not search engines. It’s only the beginning, but it’s happening very fast.

How does this benefit terrestrial radio? Radio is free. Radio is trusted. Radio is mobile. Obviously, the content matters, but as a media platform, it is in much better shape than print or tv.

Come to Buffalo, the number 1 city in the country for AM listeners.
 
- People are increasingly getting sick of TV apps. They are getting fed up with where to find a football game and knowing they are getting hit with credit card charges monthly from apps they never remember having

No, we are sick of the confusion involved in using them, not the apps themselves. Once we get an app that we use on our TV to show what we are subscribed to and where to find it vs. what we might buy all that will be easy again.
- Many car companies are doing away with Apple CarPlay in their dashboards.
Only because they want the money and usage to stay in-house. CarPlay is vastly superior to the car maker's alternatives.
- The social media platforms from YouTube to Facebook are becoming less believable. Much of what you see now is fake, or AI generated. That is going to get worse. In a few years, nobody will know what to believe on these platforms, and advertisers will want nothing to do with them
That I agree on.
- Smart phones are already being made to represent a flip-phone again.
For about a tenth of a percent of people. 50% still buy just one brand and physical format: the iPhone.
- People have already started to get their info from AI, not search engines. It’s only the beginning, but it’s happening very fast.
You are missing the fact that the search engines have always been sort of AI, and now Google search gives you AI results first. The search engines are becoming more and more AI driven, not the other way around.
How does this benefit terrestrial radio? Radio is free.
With those awful ads for personal injury attornies and the like. We pay with our time.
Radio is trusted.
Maybe by some, but I don't think radio, which hardly does any news any more, is an institution of confidence. It is an ad medium.
Radio is mobile.
And requires a separate device from your smartphone. Why carry two devices?
Obviously, the content matters, but as a media platform, it is in much better shape than print or tv.
Right. The 3 share today in Buffalo represents the same number of listeners as a 0.7 share did in 2005.
Come to Buffalo, the number 1 city in the country for AM listeners.
How much of that AM listening is to translators of AM stations?
 
No, we are sick of the confusion involved in using them, not the apps themselves. Once we get an app that we use on our TV to show what we are subscribed to and where to find it vs. what we might buy all that will be easy again.

Only because they want the money and usage to stay in-house. CarPlay is vastly superior to the car maker's alternatives.

That I agree on.

For about a tenth of a percent of people. 50% still buy just one brand and physical format: the iPhone.

You are missing the fact that the search engines have always been sort of AI, and now Google search gives you AI results first. The search engines are becoming more and more AI driven, not the other way around.

With those awful ads for personal injury attornies and the like. We pay with our time.

Maybe by some, but I don't think radio, which hardly does any news any more, is an institution of confidence. It is an ad medium.

And requires a separate device from your smartphone. Why carry two devices?

Right. The 3 share today in Buffalo represents the same number of listeners as a 0.7 share did in 2005.

How much of that AM listening is to translators of AM stations?
Since I disagree with just about everything you said, as you are taking my words as gospel, not as theory, I will just call you on your last point.

Buffalo, NY has the highest AM listenership of any city in the U.S. Translators are not counted in that, which is why WECK was not included in the Radio Ink article. WECK is the only highly rated AM in the market with translators. The other two highly rated stations have no FM components. Look the article up.


Also, you say “radio is not mobile because you need two separate devices” . Radio is mobile other than a smart phone, such as voice-activated devices, a radio itself, Bluetooth on dashboards. I can get my local tv stations on none of these except smartphones, which I can get radio as well, but I cannot get local tv stations anywhere else. Radio IS mobile
 
Some are also removing AM & FM.
Gosh. That's a completely unpredictable development.

Speaking of FM, and returning to the proper topic of this thread (the "AM Radio For Every Vehicle Act"), aren't these people forgetting just one small thing? Like ... FM? I don't understand why they're bothering to go through all the effort and expense associated with getting federal legislation written, introduced, and passed when this bill, as is, would only technically save half of the traditional car radio receiver. Are they expecting that vehicle makers wouldn't look at the letter of this law and retain AM while eventually dumping FM to incentivize maximum subscription uptake to services like SiriusXM or whatever other streaming platforms they may get into the business of co-promoting with big tech later on down the road? This bill should be called the "AM and FM Radio For Every Vehicle Act." Especially when every AM station that's financially able is already transitioning, or has transitioned, to translators or even full power FM signals, and to promoting their new FM frequencies on-air more than, or exclusively over, their AM frequencies. If this bill doesn't mandate FM as well, aren't they risking wasting all of their effort on essentially mandating that automakers give them the equivalent of flooded real estate?
 
So Tesla is rolling back the clock to when any radio in a car was an "option". I remember plenty of cars with a steel plate in the dash where the buyer didn't cough up the extra $30 or so for an AM radio. I also remember when dealers would charge for a factory brand radio but then replace it with a cheaper unit and pocket the difference.
 
In fact, RadioDiscussions is "Social Media".... and you are using it.
I have to disagree.

Social Media is a place where people "share" everything about themselves, brag about their lives and discuss anything and everything.

This is a Forum where specific topics are discussed by people who don't necessarily feel the need to share everything else.

That's a big difference.
 
Wow, one car company. You said companies (plural)

Actually you were the one who said "companies."

- Many car companies are doing away with Apple CarPlay in their dashboards.

But here's a second US manufacturer with no radio:

 
I have to disagree.

Social Media is a place where people "share" everything about themselves, brag about their lives and discuss anything and everything.

This is a Forum where specific topics are discussed by people who don't necessarily feel the need to share everything else.

That's a big difference.
Perfectly said. Social media is where the users are the media -- often to the extreme of being a digital mirror that others simply watch you admiring yourself in. Classic venues for online group interaction like Usenet, listservs, and web forums should never have their reputations impugned by being equated to it. ;)
 


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