Radio & Records Generation Ex

You should see the email I get every time I mention the needs and desires of the next generation.

Really.

Stuff like "you can't go by what the students of the University of Spoiled Children say" or "wait until they have to get a job, they'll see" or some other dismissive phrase that only supports why the radio and record industries are currently without a future.

It's easy for radio and record executives to blame the iPod or the Internet or those thieving kids who pirate music. But the real answer is closer to home.

What we have is generational ignorance.

All of us who have children think our kids are&hellip

The Record Industryǃ

With Yahoo and Time Warner considering shutting down their web radio services due to the potential of a 38% increase in royalties, how does that bode for Internet radio?

Will Internet radio be at a disadvantage vis-_

You Know Radio Is In Big Trouble When…

The big box stores are supposed to be selling HD radios and breathing new life into a declining industry -- if you believe the hype.

Nope -- not flying off the shelves.

Instead, Wal-Mart is selling new George Foreman grills that come equipped with speakers that allow you to hook up your iPods while cooking -- God forbid you have to be away from an iPod for a few minutes.

Here's the pitch on Wal-Mart's site:
"Whether you're grilling indoors or outdoors, you'll love the convenience of listening to your iPod or other MP3 player while cooking.&hellip

Radio: Home of the Hits (and Misses)

Radio used to be called "Home of the Hits". But not so today as young listeners turn elsewhere for music.

A longtime friend of mine -- a well respected radio figure -- wrote to me the other day that he put the big question to a group of young people 19-24 at the family Thanksgiving celebration. He wanted to know -- where do you get new music?

One young person replied, "...from iTunes, of course". But my friend persisted, "that wasn't my question. My question was where she heard the music that she then purchased from iTunes?"

He reports the answer was radio -- good, old fashioned terrestrial radio. He added&hellip

The Radio Station of the Future

I have seen the future.

It's happening now and the changes that are taking place in real time will proliferate during the year ahead.

And, as always, our consolidated leader, Clear Channel is leading the way once again. One of my readers confirmed the further degradation of America's radio stations and I thought I'd share it with you. (For those of you who know all too well what I'm going to say, I'll understand if you hold your nose while reading).

Here's the radio station of the future:

1. One program director who must by necessity juggle many balls while having none himself (or herself). A PD without the&hellip

It’s Time for Radio To Stop Being an iPod

In a way radio was an iPod long before Apple invented iPods.

After all, radios were portable analog music devices that allowed baby boomers to carry their music around with them 24 hours a day.

The iPod of today gives the listener total choice -- the music they want, when they want it and in whatever (or no) special order.

Back then, the predecessor to the Apple iPod was a transistor radio and an entire generation grew up with their radios to their ears -- just as today, ear plugs and all.

The forerunner to the "iPod" lacked the level of choice that today's Apple device has, but it had something even more&hellip

Hy Lit, Radio Star

Legendary Philadelphia radio personality Hy Lit died Saturday at 73. He had come down with Parkinson

Don’t Tase Me, RIAA

Warner Music Group CEO Edgar Bronfman, Jr. has apparently changed his tune.

He is quoted as telling a GSMA Mobile Asia Conference "We used to think our content was perfect just exactly as it was. We expected our business would remain blissfully unaffected even as the world of interactivity, constant connection and filesharing was exploding. And of course we were wrong".

Is Warner Records wising up?

It's apparent that Bronfman who went on to praise Apple and its iPhone is smart enough to understand that his industry is in deep trouble and he already knows how bad off Warner is. Don't look any further than losing&hellip

Sick Radio

Firing people when they are sick is sick.

The radio industry is sick these days.

Wonder if there is any connection?

I admit I'm not naive about corporate management and I acknowledge that big companies often have no heart. I worked for one of them and I have been an agent of pain.

When I worked for General Cinema, the movie chain that ran some radio stations in major markets, I was forced to tell a widow of one of my young jocks who died of cancer that the company had no death benefits to pay her.

She said,

SoundExchange Is Right

John Simson, the executive director of SoundExchange, an industry organization that collects royalties for record labels and artists is right.

He wrote in a recent Inside Radio commentary "People should be fairly paid for the work they do".

I think what Simson means is that record labels and artists should be fairly paid for the work they do.

But radio stations should be fairly paid for the work they do -- sell the record labels' product.

In other words, while Simson is trying to put the squeeze on radio stations for additional performance fees, radio stations should be charging the labels and artists for all&hellip

Wal-Mart Records

Is the next generation with their iPods and piracy killing the record labels or are the record labels and their artists killing the record business?

You could make arguments on both sides, but something is killing the business of selling music.

Wal-Mart sold 710,000 of the Eagles new album

Radio’s New Litmus Test

There has been such a big stink in the radio industry over adopting the new Arbitron Portable People Meter ratings system that it is easy for the real issues to get lost in the controversy.

There is no doubt radio needs to adopt, support and, yes, improve the PPM methodology. The potential is there for curing the under reporting of radio stations and at the same time the risk exists of inaccurately reporting certain formats that are popular with specific demographics. Still, the PPM is the future.

But I have a litmus test, if you will, for a radio station's real popularity that has nothing to do with Arbitron diaries or&hellip

The Idiot Prince

I'm loath to call people names so let me apologize for calling one of the music industry's true icons an idiot.

But when you threaten to sue thousands of fans over trivia such as using pictures of their Prince tattoos, what else could you call him?

The RIAA must be salivating.

Suing fans -- cool.

Prince's lawyers have the nerve to demand removal of all pictures, images, lyrics, album covers and anything linked to Prince's likeness. These flunk outs from Dale Carnegie's human relations course are also demanding details on how these criminals are going to compensate his royal arrogance.

The unpronounceable&hellip

Radiohead’s Tip Jar Is Empty

The election is over and the results are in.

No, Hillary didn't beat Rudy and Rudy didn't beat Hillary.

Radiohead beat itself.

Nice try. Radiohead deserves credit for doing what the labels refuse to do -- innovate. They are still very cool for trying.

The British band let fans decide how much to pay for a digital copy of their new release "In Rainbows" and most of their loyal, loyal friends decided to pay...

Nothing.

That's right. 62% downloaded the music free during a four-week period last month proving once again that the electorate has given the music industry a mandate -- lower your&hellip

EMI: Crackdown or On Crack

The new owner of EMI is talking tough.

He is threatening to drop artists EMI believes are not working hard enough.

Come again.

Not working hard enough. Since when do talented artists have to work hard? Don't they just have to exhibit their talent? Like, in the form of an album. Maybe even a hit album.

Of course, the new owners are also threatening to overhaul the pay packages of their own executives. I'll bet they're really afraid.

In most other industries where a segment has lost market share for the best part of seven straight years, they would have been outta there by now.

But let's get back to&hellip

The Wall Street Bullies

The Philadelphia Flyers hockey team has been and still is known as the Broad Street Bullies -- named after the street where their hockey rink is located and for their rough style of play.

In radio, it's the Wall Street Bullies. The investment banks and radio CEOs who have sold their radio privileges for riches beyond their level of talent.

The Broad Street Bullies fight with their fists.

The Wall Street Bullies fight with their knives -- the ones that slash station budgets to the bone.

Need a recent example?

Here's how not to rebuild radio into a competitor for increased audiences and more advertising:

Pin the Long Tail on the Donkey

Jeff Zucker, the 42 year-old president and chief executive of NBC Universal finally determined that "Apple has destroyed the music business".

So if you are one of those poor unfortunates who actually thought record labels unwilling to embrace the digital future and their partners in crime -- radio stations with their ultra-short playlists -- did it to themselves, then you would be wrong.

Lots of media types are gulping down Zucker's Kool-Aid.

Zucker has a horse in this race.

He thinks that "If we don't do something on the video side, they'll (Apple) do the same thing (there)". Could it be a way for Zucker to&hellip