The radio industry is betting that high definition digital radio will make it more competitive against its perceived threat from satellite radio. Only one problem. The real threat to terrestrial radio is not from satellite radio, but from the next generation of listeners who spend their time listening to music interactively. This next generation — Generation Y — has been … Continue reading →

My students at USC have begun to utter the “F” word in public. It’s unthinkable, but it is happening. “Fatigue” like in i-Pod “Fatigue” is the buzz. There is no chance — zero — that these members of the next generation are angry with their iPods and ready to throw them away with traditional media. But what is significant, I … Continue reading →

I keep getting this gnawing feeling that some satellite radio channels are sounding more and more like the terrestrial radio from which it was supposed to save angry listeners fed up with hype and commercials. Today I heard Sirius Six — the Sixties channel — with a live jock promo (over an intro no less) for a Sirius promotion (buy … Continue reading →

The latest attempt by the record industry to swim upstream against Apple’s iTunes appears destined to fail even before it ever gets started — at least that’s what the majority of my USC students think. Free music is a good thing. Being forced to watch a 90-second commercial every time you download that free music is a bad thing. Not … Continue reading →

The single-most visited Internet web address — MySpace, the NewsCorp online venture, is going after Apple’s iTunes. Many have tried and failed as iTunes commands a 70% share of the digital music market. The big four major record labels are no doubt rooting for this attempt to break Apple’s stranglehold over them. SpiralFrog announced their new plan to launch a … Continue reading →

It’s nice to see that Sirius Satellite Radio is getting into the Internet delivery business with the sale of a new live portable receiver known as The Stiletto. Great name. Great device. Unfortunate timing. The hefty $349.99 price comes with the promise of listening by satellite or WiFi — at home, in the car (kits sold separately — ouch!) and … Continue reading →

An online mutiny this past week brought Facebook to its knees and gave a scary first look at how tenuous the world of cyberspace can be. Take notes, MySpace. Your parent company News Corp. paid over $600 million for the chance to be the social network and it can all go away at the click of a mouse. Facebook founder … Continue reading →

My friend Lee Abrams has agreed to come to Los Angeles and talk about satellite radio, the future of mobile music media and take questions from students, professors, graduates and the media. Abrams kicks off a USC Thornton School of Music series of new events known as “Thornton Hot Topics” in which cutting edge issues relating to music media can … Continue reading →

The next generation seems particularly indifferent to the rise of Katie Couric to anchor of CBS Evening News. It’s nothing personal, I’m convinced. It’s just that they don’t watch network TV newscasts. They don’t TiVo them, either which is why CBS hired a 49-year old reporter to read news to a largely older audience. I was recently interviewed for an … Continue reading →

Steven Jobs couldn’t keep the secret in advance of his San Francisco debut of a revamped line of iPods and more importantly — it’s gonzo entry into the movie delivery business. Apple’s new iPods freshened the line, but the most significant thing was not just the fact that Apple is selling movies today but that early in 2007 it will … Continue reading →

Facebook is still eating humble pie after a privacy meltdown of epic proportions last week — one that saw and uprising of angry users. The apology. The humility. Yet all Facebook did was give members a little more control, but their changes are potentially still out there as unpopular as they are. Now, Facebook has “MySpace envy”. Wants to expand … Continue reading →

It seems pressure from Wall Street is making some of the big radio companies think about selling more radio properties. CBS Radio is in the process of selling off its smaller, less essential markets and stands to raise a lot of cash and no doubt please their real bosses — Wall Street investors. Now analysts are reportedly suggesting to the … Continue reading →

The new Microsoft/Toshiba competitor to Apple’s iPod and iTunes — Zune — is betting a lot on this simple concept: users will be able to wirelessly send other Zune owners any song. The recipients can listen to the song for up to three plays within three days. Then, the recipients must buy the song if they want to hear it … Continue reading →

The lack of CD quality sound has not hurt Apple in its five years of dominating the mobile music device market. Of course there are a minority of audiophiles who complain, but not enough have resisted the many incarnations of the ubiquitous iPod. When Apple’s iTV gets up and running — probably in the first months of 2007 — Apple … Continue reading →

It would make love not war with its customers like Apple does in everything else. And it would need a name other than Apple Records (in deference to the former Beatles’ label). That aside, Steven Jobs would either not join the RIAA or the RIAA would wish he had never joined. Music would be more democratic. The community of music … Continue reading →

My friend Lee Abrams barely leaves campus and I am spending his money. XM’s Chief Creative Officer was the featured guest at USC Thornton School’s debut of its “Hot Topics” program today. Abrams was warmly received as he explained the mission of XM’s version of satellite radio. What was somewhat surprising was the curiosity on the part of students. It’s … Continue reading →

Warner Records was not acting like a record label when it inked a shrewd deal with the wildly popular YouTube today. Warner was looking more like a viral marketer. Unlike Universal which is getting ready to sue YouTube unless it cracks down on copyright infringement, Warner is making love. YouTube comes up with a royalty-tracking system that will detect when … Continue reading →

The sell off is coming with news that Yahoo is in serious discussions to purchase Facebook for an estimated $1 billion. The Wall Street Journal reports that Viacom and Microsoft were also interested in this student social network. You can’t blame founder Mark Zuckerberg for taking the money, but you have to wonder if this doesn’t spell the end to … Continue reading →

The New York Post is reporting the price tag for YouTube is around $1.5 billion. Several media giants including News Corp, the owner of MySpace are reported to be interested, but not at that inflated number. YouTube is arguably the hottest toy of Gen Y right now. Even with the short life span of Internet start up companies these days … Continue reading →

Ad Age wrote a piece September 24 titled “Howard Stern’s Ad Rates On Sirius Slump to Low of $5,000”. Their point — apparently — that Stern’s live-read spots sell to advertisers for between $5,000-10,000. The gist of the article is that Stern can’t get the reported $30,000 he used to get when he worked for CBS/Infinity on terrestrial radio. To … Continue reading →

Microsoft is ready to launch Zune, its competitor to iPod, in November. The price has been set. This competitor to iTunes will be in place for the holiday gift buying season and the biggest and most anticipated challenge to Apple will be under way. But Zune doesn’t seem to have enough different features to make a serious dent in iPod’s … Continue reading →

Mark Cuban, the Internet billionaire and wacky Dallas Mavericks owner says anyone who would want to buy YouTube is a “moron”. A moron Cuban is not. No one has better timing as he proved when he unloaded Broadcast.com right before the Internet bubble burst. Now Cuban warns that anyone who buys YouTube will be “sued into oblivion”. And that the … Continue reading →

The Wall Street Journal has a great piece (9/9/06) on a new trend in Japan where TV ads are becoming part of the show (subscribe to the online Journal, it’s got one of the best media sections). A big agency and large TV network have teamed up for this latest way to trick viewers into postponing the potty, relieving them … Continue reading →

Microsoft is ready to launch Zune, its competitor to iPod, in November. The price has been set. This competitor to iTunes will be in place for the holiday gift buying season and the biggest and most anticipated challenge to Apple will be under way. But Zune doesn’t seem to have enough different features to make a serious dent in iPod’s … Continue reading →

Some of my students have expressed a desire to subscribe to content that could be produced by terrestrial radio operators. My friends in the radio industry, please take note. They envision a system that would allow them to plug in their iPods and download podcasts of highly specialized material — about 15 minutes in length. They would tolerate a commercial … Continue reading →

A well-respected radio man and friend hit the nail right on the head today when he told me that the problem with satellite radio is that its market is older adults willing and able to pay monthly subscription fees yet both Sirius and XM continue to make their best efforts in music programming aimed at the young — the very … Continue reading →

On a cab ride from LAX to my home in LA last Sunday I couldn’t believe how loud the radio was. But after all, it was radio and as an ex-program director I was fascinated with why this driver who spoke minimal English was blasting KBIG. Heard Usher then a segue to Madonna singing “Borderline”. Like an ex-Marine there is … Continue reading →

Fox News was having a discussion midday today about what could cause the violence in our society especially against children. There are two major contributing factors in my view. One is the willingness of the media to pander to the lack of civility in some human beings and their eagerness to drive society to the limit — in sex scenes, … Continue reading →

Traditional television networks are beginning to discover the joys of streaming video preceded by a forced-view commercial. Disney CFO Tom Staggs has been quoted as saying that he’s impressed with the online stats — where viewers have to watch the ads. No fast-forwarding allowed. He says 87% of the viewers who downloaded ABC.com shows can even recall the sponsors name … Continue reading →

So, Google is reportedly offering YouTube $1.6 billion to buy it. Yahoo is said to be eying Facebook. Rupert Murdock previously stole MySpace and many big media conglomerates are seemingly tripping over themselves to avoid the “humiliation” Viacom CEO Sumner Redstone said he felt when Murdock swooped in and stole MySpace from him. I agree with Mark Cuban. YouTube is … Continue reading →

Tower Records finally succumbed to the losses that music downloading wrought. A liquidator came in and bought the entire chain for under $170 million. A sell off is underway and 3,000 employees are headed to unemployment. What a long demise! Just as traditional media is hanging on to its traditional business models, record stores are reminding us what happens when … Continue reading →

My mother never had a credit card. Thought it outrageous that cable could charge for TV. I’ll wager that very few people other than the Social Security Administration had a line on her personal information. The next generation doesn’t have the same kind of privacy. Future employers can check them out on Facebook, MySpace and yes, through emails and IMs … Continue reading →

Thanks for your comments and time spent reading Inside Music Media. Although we’re still in “beta” mode, I am encouraged by the number of people who appreciate straight talk and insight when reading about the music-related media. And we haven’t promoted the blog much so feel free to spread the word if you like it. Starting today, if you scroll … Continue reading →

Does $1.6 billion buy Google a raft of lawsuits over content rights or a massive new frontier upon which to continue building its empire. What do you think? How could someone not take the risk and could you think of anyone better than the deep pocket folks at Google? I like this move. You’ll notice that Google is moving as … Continue reading →

That’s Saul Levine, the owner of “K-Mozart” in LA who has resisted (apparently easily) the fat cat money of large radio consolidators. He refuses to sell his station because he loves classical music and wants to keep it on the air. Now Levine has a deal to operate KKJZ (88.1) for licensee Cal State Long Beach and “nervous nellies” think … Continue reading →

So Citadel is in the process of buying ABC Radio in a complicated deal only a lawyer or financial wiz like Citadel CEO Farid Suleman could love. The deal has been languishing in lawyers offices for almost a year and now comes the word that ABC is cutting costs in anticipation of the closing. Do these folks not get it? … Continue reading →

Sometimes you wonder how radio has been able to buy up everything allowable by law and still come away with a declining business model. Must be that damn iPod, right? You wonder how the mighty TV business can be kicked in the butt by a few 22-year old “kids” who while screwing around invented YouTube. That leads me to the … Continue reading →

If I’ve learned anything working with the next generation at USC it is that DRM, the concept worth going to war over for the record industry and the RIAA is doomed to eventual failure. What I mean is that yes, the record labels succeed for now and stand in the way of the true digital revolution. But, they’ll never win … Continue reading →

I always liked Howard Stern. Thought the move to Sirius Satellite was brilliant. Not because they paid him $500 million plus stock incentives. That too. Because radio was declining and satellite was the new frontier. Now Sirius is launching a new non-satellite satellite service on the Internet for $12.95 a month. No need to buy the radio. October 25 and … Continue reading →

The Steve Jobs interview in Newsweek has a not-so-hidden lesson for Microsoft regarding its new Zune competitor to iPod. Jobs says, “I’ve seen the demonstrations on the Internet about how you can find another person using a Zune and give them a song they can play three times. It takes forever. By the time you’ve gone through all that, the … Continue reading →

Universal threatened it and now they’ve done it. They are suing Grouper.com and Bolt.com for allegedly building traffic by encouraging users to share music videos without their permission. Note Google, which just purchased YouTube, was not included because they worked out a deal. Universal seeks compensation. It cites Mariah Carey’s video “Shake It Off” as drawing 50,000 viewers on Grouper … Continue reading →

I’ve been thinking that record labels are really taking it on the chin because of the next generation and their ubiquitous tool — the Internet. How do you stop illegal downloading? Is it even worth stopping it? Better yet, how do the record labels get in on this revolution instead of being on the outside looking in. One thing that … Continue reading →

Warner led the other record labels excepting EMI in working deals with Google’s YouTube. And they did it the smart way by negotiating a stake in Google’s new acquisition. In return the labels get a collective $50 million worth of equity, a system for helping control digital rights and a pioneering position in a hot property that means a lot … Continue reading →

Larry Rosin, a great guy and excellent researcher, was quoted in the New York Times recently as saying radio’s unwillingness to target listeners in the 12-24 year old demographic instead of the money demo 25-54 is contributing to a significant drop in listening. Rosin’s Edison Research indicates that listening hours have dropped about 21% among 18-24 year olds in the … Continue reading →

Even a politically ambitious New York Attorney General, Eliot Spitzer, couldn’t stop payola. Congress has never been able to. Radio never wanted to. And record labels still in their heart of hearts believe it’s just the price of doing business. So the latest news that CBS has settled its problem with Spitzer in exchange for a $2 million charitable donation … Continue reading →

My first program director job was working for a wild man named John Tenaglia in Philadelphia at a General Cinema radio station with a signal you could only hear in a helicopter or so it seemed. The call letters were WIFI (92.5 FM). I say I invented WiFi because I pulled the plug on our Drake-Chenault automation “Hit Parade” to … Continue reading →

NBC Universal’s plan — the so-called “NBCU 2.0” — is a frightening reminder to traditional media of what’s coming. NBC plans to cut staff, stop producing expensive drama shows for the 8 pm slot, consolidate its operations and switch resources to digital media. The plan: cut costs and invest more in digital media opportunities where it expects its digital revenues … Continue reading →

The dark side of social networking — media’s future, past or simply a dalliance — is starting to rear its ugly head. Aleksey Vaynor, a Yale student is the latest victim of “video gotcha”. His resume, letter and, yes — video — was somehow leaked allegedly by UBS (remember their slogan “You and Us”?) to staff and then YouTube. The … Continue reading →

Do you want a utility — say, a mobile telephone company — creating the content that is on your future mobile device? Do you think they have what it takes to produce compelling content or should they just stick to efficient and economical delivery of content? With technology becoming the leading edge for everything Internet or mobile, one would think … Continue reading →

When Tower Records finally ran out of steam and closed its doors it made me think of how unthinkable it was that such a large record store could go belly up. Maybe one store. Maybe a chain, but even though Tower Records was the chain that closed its doors forever everyone knows all record stores are in big trouble. Big … Continue reading →

The National Association of Broadcasters is at it again. The group that helped tuck in legislation to enable radio consolidation in the Telecommunications Act of 1996 is now urging the FCC to allow further consolidation. Cross-ownership, a loosening of the limits. It argues that radio needs to be more competitive with other platforms and more consolidation is how they can … Continue reading →

I’d like to share some insights I’ve gained from my Gen Y students at USC. Their generation wants what they want when they want it (who don’t know that, as they say in Philly). But when they get what they want, they may not want it for long. Can you say instant messaging? It’s so on it’s way out. While … Continue reading →

That is until founder Jon Lech Johansen is sued into oblivion by Apple. Johansen’s new tool will make it possible for labels and other digital music copyright owners to sell iPod compatible music and consumers will not have to use Apple’s iTunes store. It’s like Apple’s FairPlay DRM and it fools your iPod into playing the song. The repercussions are … Continue reading →

Don’t worry about parent company Google getting sued. There is some speculation that under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act YouTube may be able to have the litigator bypass them and let the user collect a lawsuit. How can this be? The law doesn’t protect users who access copyrighted content. Google may find it expedient to turn over info on who … Continue reading →

Rumors continue that Apple is secretly at work on a new mobile phone that will enable users to download music on the fly. This would involve Apple partnering with a mobile operator — unlikely, since Apple would not retain the control it likes over their products and marketing. Apple could buy phone time and become a Mobile Virtual Network Operator … Continue reading →

One can’t help but think of George Bush’s premature “Mission Accomplished” photo op before the Iraq war was over when one thinks of Clear Channel. Clear Channel yesterday announced intentions to evaluate “strategic alternatives to enhance shareholder value” just before it retained Goldman Sachs as a financial advisor. Translated for the common folk: Clear Channel may be considering a private … Continue reading →

There’s a Coleman Research study being touted to the radio industry currently that “on average, radio holds onto more that 92% of its lead-in audience during commercial breaks.” Arbitron took out a full page ad in my favorite radio publication, Inside Radio and other trades “on behalf of the radio industry.” Jon Coleman is an excellent researcher who has been … Continue reading →

You could see this coming on the college campus — as good an early warning system for the viability of social networks as anything. Now a recent Wall Street Journal article quotes Nielsen/NetRatings as showing both Facebook and MySpace lost visitors in September. The Journal says, “the number of unique U.S. visitors at MySpace fell 4% to 47.2 million from … Continue reading →

It was unthinkable back in 1996 when the Telecommunications Act was enacted to usher in consolidation that radio would actually recede as an industry ten years later. No one would believe that TV, having survived cable competition, would be taken on by YouTube. Wasn’t MTV high and mighty with youth? Who could have known even MTV would struggle with its … Continue reading →

Clear Channel owns 1,150 radio stations and apparently can’t seem to produce a stock price over $30 these days. That is until it announced intentions to pursue other options (like going private or selling assets). Not exactly a vote of confidence. And they’re not alone, the other media companies are hurting (CBS Radio comes to mind. Notice they are selling … Continue reading →

Pandora founder Tim Westergren appeared at USC yesterday as part of the Thornton School’s “Hot Topics” program. Westergren is an easily likeable guy who appears to be very sincere and has a quality I love — he’s a good listener. Students, industry people and faculty got a glimpse of the next radio — the one that gives listeners unprecedented choice … Continue reading →

Gen Y knows the CD isn’t what it used to be. Record stores most certainly know it. The previously unimaginable growth of iPods and iTunes should have been a warning sign. Now, you can believe it. A Record exec has said the words — “the CD as it is right now is dead”. Okay, EMI Music Chairman and Chief Executive … Continue reading →

There are a lot of fine people in radio who are watching the collapse of the Clear Channel empire as long overdue. Within a month, we may know the fate of the empire which includes 1,150 radio stations. The end won’t be pretty — unless you are a Mays family member. They’ll be just fine. Maybe come away with a … Continue reading →

When is a huge viral social network not cool (and therefore in danger of getting a really bad virus — the kind that makes users sick and leave)? How about when a start-up company is sold to a media giant for hundreds of millions of dollars. The suits take over. Monetize becomes the operable goal. Could that be the case … Continue reading →

I have believed for several years now that music will eventually be free or cost next to nothing. I’m not speaking about piracy here, but the undeniable reality of the Internet that is making peer to peer file sharing different than stealing a CD in the minds of young people . It’s hard for the old school to accept that … Continue reading →

We’re way beyond the tipping point. There is already too much advertising. Not too much effective advertising just too many ads everywhere. What traditional media didn’t throw out at their readers, viewers and listeners new media is now bombarding them with. It’s the new computer wallpaper called online advertising. MySpace will be getting more ads to make Rupert Murdoch’s $600 … Continue reading →

The layoffs and staff dismissals continue proving that even though consolidation’s leader, Clear Channel, couldn’t make it work, lesser consolidators continue the failed practice known as downsizing. Just in one day news that CBS — the failed consolidator-in-waiting laid off the entire staff at WAQZ, Cincinnati. CBS is supposedly doing a little nip-tuck of its own on staffs elsewhere (Inside … Continue reading →

Contributed by Bob GreenYou have articulated beautifully the results of deregulation. Those of us who had the opportunity to be involved with radio in the 50s-70s can only reflect on our good fortune and reminisce about what the value of connection meant: connection to a community, connection to a listener and the synergistic connection of all the elements of programming … Continue reading →

Google has found a way to make mobile phones more like a Blackberry so customers can receive email on their cell phones and up to five times faster. YouTube is expected to have a mobile service within the next year. Cingular is joining the mobile companies that make it possible to download music on the fly and there are those … Continue reading →

One of the many benefits I have teaching at USC is to pick up on trends among the next generation even as they begin to coalesce. I mentoned recently the decline in stature of the student social network Facebook. As hot as it was with college students, it’s cooling off now. So much so that founder Mark Zuckerberg (22) who … Continue reading →

I thought Halloween was over. Not for radio. November 10th is supposedly the date Clear Channel should receive the first bids in its breakup attempt. News accounts indicate that Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR) may have had a head start on all of this several months ago. Some later bidders may be at a disadvantage because — short of a deadline … Continue reading →

The NAB is sponsoring a Teen Initiative. Projects and research will be done to determine how to win teens and young adults back to radio. Some of the smaller, well-run groups are probably going to lead the way. The big consolidators need to sign on, too. Radio for decades has coveted its money demo — 25-54. It’s made a cottage … Continue reading →

Whereas the Internet was a big factor in the last presidential election, YouTube is an even bigger factor in the mid-term election Tuesday. YouTube — the homemade video clip phenomenon — has become the repository for every politican’s slip up, attack ad, Jon Stewart ha ha and more this political season. But I’m thinking that this election happened to collide … Continue reading →

Tests will get underway in the next month. Some 50 major newspapers are on board including The New York Times, Gannett papers, The Washington Post and Hearst. Google is simultaneous taking on radio ad sales and is hiring high profile sales people away from terrestrial radio for its new service there. Earlier this year Google started selling ads in several … Continue reading →

As a guy who has spent considerable career time in radio I am very interested in the boom presently underway in video clips. YouTube does 100 million short videos a day. CNN’s various short news clip services stream about 5o million a month. There are cell phones everywhere with screens that are getting ready for more video. The iPod has … Continue reading →

And Google didn’t invent YouTube which is why it paid $1.6 billion for that oversight. There is a reason why big, viral music media-related ideas come from people with nothing to lose. That’s because they act like they have nothing to lose. I must say I had an engaging conversation at the USC Faculty Club today with a young, talented … Continue reading →

Inspired by David Letterman not written by him. Advice to the big radio conglomerates: #10…Cut the commercial load in half but don’t tell anybody (the listeners will notice).#9 … Hire djs who are knowledgeable about the music#8 … Let your newly-hired “smart jocks” play some of their own music not just the corporate playlist#7 … Stop trying to be interactive … Continue reading →

Google could be the next Clear Channel. It is planning a massive assault on what is presently known as radio sales. If Google succeeds, it could become the next evil empire — the term some journalist have used to describe some consolidators. Google not only wants to make it possible for anyone to buy radio ads online, it wants to … Continue reading →

I’ve noted with great interest the record labels’ entry into the digital space recently with special interest in having it their way. They want to be in on the tsunami known as social networking (YouTube, MySpace, et al) as well as preserving their digital copyrights. Well, they’re both late to the party and fighting a battle they cannot win. The … Continue reading →

So Universal finally has the deal it wants in exchange for digital distribution rights. Microsoft has agreed to a deal that will give them a piece of the action on every Zune portable music device it sells. And Microsoft is, according to the New York Times, ready to extend that offer to the other major record labels. Universal has been … Continue reading →

To quote a Sesame Street song — one of these things is not like the other one. It’s not like Microsoft didn’t have plenty of time to come at Apple’s iPod with a vengeance. And the new Zune is their second attempt. The comments have been very polite so far in expectation that this time Microsoft has outdone Apple CEO … Continue reading →

There’s a great article in the Sunday New York Times about whether Google is a friend or foe of media companies. The issue is Google’s desire to sell advertising online for radio, newspapers and soon, television. Sounds like easy money and traditional media companies could use some of that these days. Google insists its a friend. I’m not so sure. … Continue reading →

Okay, if Clear Channel can coin the term “Less is More” — a ridiculous term at that — I thought I could try this ridiculous one out — “Small is Big”. I’m not talking about commercials here (just cut them to 8-10 units hourly, raise the prices when able — we knew that all along, didn’t we?). I’m talking about … Continue reading →

Deader than Microsoft’s new iPod competitor Zune this holiday gift buying season will be HD radio. Expensive. It has no rhyme nor reason to anyone who doesn’t own or operate a radio station. It’s remarkable to me that any sane radio executive can believe that HD radio will give the industry the rebirth it needs to satisfy its prime audience … Continue reading →

Google CEO Eric Schmidt has been talking publicly a lot lately, but no comment he has made is more significant than Schmidt’s prediction that our mobile phones should be free. And he has a plan. Sell advertising — which happens to be a Google speciality. Schmidt told a group at Stanford recently that mobile phones may never be entirely free … Continue reading →

On the same day that Microsoft launches its iPod competitor, Zune, Apple announces a deal with six large airlines that will let passengers play video clips, movies and music from their iPods through in flight back seat displays. Apple is also looking to get car manufacturers to offer built-in ports in their vehicles. In the air, over land and no … Continue reading →

The decline of traditional media so far as been concentrated in radio (due to consolidation), the record business (due to unwillingness to accept new paradigms) and newspapers (inability to picture a newspaper on something other than newsprint). Television is next. It’s happening right now. Their clumsy entry into short-clip video via YouTube and their own sites speaks volumes. You know … Continue reading →

I never liked media consolidation and I said so over and over again when I published Inside Radio. I remember doing an Inside Radio convention in Scottsdale one year and the usually fun-loving and social event had a pall over it. After all, consolidators were at the time forcing managers, programmers and sales managers to take on more jobs, more … Continue reading →

The holy grail on Wall Street is “shareholder value”. How many times has Mel Karmazin said it? How many times has Clear Channel said it. Here’s a quote from Clear Channel’s own “Investor Q&A” for shareholders issued when yesterday’s sale was announced: “The board of directors has continually evaluated ways to maximize value for shareholders. After conducting a thorough and … Continue reading →

After having its way with the radio industry thanks to consolidation, the Mays family (Lowry, Mark and Randall) will be laughing all the way to the bank as Clear Channel decides to be purchased by Lee Partners and Bain Capital for $18.7 billion. Shareholders will get about $37 a share. The Mays family gets about $1 billion and continued employment … Continue reading →

When was the last time you remember hearing about riots breaking out to buy a consumer product? How about a music-media related consumer item? PlayStation 3’s significance is far more important than a bunch of geeks having to wait on long lines for the privilege of having price gouging performed on them. (And, I am taking into account those “entrepreneurs” … Continue reading →

Have you noticed what Universal is up to these days. They’ve been getting “sue happy” over the lofty and worthwhile issue of copyright infringement. They targeted YouTube first, but then took a stake in the company ending that threat. Now, Universal is beating up on MySpace. They are apparently looking to test the “safe harbor” provision under existing law pertaining … Continue reading →

Inside Radio reports that Radio Shack has a three-day only $99 special on this HD radio usually low, low priced at $199.99 ($174.99 with rebate). Why do I get the feeling this is not PlayStation 3 (okay, that wasn’t fair). Why do I get the feeling this is not an iPod (ooh!). Okay, it’s not a Walkman! Listen to the … Continue reading →

We’ll be hearing plenty about the breakup of radio’s friendly giant — I kid — but I’m now looking to begin focusing a long conversation on the great beyond. Let’s not kid ourselves. The 448 smaller markets Clear Channel is selling could go to one or two mini-consolidators — maybe public companies — and then I’m not so optimistic. They … Continue reading →

I’ve been mulling an odd thought lately that today’s consolidators could never have pioneered the radio industry. It takes me back to the 1960’s when a company called Westinghouse that made electrical appliances, light bulbs and other manufactured goods owned radio and television stations. That was allowed then, but they couldn’t own too many. Hold that thought. The folks at … Continue reading →

When compilation albums are routinely number one, do you have to be a genius to know you’re business model is in trouble. Here’s your Billboard Top 20 (week ending 11/25/06) DEBUT AT 1* – NOW THAT’S WHAT I CALL MUSIC-VOL.23 (Get that! There were 22 others)DEBUT AT 2* – JOSH GROBAN, AwakeDEBUT AT 3* – KEITH URBAN, Love, Pain, And … Continue reading →

Traditional media seems to fear the next generation and its Internet, mobile devices and social networks. I don’t know why. In our fierce competition for audiences and dollars we often forget that media creates more media. There’s some recent evidence to make my point, but it won’t be the last corroboration. CBS of late has been diving into YouTube content … Continue reading →

Their stock is skyrocketing. They somehow seem bigger than Microsoft (even though Microsoft way out distances them in computer software). Analysts say another big holiday season — another — of selling iPods is underway. But some experts say that Apple is getting ready to launch an iPhone. CEO Steve Jobs has been mum as usual and anything is possible — … Continue reading →

By Steve Meyer, Inside Music Media

Radio veteran Dave Van Dyke, now president of Bridge Ratings and a keen observer of traditional and interactive media and Steve Meyer, a well-respected music industry veteran and publisher of DISC & DAT will both become regular contributers to Inside Music Media

There’s a new article in the Baltimore Sun that reports campus newspapers are doing so well that advertisers are sitting up and taking notice. This fascinates me. We’ve seen the decline of general print newspapers for decades especially among younger readers and here we are in the age of the Internet, mobile phones and iPods and are we to believe … Continue reading →

< br />By Dave Van Dyke, Inside Music Media

Cingular Wireless is trying to bridge the generation gap between parents who don’t understand the language of texting and their children. Cingular, the largest cell phone company, will be holding interactive “texting bees” nationwide after the first of the year to teach parents how to send text messages to their children. It’s all cloaked in the grand scheme of things … Continue reading →

In the past few days both The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times have had articles about the sorry state of the pop music business. The Times Sunday was talking about the baby boomers who shy away from AARP (American Association of Retired People) even though AARP is helping to sell records. How about this? Tony Bennett, the … Continue reading →

There’s a new technology coming your way that deserves watching called Switched Broadcast. It’s a technology that expands bandwidth and makes delivering hundreds of television channels to the home unnecessary. Technology enables only one channel at a time to be delivered to subscribers and this could change everything. Providers can then free up bandwidth for more content. Consumers could benefit … Continue reading →

It’s very easy during the lull in the Clear Channel sell-off to think everything is going to alright. But it’s not alright for the employees of Clear Channel who are being let go or for the ones having to endure the holiday season wondering if they will be the next to be fired. If consolidation means anything, it means doing … Continue reading →

Traditional media companies are falling all over themselves to do content deals with their new media rivals — Internet and mobile companies. NBC Universal did a deal to allow AT&T to offer their owned stations a chance to be broadcast on AT&T phones — welcome to some mighty lucrative markets. Google and Yahoo announce deals on an almost regular basis. … Continue reading →

What happens when you dominate a market, offer the majority of your programming to an audience you don’t have and then fail to deliver young listeners? You have satellite radio! Wait. Increasingly, you also have terrestrial radio. It’s a losing formula in a time of great change that is begging for a remedy. Satellite radio operators have hit the wall … Continue reading →

When I first told my students about the “Jack” format as it first debuted in LA several years ago, their reactions are worth recalling even today. I say this because since I have been at USC I have come to closely value the rather direct reactions of this generation on things ranging from new mobile media devices to old approaches … Continue reading →

I knew it. My students knew it. How did Microsoft not know it. The new competitor to iPod from the folks at Microsoft — Zune — was a turkey even before Thanksgiving. The Wall Street Journal just reported that Zune sales are not meeting expectations ramping up to the holiday season. As we used to say back in South Philly, … Continue reading →

In spite of the fact that Clear Channel owns so many more stations than CBS, you have to wonder how number two gets away with so much less blame for helping the radio industry into the dumpster. It’s true that Clear Channel started off the consolidation era with great hubris and litigiousness, but CBS shouldn’t get a free pass in … Continue reading →

I love the colorful Mel Karmazin. He’s a brash, confident — alright, over-confident — success story and right now the never-ending-salesman that he is is doing what you’d expect him to do — whip up interest in his company’s lagging holiday sales by talking up a merger with competitor XM (again!). I laugh every time he does this. And I … Continue reading →

By Dave Van Dyke, Inside Music Media Contributor For many of us who have been in this great radio business for more than three years, the idea that the paradigm is/has shifted out from under us is a bit like feeling your first earthquake. It’s crazy! Unlike most natural disasters, earthquakes give you the feeling that you are no longer … Continue reading →

Ten years ago during the euphoria surrounding the passage of the Telecommunications Act I spoke out against media consolidation as publisher of Inside Radio. Not only that, I exposed as often I could, the heartbreak of an industry. I saw able managers overloaded with the responsibility of running too many stations. People fired because they got in the way (we … Continue reading →

Can anything stop YouTube or MySpace or TiVo or peer-to-peer downloading or the iPod or iTunes or mobile entertainment? Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Certainly not traditional media. Radio, television, print, movies, the record business — they’re stymied. Lost in old ideas and the technology they hang onto and misdirected when they embrace a new interactive one. What can put a … Continue reading →

By Steve Meyer, Inside Music Media

UK radio stations will begin being able to sell digital music downloads to their audiences in real time early next year. It’s significant because the developers are calling it “digital radio’s killer application”. All the major radio groups and labels are on board for the roll out that requires a pre-paid plan for anyone interested in buying music from a … Continue reading →

Google is complaining that mobile phone operators are asking them to stop allowing people to access Google Mobile Maps by phone. Google’s service gives interactive maps, search results, satellite images and very detailed directions to local businesses. The mobile operators are thus becoming the middleman between Internet companies and the public. The reason is obvious. Mobile companies offer their own … Continue reading →

Pardon the pun. It’s a vile habit of young people driven to distraction by the mobile media they are addicted to. It is equally also a very rude habit of older people who whip out their Palms and Blackberries while you are talking to them, eating or trying to communicate with them face-to-face. The texting craze can be harnessed by … Continue reading →

It didn’t take Sirius CEO Mel Karmazin to announce yesterday that the satellite company was going to miss its subscriber projections — by 200,000 by the end of the year — to know it was in deep trouble. At least not for me. Working with the next generation at USC, I have become all too familiar with the reason why … Continue reading →

There is fairly recent research that shows about one-fourth of all cell phone users would be willing to look at advertising on their mobile phones in return for free service. A Harris Interactive research poll in August also says that 7% of current mobile phone subscribers would be interested in receiving relevant promotional text messages with some caveats. The ads-for-free-service … Continue reading →

This is what’s wrong with terrestrial radio. Their leaders have lost focus on what’s important. Cumulus CEO Lew Dickey mocked the satellite industry at a UBS conference saying it would have been cheaper to put toasters in cars. Many radio broadcasters let their egos get in the way when it comes to satellite radio. Satellite is not their real competition … Continue reading →

It’s Christmas and time to help the neediest. And CBS, Citadel, Entercom and Clear Channel would have you believe that they are the neediest. These groups along with TV and newspaper execs are trying to get the FCC to repeal the “severe ownership restrictions” in a time when technological and marketplace developments have made competing more difficult. Are these people … Continue reading →

By Steve Meyer, Inside Music Media

Google, a new age company — the rage, the do-no-wrong new media conglomerate had to go outside Google’s significant brain trust to buy YouTube from a couple of kids they then made into billionaires. Couldn’t Google have invented YouTube on its own for a lot less? YouTube could only have been conceived of in a garage by a few fools … Continue reading →

CD sales are down again. Legal downloads are up but not as much as in the past. Labels are getting hooked on ring tone sales to help make up for the short fall in CD sales. Music is as stale as the latest innovative idea from a big four label. Desperation is setting in as labels try to get more … Continue reading →

By Dave Van Dyke, Inside Music Media

I was Christmas shopping at the Scottsdale Fashion Square a few days ago and wandered into the T-Mobile store to play with the new Blackberry Pearl. Within minutes a sixteen year old girl and her mother broke into a fist fight at the check-out counter — that’s right, holding nothing back — with another teen and her mother. Four different … Continue reading →

I feel dirty saying anything against Google, but I am worried about my friends in the radio industry. Radio is ice cold and Google is red hot. I’ve written previously about how the radio industry should beware of geeks bearing gifts (i.e., online bidding for radio time). I’m happy the early experiments seem to please the terrestrial broadcasters participating in … Continue reading →

The Future of Music Coalition is releasing a damning report at 12 noon Eastern time today that will document in a meaningful way what many have thought and few can now escape — consolidation hurts the public. This is particularly important because some radio groups are using Internet advances, new technology and satellite radio as their excuses to get the … Continue reading →

This generation of music fans is no fan of digital rights management. Everyone knows it but the major labels continue to tread water before they drown in their own miscalulation. Now, we’re beginning to see signs of a change — a very small change — in the attitude of at least one label. EMI is offering Norah Jones’ Thinking About … Continue reading →

The latest rumor is that Yahoo has offered $1.6 billion to Mark Zuckerberg’s social network Facebook and Zuckerberg has declined it. I don’t know what’s more insane — Zuckerberg turning down $1.6 billion or Yahoo willing to pay $1.6 billion. The acquisition would get the ailing Yahoo it’s own social network to counter Google’s YouTube which also sold for $1.6 … Continue reading →

Forrester Research delivered some shocking news recently. Apple iTunes’ sales are off 65% since January and the average size of transactions is down 17%. This sounds like the decline and fall of iTunes, but it really isn’t. It’s the continued decline of the record business because the entire downloading sector is down and the old CD business continues to erode. … Continue reading →

At the Arbitron Fly-In yesterday some much needed straight talk from researchers and consultants about how radio has lost a generation of teens. I had my epiphany a number of years ago when I first began teaching at USC. I couldn’t believe that the next generation had such high disregard for radio. I couldn’t believe that these young people knew … Continue reading →

Who would have thought that the home of the “Greatest Hits of All Time” would be an iPod instead of a radio station. With radio gradually getting out of the oldies business I’m thinking that consumers really consider their iPods and MP3 players their music collections. Odd, but research tells us these same consumers on the average have fewer than … Continue reading →

A Washington Post article says “Women who have historically wielded serious power of the purse as consumers are now buying all kinds of technology for their families and themselves, outspending their male counterparts 3 to 2, according to the Consumer Electronics Association.” A CEA study earlier this year showed that women prefer their cell phones while men prefer high definition … Continue reading →

No schedules. No meetings. A company traditionally known for its strict work rules has gone head first into becoming a worker friendly company. It has its risks. Best Buy is looking to judge its employees not on hours but on results. It’s amazing enough that a draconian approach to employee relations is being dropped by Best Buy. I found this … Continue reading →

By Dave Van Dyke, Inside Music Media

The Microsoft Chairman said that consumers should just buy CDs and rip them onto their mobile music devices. Sound idea. It gets around digital rights management (DRM) which will never fly with the music buying public and will only serve to depress online profits until labels give it up. Perhaps Gates was prompted to make his comment in light of … Continue reading →

I don’t know about you, but this time I think Time Magazine is reaching for it’s “Person of the Year”. God knows, I wouldn’t be the one to take anything away from the Internet or the mobile world we are increasingly living in. The “revolution” Time credits is, well — old news. If they didn’t want to name the now … Continue reading →

Viacom, News Corp, NBC Universal and maybe CBS are this close to announcing that they will compete with YouTube. They want to get into the distribution business that YouTube — now Google — is in. There are many problems with this grand plan not the least of which is can these traditional media rivals get along? There are big egos … Continue reading →

Things are so quiet on the Clear Channel front that you just have to know that the Mays’ want to get out the back door with as much money as they can and with a private radio group in tow. They won’t even contest the sale of their valuable grandfathered radio stations by seeking waivers. Anything to get this deal … Continue reading →

The Census Bureau projects 41 days of radio listening by adult Americans in 2007. Some 65 days for television. One week each for the Internet and newspapers — this according to an account in Inside Radio. Don’t celebrate too soon. This is definitely good news for radio stations aiming at adult listeners, but we didn’t need the Census Bureau to … Continue reading →

It’s not the old Columbia Records, but CBS is getting into the new age record business. This time it is doing it on the cheap. No start-up expenses, no worries about artist development, no expensive infrastructure. CBS wants to be paid for music that appears on its television shows. One of the benefits of the transitioning music business is that … Continue reading →

Why not let the Radio Advertising Bureau supervise radio sales on a market by market basis? The groups and stations willing to opt in can finance the effort from savings derived from fielding a full sales staff. Yet the concept allows stations to opt in as much or as little as they feel comfortable doing on their own time, at … Continue reading →

AdWords customers involved in beta testing are experiencing a new kind of radio advertising sales. The AdWords system is similar to the online ad selling approach Google has made its name and profit from. Prospective radio advertisers — and this could be companies or individuals who have never advertised on radio or thought of radio as an advertising medium — … Continue reading →

Consultant Jack Taddeo, a long time radio friend of mine and very thoughtful observer of the radio scene is interviewed on ZD Net’s technology web site regarding the Google AdWords initiative in the radio industry. A sample: Taddeo is asked whether AdWords was a win-win for radio and advertisers:”Not for stations. That is unless you are trying to reduce your … Continue reading →

NBC Universal has signed a deal with Cingular to allow their upgraded video customers to access clips, new content and archived material from Saturday Night Live. NBC recently launched a section for SNL on its web site. It seems like a good deal for Cingular, one of the largest mobile phone utilities and NBC Universal. But wait. Is it? In … Continue reading →

If you had a doubt as to what Clear Channel was up to when its actions proved it wasn’t up to running a large radio group, you can now rest easy. The latest news is that Clear Channel plans on selling an additional 75 grandfathered stations for an approximate $1.1 billion dollar minimum take. That’s on top of what they … Continue reading →

By Steve Meyer, Inside Music Media

Coming early in the year ahead, Verizon customers will be seeing — that’s right — seeing their first banner ads on news, sports and weather sites among others that users visit and display on their mobile phones. This morning’s New York Times is reporting that the decision has some major implications for users and advertisers along with many risks. Ad … Continue reading →

The Disney Channel kids program “Hannah Montana” is a smash hit. And so is the music 14- year old Miley Cyrus sings as the fictional pop star Hannah Montana. She has sold over 1.6 million songs in about two months beating out the likes of Jay-Z, Sarah McLachlan, The Beatles Love album and a slew of others. It highlights the … Continue reading →

Yesterday, Entercom finally gave in and agreed to pay New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer $4.25 million to make his payola investigation go away. Several other big radio consolidators including Clear Channel and a few major record labels have already settled. Anyone who has been or is presently in radio knows that there was and is various kinds of payola. … Continue reading →

I love the radio business. I truly do. Radio people are like an extended family. They are with you in good times and Clear Channel times. It pained me to have to write repeatedly in Inside Radio after consolidation that it would kill the medium. Many of my long time and new friends were redeployed as a result of all … Continue reading →

By Steve Meyer, Inside Music Media

Digital Rights Management (DRM) has been a dismal failure. My music industry students at USC knew it before anyone because they are part of the generation that helped neuter it. We know why labels like DRM. It protects their rights and in their fantasy helps sell more music. Now the labels are getting ready to swallow the bitter pill and … Continue reading →

By Peter DiCola, Inside Music Media

Excuse me, but am I dreaming or having a nightmare about Arbitron’s People Meter. Yes, I know implementing this new portable technology will cost significantly more and that radio will have to share listening with other media, but — I have a major question to pose. Why is the radio industry in this age of technology still culling their audience … Continue reading →

You’ve heard of David Letterman’s Stupid Pet Tricks. Somehow all the smart executives in music media manage to do things that are, well, not very productive for them. With that in mind, try these Stupid Media Tricks on for size:Throwing radio listeners a bone by saying that HD radio will bring digital audio to terrestrial radio stations when what the … Continue reading →

What Clear Channel, the largest radio broadcaster, is doing to delay or disrupt implementation of Arbitron’s much needed People Meter ratings methodology reminds me of the Sheb Wooley hit in 1958 where he sang about the one-eyed, one-horned flying purple people eater. To me, Clear Channel is acting like the Arbitron People Meter Eater. Refusing to even allow all-important encoding … Continue reading →

Steven Jobs did it again. The Apple CEO brought another product to market that promises to be a big revenue producer for him and a revolutionary device for consumers. The iPhone will arrive in June and will work on the Cingular mobile system. Chances are you already know a lot about the iPhone. No need to go into it here. … Continue reading →

Apple has excited its base once more with the long-awaited announcement of the new iPhone/iPod that will be available in June. The online edition of The Wall Street Journal did a “hot or not” poll Monday wondering if iPhone will be another iPod or a Newton, Apple’s pioneering PDA that failed. The results were overwhelming on the positive side. David … Continue reading →

The Arbitron diary system is history in Philadelphia, the first People Meter market. Philly has long been a test market for Arbitron in the development of The People Meter, a technology that should have been implemented years ago. There is no reason under the sun except for perhaps pricing that any broadcaster would choose a paper diary over this advancement. … Continue reading →

It’s time to take our medicine. HD Radio as a concept, as a savior, as the enabler of more channels is never going to happen. I am sorry to say this because so many of my radio friends are betting their futures on it. Its time to deal with the failure of HD and move on rather than to continue … Continue reading →

By Steve Meyer, Inside Music Media

Apple is reporting a fiscal first quarter profit up 78% from a year ago. A 24.5% increase in revenue from the prior year’s quarter. Shareholder value is up 65 cents a share over a year ago. You may also remember that news accounts had iTunes slipping in the second half of 2006. The vultures were circling Cupertino. Luckily Apple CEO … Continue reading →

KDND, Sacramento is in hot water because its morning team did a ridiculous contest egging on a listener in a water drinking contest. Water is harmless, right? Not in excess. The victim, a contestant, drank more water than she should have. Entercom, the owner, dutifully fired ten people including the morning team, as a reaction to the death of the … Continue reading →

By Stephen Meyer, Inside Music Media

Traditional media finally has something not to worry about. A study from Forrester reveals that 82% of the consumers they surveyed thought video ads were annoying. A full 75% said they just ignore the video ads and only ten percent said they interacted with these ads occasionally. If I’m selling traditional media, I’m going to like selling against these statistics. … Continue reading →

Like President Bush, who is surging ahead with his plan to send more troops to Iraq instead of withdraw as much of the country seems to want, record labels can identify. Labels know they are going to have to eat their words on digital rights management (DRM), but they don’t want to do it too soon. Maybe they want to … Continue reading →

The most viralist video on the Internet right now is a simple clip recorded by two Philly girls doing a parody of SNL’s “Dick In A Box” digital short. The girls call their version “My Box In A Box”. This whole thing may just sound like another YouTube “can you top this moment” but I think it is more than … Continue reading →

Spiral Frog’s got problems. Last year it previewed a music service that offered free music downloads in return for users spending about a minute and a half watching ads (even more ads for video). What were they thinking? Who do they think is their audience? Its not the Generation Y I have come to know and love. No way are … Continue reading →

The situation at KDND, Sacramento is prophetic for more reasons than the obvious — that a 28-year old listener died in a stupid, irresponsible on-air contest where she was encouraged to drink water without regard to her health. Now, the family of victim Jennifer Strange is suing the station and naming some 40 defendants in the case. There’s no doubt … Continue reading →

Never have so many pulled so hard for so few. The lines are drawn — the many people in the radio industry who are hoping that Clear Channel will actually sell off part of its conglomerate and take a small group of radio stations private vs. the few owners and Wall Street money people who hope for a large pay … Continue reading →

We all know that the radio industry is in transition. It is coming off “The Dark Ages”, a time span that began after consolidation in 1996 up to and including this year. I get the feeling radio executives are finally beginning to recognize (and the brave ones admit) that they have dropped the ball during consolidation. It’s time for an … Continue reading →

There’s good news and bad news for Google’s YouTube and its many users. First the good. Google is jumping on board the video love train that will share ad revenues with contributors. Revver does that already. But the giant YouTube’s entry into pay for play changes the face of the online video experience. Now the bad news. Google and YouTube … Continue reading →

By Steve Meyer, Inside Music Media

In The UK they’re even calling it a “new golden age” of radio as digital use takes off. The number of radio listeners in Britain are at an all time high of 45 million every week. It gets better. Some 8% of people 15 or older listen to radio on their mobile phones. Try catching someone here in the U.S. … Continue reading →

One can understand Viacom

The U.S. Census Bureau’s new statistical abstract for 2007 forecasts how the “average” adult or teen will use media in the year ahead:65 Days watching television41 days listening to radioA week listening to recorded musicIn excess of a week on the Internet7 days reading a daily newspaperIt’s always dangerous to describe the “average” adult or teen, but be that as … Continue reading →

Open Letter on Apple’s website from CEO Steve JobsFebruary 6, 2007 With the stunning global success of Apple

It was only October of last year when NBC.com Rewind started running full episodes of NBC programming. It has already delivered 42 million full shows. Now a new Mediaweek article reveals that many of the people going to the site are using Rewind as their personal TiVo. And there are some very impressive numbers according to NBC research:78% of users … Continue reading →

This is starting to sound like the Democrats and Republicans on Iraq — except the topic is digital rights management (DRM). Apple CEO Steve Jobs takes the unusual step of using his clout and places a letter about the music industry on the Apple website. In it, he outlines a number of scenarios that are possible in the digital downloading … Continue reading →

If you’ve been following the battles that are cropping up over YouTube’s dominance of Internet video clips, you may want to check out the back story. Viacom made a very public gesture recently ordering YouTube to remove its considerable video content from the service. Even though sources say both sides were in negotiations over a content agreement, none was had. … Continue reading →

Ready. Aim. Fire. The radio industry, a business of hard working people who love what they do but are held hostage to the bad decisions of their owner, has just shot itself in its collective foot one more time. Cox, Entercom, Cumulus, Radio One and, of course, their enabler, Clear Channel are at it again. They have offered what is … Continue reading →

Let’s leave our political points of view on the war in Iraq out of this discussion. While the Dixie Chicks’ ideological position on the war and their version of patriotism may have gotten them into trouble with conservatives and with country radio stations, the same position also won them some sympathy in Grammy voting where the group swept all five … Continue reading →

GM is cutting its ad expenditures by a whopping $600 million. Inside Radio reports that powerful ad exec Betsy Lazar told the Radio Advertising Bureau convention that business as usual won’t win GM’s business. What does she mean? No lazy 30 second ad pitches. She wants ideas that show involvement by the station. Imagine. This from an industry that is … Continue reading →

MySpace has taken another step in the direction of protecting the rights of music and publishing companies by announcing the implementation of technology from Audible Magic Corp that will provide a second layer of protection from posting unauthorized video clips. The system scans video clips and searches for signature vectors such as a unique digital fingerprint and compares it with … Continue reading →

I worked for Paul Drew when he programmed the Drake format in Philly and one of our Bill Drake-voiced station breaks said, “…And the hits just keep on comin”. Back then it was true. Radio was thriving in the late 60’s in large part because the music business was thriving. The Beatles, British invasion, Motown, Philly sound. Radio had hit … Continue reading →

By Steve Meyer, Inside Music Media

Sirius and XM are proposing a merger of equals. Sirius CEO Mel Karmazin would come away as CEO of the new entity (whatever it is called) and current XM Chairman Gary Parsons would be chairman of the merged satellite company. That’s assuming the FCC approves it. Assuming the DOJ approves it. And that’s a lot of assuming. I’ve seen reporting … Continue reading →

Who’s sorry now? The radio industry liked it when Congress passed the Telecommunications Act of 1996 enabling widespread consolidation to take place. The NAB slipped the radio part of that legislation in through the back door. Wall Street embraced radio as never before. These guys loved it. Now, the shoe is on the other foot. The two — only two … Continue reading →

Put this in perspective.Warner is trying to buy EMI again. The two record labels have been doing the merger dance for many years now. Some think it’s just big egos trying to best each other. All this while their businesses go to the dogs. The RIAA has stepped up its targeting of university campuses in hopes of catching more college … Continue reading →

If and when Sirius and XM Satellite Radio get the green light to merge, new radios will have to be manufactured to allow both services which use different technology to be heard on one receiver. The FCC had always mandated that when satellite radio was created, both satellite networks had to be heard on all receivers. Somewhere along the way, … Continue reading →

A few days ago when the two — only two — satellite operators announced their merger intentions, I wrote a post about what it would take to succeed in a world where radio is everywhere. At the end of the piece I warned that if the merged satellite operator didn’t make some major changes, it wouldn’t really matter whether their … Continue reading →

I have to laugh when I see how the traditional media business is responding to the awesome attack of interactive media on their space. When they are not doing next to nothing to respond, they are busy creating content and brand managers to take them into the new age. Now the thought is a a good one — make your … Continue reading →

I hope the rumors are false. I hope that Clear Channel is not about to deal hundreds of stations to one buyer creating an instant mini-Clear Channel. Clear Channel is selling off its assets after running the shareholders value down and they are in the process of settling on a buyer for the majority of some 400+ stations they are … Continue reading →

Perhaps you’ve heard about the new plan Fox has come up with that will allow its TV affiliates to make Fox programming available in their DMA on local broadband. The affiliates either charge the viewer a fee or use pre-roll revenue which is then split 50/5o down the middle with Fox. Such a deal! This is just the latest in … Continue reading →

I just read that CBS has hired away a Google executive as its new CMO for the interactive division. The article, which appeared in Online Media Daily even went so far as to point to this as “another sign that CBS is serious about becoming a digital media powerhouse”. Oh really? It seems to me like a bad case of … Continue reading →

“Houston, we may not have a problem after all. We just signed a contract for People Meter ratings in Philadelphia and we’ve now returned to the Mother Ship as a big believer. Over.” “Roger, Evil Empire. Welcome back.” That’s how I imagine a conversation between Unclear Channel and Arbitron Mission Control which has launched portable audience measurement in Philadelphia and … Continue reading →

Four of the six largest radio consolidators have settled with the FCC over alleged payola practices according to the Associated Press. That means Entercom pays $4 million. Clear Channel $3.5 million. CBS $3 million and Citadel $2 million. Previously New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer collected $30 million from the big four record labels and another $6.25 million from CBS … Continue reading →

The radio industry is all excited about a just-announced decision by Wal-Mart to sell “affordable” HD radios. Bruce Beasley quoted in Inside Radio said Tuesday, “Wal-Mart doesn’t pick up on too many bad products to sell.” Unfortunately, HD radio is one of the not “too many”. HD’s time has come and gone with the radio industry fighting forever on which … Continue reading →

With all the talk about a possible presidential pardon for Scooter Libby, I got to thinking whether the radio industry should consider pardoning Clear Channel — not for high crimes and misdemeanors because there has never been evidence such acts were committed but for blowing consolidation. Some members of the jury have come out in favor of the president pardoning … Continue reading →

The FCC and your elected officials are responsible for the current sorry state of the broadcasting business. Wall Street distracts us. Steve Jobs attracts us. And Congress, the enabler of many of today’s problems for broadcast media whacks us. Congress passed the Telecommunications Act of 1996 tacking on radio consolidation before the final vote. Congress in its infinite wisdom (or … Continue reading →

Kurt Hanson in his March 9th edition of RAIN quotes Beta News as saying that “”CRB rates would make SoundExchange a ‘$2.3 billion per year business'” and “based on the CRB’s royalty rates for 2006, AOL Radio is expected to receive a royalty bill for last year for about $23.7 million…”. It gets worse:”On a per-listener scale, broadcast radio stations … Continue reading →

An Unlikely scenario Right now the ever weakening record labels are sticking it to broadcast radio. And some of those bullies over there in terrestrial radio are just taking it. There is growing evidence the music business is looking to charge AM and FM stations flat fees for permission to play their music. The CRB has already dealt a blow … Continue reading →

It’s just traditional media companies being traditional media companies. Viacom and its subsidiaries like CBS, Comedy Central, etc are simply acting like Universal’s NBC and Disney’s ABC. They have “Seen-us envy” — that disease that has old media companies becoming paranoid because the audience gets to see their content, they even get paid, but they can’t control the distribution. So, … Continue reading →

By Steve Meyer, Inside Music Media

Clear Channel, or should I now say, Fear Channel, has rescheduled its vote on taking the company private from March 21st in just a few days to April 19th presumably to have more time to seek shareholder approval. Mark Mays has already warned his employees that whether the deal goes through or not, there will be many changes ahead for … Continue reading →

My longtime friend Kurt Hanson, publisher of Radio & The Internet (RAIN) has just done a spectacular piece on copyright law and the Congressional Royalty Board (CRB) — what went wrong. Internet Radio is the future of broadcasting and it is in serious jeopardy now due to a recent CRB ruling. Many Internet radio stations — especially the “little guys” … Continue reading →

Clear Channel was first in every way. First to amass over 1,000 radio stations. First to not be able to run 1,000 radio stations. First to move to sell off 400+ radio stations — a mini-Clear Channel. First to declare victory while share prices fell from the $90 range to the $30 range. First to know when to fold ’em … Continue reading →

CNN Radio asked me to do an interview last week on their show “Digital Downbeat”, a fast-moving, excellent show I had never heard of prior. Bob Struble, President, CEO and Chairman (all that) of iBiquity, the surviving and only HD technology company, represented the traditional radio side. You know who was asked to take it from the other side. What … Continue reading →

Just like in the novelty record by Napoleon XIV. It’s now radio’s theme song: Remember when you ran awayAnd I got on my kneesAnd begged you not to leaveBecause I’d go berserk?Well. . . You left me anyhowAnd then the days got worse and worseAnd now you see I’ve goneCompletely out of my mindAnd. . . They’re coming to take … Continue reading →

By Steve Meyer, Inside Music Media

The outstanding John Bayliss Foundation had themselves an American Idol-type roast last night by choosing CBS Radio head Joel Hollander to be the honored as a roastee. Who would have known that Hollander would be the hot topic in New York, in The New York Post, in the radio industry and everywhere on the evening of March 22, 2007. See, … Continue reading →

So Starbucks is starting a record label. Will we someday have to use the term “The Big Five” labels when referring to the majors? Even if the record business stinks we can say Starbuck’s record business smells great. Starbucks is aiming to release eight albums in its first year. You’ll be able to buy them while you’re ordering your coffee, … Continue reading →

I take back everything critical I have ever said about CBS CEO Les Moonves. Finally I can say “Les is More”. Moonves came up big yesterday. A television man who knows little about radio knew enough that he needed a proven radio executive to turn his slumping radio division around. So he hired back Dan Mason. Mason had been doing … Continue reading →

Shortly after the new millennium, Clear Channel engaged me as publisher of Inside Radio in a very high priced lawsuit. I responded with a similar counter suit. The legal battle went on for years. Never went to court. Was eventually settled and Clear Channel purchased Inside Radio. You do the math. Fortunately it all ended fine for me and Inside … Continue reading →

I know. I know. You have a hard time believing that college students — in this case my students at USC — can tell you anything you don’t already know about programming your stations for them. In that case, you should stop reading. Scroll down to some other stories you may have missed or page over to a traditional radio … Continue reading →

One of the regular readers of this blog noticed some interesting associations being made in the FAQ.pdf and other parts of the SoundExchange “Legislative Alert Center”. Sit down. Stay away from sharp objects and read this in amazement:Webcasting is to blame for the slump in CD sales.”CD sales have slumped 25 percent since 2000, while webcasting audiences have grown dramatically.””Do … Continue reading →

Doomsday is coming. By mid-April Clear Channel will know whether its shareholders will approve its low ball offer to cash in their chips and take the company private. That is, if the vote isn’t postponed — again. Seems like America’s biggest radio consolidator may be having trouble getting shareholders to do what it wants. The shareholders are restless about this … Continue reading →

Radio, take a day off. You can’t possibly outdo Apple’s first well-publicized mistake today so rest easy. Apple actually did a good thing yesterday — a deal with EMI (number three of the big four labels) to provide DRM-free music from the sizable EMI catalog. Good because it cooperates with the inevitable — the marketplace (next generation) is demanding free … Continue reading →

By Steve Meyer, Inside Music Media

A longtime radio friend of mine reminded me that if I could have told him before 1996 that Clear Channel, the little San Antonio company that used to be called “Cheap Channel”, was going to eventually be the biggest force in radio, he would have said I was crazy. Few saw it coming. This group of Texas outsiders rounding up … Continue reading →

I think with great fondness on the memory of legendary Philadelphia record promotion man Matty “Humdinger” Singer. In my radio programming career I can think of no other person as colorful, hard-working or convincing as this man. He lived to promote records. He and his brethren were the work engine of the record business when labels were king and radio … Continue reading →

All of us have had a lot of fun with the Clear Channel commercial reduction initiative they dubbed “Less Is More”. Ad agencies. Industry types. Part of the reason we love to poke fun at LIM is that the name is so ridiculous. Few people believe less of anything is more than something. Maybe in golf where the lower the … Continue reading →

Apple is touting its latest feat — the sale of 100 million iPod devices. And Apple has a lot to be proud of because this number two computer company has cleaned everyone’s clocks in the five years or so that they have been on the market. iPod just this week eclipsed the Walkman as the fastest growing music player. It … Continue reading →

Don Imus is the creation of radio management. How do I know that? There would be no Imus In The Morning if various radio executives and companies over the years did not hire him, fire him, promote him, syndicate him and pay him beyond his wildest dreams. Imus is edgy and employers like edgy. Until… Well, until their creation goes … Continue reading →

NBC News pulled the plug on Don Imus’ Imus In The Morning TV simulcast of his CBS radio show yesterday putting an end to our long national agony — having to listen to sanctimonious and scared media companies and advertisers try to act like Mother Teresa. NBC — the same multimedia company that was even later than Imus in recognizing … Continue reading →

Now that CBS has pulled the trigger and fired Don Imus, the story can fade out of the headlines and Anna Nicole Smith can return to its proper place in America’s new flow. It’s over. Now, the lessons: First, about media companies and the “right thing”: Don’t underestimate the power of spineless media and advertising executives who got caught in … Continue reading →

So, Viacom Is Going To Stop Rappers, Thugs And Whores. The mega media corporation that owns Black Entertainment Network (BET) and MTV is not likely to solve the problem that the Don Imus firing has focused attention on because Viacom is part of the problem. Don’t believe me? Turn on BET and see how much respect woman — Black women … Continue reading →

Some of the brightest programming minds in the glory days of radio who were used and abused by consolidation could be having the last laugh right now about how they saw this embarrassing decline in radio coming. But it’s not funny. The latest bump in what has become a rocky road for terrestrial radio is the decline of the morning … Continue reading →

Clear Channel and Google are perfect together. Clear Channel, the media giant that gave consolidation a bloody nose is teaming up with Google, the Internet monster that is aiming to give its competitors a bloody nose. Forgive me, but this sounds like two evil empires working together to further their need to dominate the media business. Clear Channel hasn’t been … Continue reading →

By Steve Meyer, Inside Music Media

News organizations are driving away the next generation. The tragedy at Virginia Tech was only a few hours old

Say what you want about Don Imus, but he apologized until he couldn’t say it anymore and paid the price for his bonehead comments about the women of the Rutgers basketball team. He actually left the industry with his head up — not down. He was plastered by the news media, competitors and the increasingly powerful minority groups who wanted … Continue reading →

You’ve got to hand it to Clear Channel. They never give up. After years of touting “Less Is More” to the advertising community (or should we say to their shareholders), they’ve now come up with a another new idea. None is More. No commercials 24 hours a day. KZPS, Dallas is running no 30’s, no 60’s — not even tens. … Continue reading →

Internet Royalties — What Is FairHow Much More Should Google Be Allowed To Grab

What kind of welcome is this for Dan Mason as he takes over the helm at CBS Radio? Free FM – WFNY, New York — talkers JV and Elvis Duran conducted a prank call on-air directed at employees of a Chinese restaurant that included ethnic slurs and sexual slurs. The call was conducted and aired on April 5 and — … Continue reading →

FCC Releases TV Violence ReportApple Earnings Soar On Sales of Macs, iPodsABC Net Leads In Commercial ClutterCBS Buys Into Ad Serving For Advertisers on Internet StreamsNewspaper Circulation Takes Another Big Hit

Now we know just how bad things were getting at CBS Radio when Joel Hollander presided over it. David Hinckley in The New York Daily News Monday reported the figures based on BIA statistics. It isn’t pretty. Hollander’s ill-conceived attempt at radio programming called “Jack” (“We play what we want”) was supposed to replace the aging oldies station WCBS-FM. It … Continue reading →

Schools Banning iPods to Beat CheatersBest Buy To Sell HD Radios In All U.S. StoresFCC To Congress: Regulate TV ViolenceXM Reports Boost From New Car BuyersYouTube Experimenting With Pre and Post RollsInternet Radio’s Enemy: Their Talking PointsSave The Internet Legislation IntroducedInside: Internet Radio Equality ActImus Producer Criticizes SharptonMurdoch Taking MySpace To China

I thought it would be fun to announce the First Annual “Lowry” Awards for “Less Is More” in Music Media named after Lowry Mays, the man who almost singlehandedly created and molded one medium that has turned to gold and then to tin with investors taking it on the chin. Here’s a few categories (perhaps you have suggestions of your … Continue reading →

Some of my readers have expressed an interest in learning information I have gleaned from my extensive contact with the next generation regarding their attitudes about terrestrial radio. As many of you know I have been a professor at the University of Southern California for the past few years and intend to return to USC in the Fall for yet … Continue reading →

The National Association of Broadcasters has finally gotten religion. After months if not years of silence, the lobby group for terrestrial radio announced it is coming to the aid of Internet streamers. Here’s how the NAB told the world yesterday:”NAB is reviewing details of Rep. Inslee’s bill, which would overturn the Copyright Royalty Board’s disappointing decision to dramatically raise fees … Continue reading →

I know chief executives make a lot of money and I’m not a complainer who is going to nit pick executive compensation decisions. These folks are responsible for everything that happens in a company so why shouldn’t they be paid well. However, when I read that Clear Channel CEO Mark Mays made $9.31 million in 2006 and his brother, President … Continue reading →

Best Buy is going to carry HD radios in all of its U.S. stores. Wal-Mart has already agreed to do the same. Radio Shack was the first major coast-to-coast retailer that sold HD radios and yet the shameless promotion of this useless technology continues with no progress in changing the world of radio. I think of all the topics I … Continue reading →

There is little doubt in my mind that if Mel Karmazin was still running CBS, he would not have caved to the various interests that wanted Don Imus’ head after he insulted the Rutgers women’s basketball team on his WFAN, New York morning show. Of course there is no way to know for sure, but I can’t imagine Mel letting … Continue reading →

After some anxious moments the other day, the business world learned that Microsoft and Yahoo have not been able to complete merger talks. Microsoft needs Yahoo. The software business is not what it used to be now that the Internet and mobile spaces have made computing non-essential for an increasing number of consumers. Cell phones and mobile devices are essential, … Continue reading →

Randy Michaels, the former Jacor and Clear Channel executive is coming back. Not just running a bunch of second tier TV stations (from the New York Times Company) but something even bigger. Who believes Michaels wants to run only TV stations when it seems like he used to run the entire world at Clear Channel. It pains Michaels when I … Continue reading →

If we didn’t already know how self-destructive the record industry can be using their past actions as a guide, you need only consider what they are trying to do right now that will really do them in. In the bluntest language I can use (forgive me), the record labels are preparing a suicide attack on their good friends, the radio … Continue reading →

I count myself as a staunch proponent of free speech even when it offends and even when it challenges society’s tolerance for it. I don’t want the FCC, Congress, religious leaders or school teachers having an unusually influential say as to what can be said, shown or written. The FCC is a flawed group of political appointees. Congress is a … Continue reading →

It always impresses me that Apple CEO Steve Jobs has taken control over the record label moguls. Jobs knows what the next generation wants. He has the sales to prove it. Record execs have no idea what the next generation wants and if they do, they have no idea how to give it to them. They are reduced to suing … Continue reading →

I think we’ve finally reached the tipping point on shock jocks who compromise radio’s prized and precious right to free speech and disgrace a consolidated industry that has been compromising itself since 1996. And we may have Dan Mason, CBS’ new president, to thank for kick starting the end of our long national nightmare. Barely on the job in his … Continue reading →

I read recently that text messaging has increased a whopping 95% over the past few years. That is, young people (mainly) are going nuts text messaging friends. This is not just a casual addiction, it’s compulsion and it can detract from traditional media’s presence in their lives because of one significant and undeniable reason. Gen Y reluctantly gives up their … Continue reading →

The longtime Inside Radio editor Tom Taylor is leaving at the end of the day today to take an executive editor position at Radio-info.com. I am proud to say I hired Tom to help us develop the original Inside Radio fax in 1990. It’s hard to believe that we had to pioneer our way through thermal fax paper, non-standardized sizes … Continue reading →

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You’ve seen me write about my lack of enthusiasm for HD radio (misnamed “High Definition” radio which is neither high definition nor the best radio has to offer). In the tradition of KISS (Keep it Simple, Stupid) and the Bill Clinton campaigns election motto “It’s The Economy, Stupid”, when it comes to HD radio I’d like to add “It’s the … Continue reading →

Apple’s much awaited iPhone cellular device will be available to consumers in about one month. The svengali Steve Jobs has written the script and executed it with the precision of a skilled surgeon. His announcement was long enough ago to give a heads-up to cellular customers who had contracts expiring soon. Jobs even created the theater behind the introduction of … Continue reading →

We have had consolidation in radio for over ten years now and even after a flirtation with virtual voice tracking, the industry is fast becoming a nonstarter for serious careers. In television, the increasing side effects of running public companies for every penny that can be eeked out of them and the collateral damage to local newsrooms is devastating. Local … Continue reading →

The radio industry which has fought everything from AM stereo and high definition radio (back when it was really new technology) right up to the Arbitron People Meter ratings system is proving once again why radio has lost it. The Portable People Meter (PPM), an imperfect but necessary update to the paper diary system in this digital age, is turning … Continue reading →

This does it. Now consumers are now going to rush out and buy new HD radios. Sony just announced it is planning to sell a table-top radio. AM/FM/HD, clock with sleep timer and alarm, wireless remote and auxiliary input jack. Store 20 AM and 20 FM stations. Your low-low price: 200 bucks. Question: when was the last time you spent … Continue reading →

CBS paid $280 million to buy the social networking site Last.FM. Sites like Last.FM and Tim Westergren’s founding effort — Pandora — represent “an” aspect of the future of radio because fans can in effect program their own music and these sites are social networking sites – very significant with the next generation. The name Last.FM is a little creepy … Continue reading →

No, not the plane crash that killed Buddy Holly, Richie Valens and The Big Bopper. I

Now this is a headline that is irresistible because it is so outrageous. Who has the answers that will save the music business? I confess, it’s not me, but I do have some ideas and they’re based on my observations of smart Internet people and the next generation which I have gotten to know very well over the past three … Continue reading →

With just weeks until the Apple iPhone becomes available to consumers — the most significant mobile happening in history — traditional media need to have a better understanding of the repercussions. When was the last time a satellite radio executive said don’t go to the store on the day satellite radio will be debuted. Or can you imagine a radio … Continue reading →

You need only to look to the panicked state of radio, records, television and newspapers to understand the monumental effect the Internet has had on the music media business. Here’s a short course: Radio, the medium for every next generation since it arrived on the scene, is forced to share time with the Internet. How about 5o% of a young … Continue reading →

Over the Memorial Day weekend my wife listens to terrestrial radio for the only time of the year. CBS-owned KOOL-FM in Phoenix cues up the Bill Drake-narrated rockumentary that many of us have heard in various forms from the very first edition over 30 years ago. And many of us as program directors have aired “The History” just as CBS … Continue reading →

I caught “The Jersey Boys” on Broadway last week. It lived up to its excellent reviews. Being Italian, a Jersey boy myself (Hoboken) and being in the radio industry the story resonated with me. First, I can’t remember being in the same place with so many baby boomers since my college graduation. These boomers (usually called “aging baby boomers” by … Continue reading →

I have been as amazed as you most likely are about the clinic Paris Hilton is putting on for the media business. It’s true that sites like Perez Hilton and TMZ live another day just to cover celebrities such as Paris Hilton, Britney Spears, Lindsay Lohan and the like screwing up. Online, their readers come and go as their interest … Continue reading →

I knew this years ago when I arrived on the campus of USC. I didn’t want to believe it. Didn’t believe that it was as bad as it has turned out to be, but now the latest Arbitron data is confirming my worst fears — streaming terrestrial radio is laying an egg on the Internet. This in spite of all … Continue reading →

Did you catch the latest radio blunder — this one out of Philadelphia? It seems that CBS-owned WYSP’s “Free FM” had a discussion on panties Wednesday morning. Kidd Chris was entertaining frequent contributor Danny Ozark (real name Peter Goldman) on-the-air when Ozark confessed that he met a girl at a June 2nd Phillies game who was house sitting for local … Continue reading →

From the people who brought you suing their customers you now have “performance fees” for terrestrial radio. Their argument goes: satellite and Internet must pay a performance fee, so the nation’s AM and FM stations should, too. These extra fees — in addition to music licensing charges — could seriously impact the radio industry as it fights for a place … Continue reading →

Why is it that when a company spends $2.7 billion to do a complicated buyout of an old radio company everyone thinks they are good investors? Am I the only one who looks at Citadel’s purchase of ABC as a colossal overpayment for radio stations with an aging audience and a questionable future. I don’t mean this as criticism of … Continue reading →

Like the iconic heart and soul of Mad Magazine, Alfred E. Neuman, the radio industry is being run by many radio CEOs who have taken Neuman’s motto to heart: “what, me worry”? I don’t believe — no, can’t believe, that radio CEOs are concerned about the digital future vis-a-vis their radio stations. They certainly do worry about quarterly earnings. They … Continue reading →

HD is amazing radio — the best that’s ever been created. Its revolutionary ability to deliver several channels from the same station will bring variety back to radio listening. HD radio combines three products — your usual channel in enhanced audio, several sub-channels with additional programming and a digital readout to provide critical information. It’s an entirely new way to … Continue reading →

Do you ever get the feeling that the four major record labels can’t be bothered with the next generation and their unorthodox ways? These labels are so secretive, silent and yes, shameful these days while almost everyone else is at least trying something to become part of the digital future. Their seeming indifference to reality leads us to to butcher … Continue reading →

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How can so many smart people do so many dumb things. Take the music industry’s move to get radio to pay a performance tax. Dumb. Free exposure on the nation’s airwaves is what sells music. The radio industry is up in arms about the possibility of paying such a tax, but they are doing nothing to prevent it from becoming … Continue reading →

Over the weekend Inside Radio broke the news that Clear Channel had finally decided to become an Arbitron People Meter client. It’s reportedly a multi-year deal covering 50 markets. I don’t know how Clear Channel does this with a straight face. I am going to get sick when I see the trade press coverage today and Tuesday hailing this as … Continue reading →

Take an issue — preferably a polarizing issue like immigration or the Iraq war — turn it over to terrestrial radio and they beat it to death. In the process, they quickly sink to the lowest common denominator and insult just about everyone who disagrees with them sometimes ending by questioning the patriotism of those who disagree. And, of course, … Continue reading →

The “Day Of Silence” in support of more equitable copyright royalty rates charged to Internet streamers went off remarkably well yesterday. Kurt Hanson’s RAIN reported that massive listener support crippled servers and switchboards at Congress — the ultimate target of this protest. There was significant support for the “Day of Silence” from Internet broadcasters particularly but not limited to the … Continue reading →

I love this man. I have known him a long time going back to the early days of Inside Radio when he offered wise advice and counsel. I still consider him my Irish consigliere. When I married my wife, Cheryl, in 1998 he and his beautiful wife Nancy (shown here with Bill) were there as Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell married … Continue reading →

I’ve always liked Mark Ramsey. He’s uncommonly bright and is one of the go-to people for helping you figure out how to live in the future. Mark’s Hear2.0 has an interview with Seth Godin, best selling author of Permission Marketing and now The Dip. Godin describes The Dip like this “most of the things we set out to do in … Continue reading →

Just when Apple CEO Steve Jobs is languishing in all the favorable publicity surrounding the debut of his revolutionary iPhone, he gets word that Universal Music is not going to renew its iTunes deal with Apple. So let’s think this thing through. Who needs whom here? Does Apple need Universal’s music to sell on its iTunes online web store? Of … Continue reading →

I never considered the trade publication Inside Radio a choking hazard — until yesterday morning. That’s when Inside Radio’s very capable editor Frank Saxe reported a story about Clear Channel Executive Vice President Jeff Littlejohn who he quotes as saying that “the radio industry shouldn’t worry about the high-profile launch of the iPhone” adding “it’s not a competitive threat”. Well, … Continue reading →

Radio is all up in arms because Congress is threatening to reintroduce the hated Fairness Doctrine that could stifle talk radio. Talk radio is radio’s best product right now (I’m not talking about their opinions, either). And radio is a hurtin’ pup with advertising revenues being projected as declining in the year ahead. The absence of the Fairness Doctrine allows … Continue reading →

The “Day of Silence” to attract attention to the unfair treatment of Internet streamers at the hands of the Copyright Royalty Board (CRB) is over. Now, it’s time to take off the gloves and hit SoundExchange where it hurts them the most — in Congress. That’s what those of us interested in promoting fair access to Internet streaming wanted the … Continue reading →

Is the record business getting more insane every day? Is that possible? Now Prince, the warrior who fought the good fight against the record labels back when they actually sold CDs is riling all of Europe with his latest marketing move. Prince’s decision to giveaway his new album folded into British tabloid newspapers for free is not only ironic it … Continue reading →

I hate to say I told you so, but in the case of CBS dropping arguably one of the best radio formats in the country for an unproven, not-ready-for-prime time format like “Jack” (“We play what we want”) I must say it. I told you so. I can’t brag about being the only one to say it because almost everyone … Continue reading →

Since I have been at USC, I have been very careful who I call a “Nutty Professor” for obvious reasons. For every finger you point, you have three pointing back at you. Stan Liebowitz, a distinguished University of Texas-Dallas professor has riled the radio industry with his Business Week comments. In fact, radio people are in quite a snit. It … Continue reading →

The high profile switch of WCBS-FM from its “Jack” format back to oldies is going to require very carefully considered programming moves to be successful in the long run. What CBS is doing today is introducing to New York City the classic hits concept that has been working very well in some of their other markets. New York, you remember, … Continue reading →

You heard about the iPhone almost every day on the run up to the big day when it went on sale. You hear the AT&T network sucks and hundreds of thousands of people don’t care. They want creative solutions. In this case, make the telephone do something other than call and do rudimentary texting. Make it intuitive. Forget about cell … Continue reading →

SoundExchange, the record industry body that collects royalty fees, now wants Internet streamers to trade a lower license fee (or no fee for small webcasters who qualify) and a cap on minimum fees of $50,000 per 100 channels in exchange for full compliance and paying legally. SoundExchange’s Executive Director John Simson told Radio & Internet’s Kurt Hanson in a recent … Continue reading →

Most of the trades have reported the latest, poorly-handled firings at Clear Channel. I say the latest because, in my opinion, Clear Channel has been squandering its outstanding talent since way back when it was putting together its 1,1o0 station group. So, a week or so ago the very capable and well-liked Minneapolis exec Mick Anselmo was fired while on … Continue reading →

Radio stations are beginning to use research about pirated music trends as part of their mix that includes increasingly difficult to get passive research in determining what to play on the air. Clear Channel’s Premiere Radio Networks through its Mediabase division is marketing the information to its parent company, Radio One and Emmis. Even record labels are holding their nose … Continue reading →

Imagine what some geniuses who have ruined radio through consolidation have in store for their medium next. Selling unused inventory (as they call it) via Google’s AdSense biding system. Tomorrow, reduce the sales force and cut costs as Google makes selling radio sales as easy and inexpensive as selling any commodity. Beyond that, the world! It’s all in the very … Continue reading →

Utilizing HD Radio for additional revenue opportunities other than audio programming is more promising than traditional broadcasting applications. Engineers have been busily at work on this functionality. Mobile tests were done by iBiquity in Chicago that proved no loss of service or dropped data. This is good because HD Radio’s chances of making it to prime time are slim to … Continue reading →

You know email has arrived when everyone you know has an email address. But you also know when email has hit critical mass when your youngest generation turns to social networks instead. One of the many benefits to working with the next generation is that you can get a preview as to how the music media industry is going to … Continue reading →

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Prince is one of the most exciting, controversial, sexy and savvy acts in the history of modern music so when he does something different he gains a lot of attention. That

For those who may not know, radio when it was in its second heyday used to employ a contest giveaway called “Hi-Lo” where callers to the station eventually guessed the jackpot and won money. Many of us, as program directors, also ran contests similar to

The move is underway to allow our great public servants

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Remember that old WINS, New York all-news motto “You Give Us 20 Minutes and We

Sam Moore, of the duo Sam & Dave, thinks Cox Radio President Bob Neil is a racist. Last week Neil told a Congressional committee getting ready to butt into the artists

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Elton John says dump the Internet and return to the good old fashioned face-to-face way of living. Elton John is a great performer, but he

Starbucks seems happy with the sale of the Paul McCartney CD “Memory Almost Full” and is apparently getting ready to expand its record label — Hear Music. Anyone ought to be excited about selling CDs

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My friend, Joe Benson, whom I am proud to say I had the good sense to employ when I was programming in Philadelphia, sent me an email over the weekend. In it he said,

By Jack Hannold, Guest Contributor (Note: I am always grateful for the thoughtful comments and emails I get on my various posts. This one I thought was extremely noteworthy so I am presenting it to you today — Jerry).

I guess AT&T will think twice in the future if it — or anyone working for the cell phone giant — tries to censor a rock performance. They got burned when AT&T admitted to Lollapalooza concert officials that portions of the show were cut from the webcast. During the performance of “Daughter” these lyrics were sung by Pearl Jam to … Continue reading →

Universal and Warner within the past few weeks announced that they were making investments in companies that handled artist management or web networking. The big four labels are not going to turn it around any time soon being a record company. CD sales continue to nose dive. Warner is spending $110 million to buy more of Front Line Management, an … Continue reading →

I can’t help being haunted by this deep-seated conviction of mine (as unrealistic as you might think it is) that the big four record labels would be in a much better position today if they could make hit records. I know, I know — they have many other problems. Steve Jobs and the iPod. Legal and illegal downloading of music. … Continue reading →

Could it possibly be that Disney did something right when everyone else thought they were doing everything wrong? Radio Disney, the kids radio format, may now find a reportable audience when Arbitron’s Portable People Meter (PPM) is set to become the new standard in audience ratings. The meter measures all media within its path and kids don’t have to fill … Continue reading →

So I returned to Scottsdale from LA the other night when I received the first of what would be 21 — count ’em, 21 — emails from a radio industry consultant taking me to task for advocating the Arbitron Portable People Meter (PPM). The emails got nastier as the night went on, but the sender is no dummy. He’s brilliant. … Continue reading →

You’ve seen me write with some regularity about the revolutionary new iPhone from Apple’s creative mad man Steve Jobs. My readers — you — are divided as far as I can tell. One group has gone ga-ga over iPhone and all its coolness while the other says it’s a toy — not even a significant work tool. And I’ve concluded … Continue reading →

Clear Channel finally set a date for the shareholder vote that would allow it to go private and make a fortune for the Mays principals and their Wall Street cronies. The date they chose was at the very end of the legal limit — imagine that, Clear Channel pushing the legal limit — the end of September. Clear Channel has … Continue reading →

Little Stevie Van Zandt is one of my favorite characters in The Sopranos. He plays — Silvio Dante, the consigliere — advisor to crime boss Tony Soprano. Stevie also plays guitar for the other boss in Bruce Springsteen’s E Street Band. I was reading his comments the other day on the sorry state of the music industry. Stevie Van Zandt … Continue reading →

I’ve decided to return to USC for yet another year to teach several courses including television than media people would think even though they finally got away from the burden of doing papers and taking exams. It’s true many students had summer jobs but even with more leisure time, television is not the addiction it was for Gen X or … Continue reading →

There’s been a lot of debate since President Bush announced one more surge of troops to try and secure the law and order in Iraq. Without getting into the political issues, the surge reminds me of what radio executives are now doing whether knowingly or not. You get the feeling that many of the seasoned radio executives who have been … Continue reading →

Move over radio. The Internet is now taking aim squarely at television. There’s an interesting new global IBM study that shows the time consumers spend using the Internet is roughly about the time they spend watching TV. (You can download the report for free). The study reports: “66 percent reported viewing from 1 to 4 hours of TV per day, … Continue reading →

I know many of you subscribe to this blog and have it delivered to your email every morning. But for those of you who go to the Inside Music Media website every day perhaps you’ve noticed that I started placing a Facebook icon in the right hand column to replace the customary “about me” option. (The Blogger service by Google … Continue reading →

It finally happened. And it took a bunch of kids to do it. Someone stood up to the RIAA. And once they did, someone else stood up to the music industry’s bully puppet that has been terrorizing young people, families, college students and even the dead with threats of lawsuits for stealing music. Only about a month ago my friend, … Continue reading →

CBS Radio was at it again in Phoenix over the hot Labor Day weekend in the Valley of the Sun. Oldies KOOL-FM (or more politically correct, Classic Hits) dusted off the 30 year History of Rock and Roll narrated by Bill Drake and made a marathon out of the three-day holiday. KOOL-FM has a history of utilizing the History at … Continue reading →

It’s hard to know for sure how the Oracle of Omaha, Warren Buffett, would run a radio conglomerate. You might point out that Buffett has resisted the temptation of buying a radio group. Certainly, stations were overpriced when consolidation came along (post-1996) and Buffett likes a bargain. Owning radio stations still is very expensive even without a future beyond Gen … Continue reading →

Apple CEO Steve Jobs made another one of his grand pronouncements yesterday and he seems to have left everyone very unhappy. Except his customers. Internet streamers thought this was going to be the moment that Jobs would build digital Internet capabilities into the iPod. Radio broadcasters may not have said it aloud, but some were hoping that if that happened … Continue reading →

Steve Jobs, Apple’s dynamic baby boomer CEO, made headlines Wednesday when he announced a new generation of iPods and said Apple was going to reduce the price of its top of the line eight gig iPhone by $200. Of course, if you were an early adopter — someone Apple needs to drive its innovative businesses — you could have felt … Continue reading →

The new Polk Audio I-Sonic and JBL receivers are much ado about nothing when it comes to advancing the relic known as HD radio (or for those who believe the term — high definition!). Last week when Apple CEO Steve Jobs announced his new line of products and left radio and Internet radio out in the cold, it was business … Continue reading →

Did you see or hear about the Video Music Awards sponsored by MTV Sunday night? It was business as usual. Controversy as to whether Britney Spears looked as good as she did before giving birth to her two babies. She did an uninspired, bikini-clad rendition of her new single Gimme More. The gratuitous barbs from comic Sarah Silverman about Britney’s … Continue reading →

Everyone seems to know the record business is dying except the people running it. It’s a business highly dependent on the sale of Compact Discs — and CD’s are not selling the way they used to before digital downloading arrived. The stores they sell in — record stores — are in short pants.. The record industry — before it gets … Continue reading →

A few weeks ago The New York Times Magazine had a cover story on Rick Rubin, the co-operator of Columbia Records these days. Rubin was pictured in a white robe in the yoga position with his beard and long hair flowing and his eyes closed. Unfortunately, or perhaps appropriately, the photo was taken in Malibu — a yoga paradise. The … Continue reading →

It’s been several months and finally SoundExchange, the royalty negotiators for the record labels, has gotten back to Internet streamers with an answer on a more equitable rate structure. No. SoundExchange Executive Director John Simson told the NAB in a letter that their offer of June 6th to settle the dispute over Internet streaming rates is unacceptable. The NAB’s website … Continue reading →

The artist formerly known as a singer is acting more like a record label exec. Prince is suing people like it’s 1999. He is after the social network YouTube for unauthorized use of his music. He says he wants to “reclaim his art on the Internet”. Is this the same Prince who sat out and sulked when he got into … Continue reading →

It’s not lack of HD technology, not too many commercials, not competition from iPods, cyberspace or social networks. Not the decline of the music industry and certainly not satellite radio. Radio has lost its listeners’ trust. Radio used to be a trusted friend. I remember when I programmed in Philadelphia. I inherited a fascinating (although long) jingle package called “Where … Continue reading →

< br />The radio industry knows a good thing when it hears it and it’s jumping on the “Fresh FM” trend afraid of missing out and/or afraid a competitor will make them eat it. The radio industry knows a good thing when it loses it, too, as CBS’ WCBS-FM is proving since Radio President Dan Mason manned up and returned … Continue reading →

My readers often give me ideas for things that I write about from the perspective of my experience in the media business and my work with the next generation. After writing about the “Fresh FM” and WCBS-FM “Classic Hits” revival, one reader wondered about my take on the Jack” format. Of course, “Jack” works in some markets — and that … Continue reading →

You’ve got to hand it to iBiquity, the firm that brought you HD radio over ten years too late and “shrewd” enough to copyright the term HD while at the same time saying it doesn’t really mean “high definition”. As the saying goes, you can’t put lipstick on a pig, but somehow, iBiquity has managed to get QVC to sell … Continue reading →

Clear Channel’s ten-year quest to take over the world — at least the world of radio — has ended with shareholder approval to take the firm private at the end of the year. It’s a $19.5 billion buyout and the preliminary vote approved the merger with T.H. Lee Partners and Bain Capital Partners. The timing was critical because investment money … Continue reading →

The record industry is about to kill itself and murder its best friend. Phil Spector, who knew? The labels are in the process of trying to eliminate radio’s royalty exemption which could exceed $1 billion — 0r 5% of radio’s revenues according to Deutsche Bank’s Drew Marcus. This would be tantamount to murder for radio stations. The royalty tax would … Continue reading →

One of these days the radio industry is going to get it right — but today isn’t one of them. Frick and Frack — the NAB and RAB — two organizations that still don’t get it — have announced at the NAB Radio Convention — that they are going to spend more of their members’ money. The latest brainstorm is … Continue reading →

Remember when radio stations were constantly abusing its listeners with the phrase

Radiohead, the internationally known band, is free from the chains of its record label and able to do anything it thinks is in its best interest. So, they

I borrowed the headline from the Johnny Cash record

It was only last week when the NAB Radio Convention was happening in Charlotte. Since then I have heard from a lot of people who were not too happy about the state of the radio industry. In fact, if you read the trade accounts of the radio show, you might agree with me that the NAB was held the in … Continue reading →

Yesterday, a jury convicted a Minneapolis woman, Jammie Thomas, of downloading music illegally and awarded the record labels $220,000 — $9,250 for each of 24 songs of which the companies sought damages. Still, the RIAA and the labels lost. Hope they enjoy the money

In the formative days of radio, preachers used to tell their flocks to put their hands on the radio before they asked them to put their hands in their wallets for donations. In radio, nothing changes. Now the forces that bring you

Some of you tell me you like for me to share my experiences, insights, outrages and epiphanies that I gain from teaching the next generation at USC. Interestingly, most of my students did their mid-term papers on the problems of the music industry or the potential of interactive media. One addresses the decline of the radio industry. My experience has … Continue reading →

Looks like Don Imus is coming back in a few short weeks. In August, Tom Taylor, who first broke the story in his excellent Taylor On Radio-Info, quoted Citadel CEO Farid Suleman on the possible return of Don Imus:

In ten years when Madonna

I think it

Have you heard about Universal Music

Did you ever think about how long it took the radio business to fully utilize the FM band? Some AM radios had FM back in the day, but nobody listened. There was nothing to listen to. That is until these events occurred: automakers started including FM as an option for new car buyers and then as standard equipment. And content … Continue reading →

As many of you know I, like many of you, have obsessed over what kind of smart phone might enhance my business and personal life. About two months ago, I finally made a decision

The National Association of Broadcasters spent a whopping $4.3 million dollars — more than five times as much as XM and Sirius according to Frank Saxe at Inside Radio — to lobby against the proposed satellite merger of the two. XM spent only $580,000 and Sirius $230,000 (and I’ll bet Mel Karmazin choked on that). Saxe points out that even … Continue reading →

FCC Chairman Kevin Martin is on a fast track to rushing through approval of an ambitious plan to almost singlehandedly relax media ownership rules

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There was an excellent piece by Sarah McBride in The Wall Street Journal yesterday featuring an interview with National Public Radio CEO Ken Stern. The article highlights the success of NPR including its widely heard morning show, Morning Edition, which is the most listened to show on non-commercial or commercial radio next to Rush Limbaugh. NPR is a tastemaker in … Continue reading →

Yesterday, I wrote a piece called “NPR Is Not Radio”. You can see it by scrolling down or, if you receive my blog via email, log on. Basically, the gist was that my young students don’t consider NPR radio. Radio to them is what consolidators do. They don’t much like it. Someone sent me a copy of the Arbitron National … Continue reading →

Perhaps you

I don’t take any pleasure having to say this, but the National Association of Broadcasters is selling radio out — again. I want to start by saying that there are a lot of great and good people at the NAB who care about radio and many broadcasters who serve on its board who do so for all the right reasons. … Continue reading →

About a week ago I mentioned that my students were going to give up their cell phones and iPods for two consecutive days. They didn

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Let’s put on our Larry Craig or Michael Vick costumes and play this year’s version of Music Media Trick or Treat. Trick. Buy an HD radio and you get many new channels of music and radio programming. No. Buy an HD radio and get taken for a fool. The radio operators, however, won’t be taken for fools. They’re investing relatively … Continue reading →

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 … Continue reading →

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. … Continue reading →

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 … Continue reading →

Last week CBS CEO Les Moonves revealed his company

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 … Continue reading →

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 … Continue reading →

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 … Continue reading →

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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

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 … Continue reading →

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 … Continue reading →

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 … Continue reading →

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

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. … Continue reading →

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 … Continue reading →

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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 … Continue reading →

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 … Continue reading →

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 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 … Continue reading →

The bane of Lee and Bain! According to the dictionary the word bane means “a cause of great distress or annoyance”. That being said, the word Bain as in Lee and Bain, the investment bankers who will make Clear Channel’s privatization possible is firings — massive firings. Ten in Los Angeles alone last week. What better time for consolidators that … Continue reading →

Radio executives are not dumb. They may be arrogant enough to think their old business model will work in the future, but as the pain of declining audiences and revenue proliferates they

I love Oprah Winfrey and I

The radio industry is turning into one giant joke. But it isn’t so funny. Clear Channel firing everyone in sight before Christmas. The meaningless war against satellite radio. HD — or High Destructive Radio. And now the latest comedic effort on the part of broadcasters who should know better. The National Association of Black Owned Broadcasters (NABOB) is asking the … Continue reading →

There is a new Canadian study on file sharing that bolsters what many of us who work with the next generation already know — file sharing (or stealing music) actually helps the record labels sell CDs. You can’t tell that to the music industry. They cannot and won’t wrap their arms around this concept. If they allowed themselves to believe … Continue reading →

I can’t take another day of hearing bad news from my friends in the radio industry who have been let go by Clear Channel in the latest massive clearance sale of top executives in advance of taking the company private. Forget that it’s happening at Christmas. Clear Channel apparently has. They say if you don’t laugh, you’ll cry. These fat … Continue reading →

The eyes almost popped out of my head when I was reading Inside Radio the other day. Clear Channel Executive Vice President Andy Levin is quoted as saying, “changes to the radio ownership rule are once again necessary”. Oh, it gets worse than this. America’s biggest radio consolidator and arguably the company that had the most to do with pushing … Continue reading →

The RIAA has filed a brief in an Arizona U.S. District Court against two average citizens (Jeffrey and Pamela Howell) who committed the dastardly crime of ripping their CD collection to MP3s so they could enjoy them around the house and perhaps on their iPods. The RIAA is also alleging that the Howell’s put their ripped music on file sharing … Continue reading →

I know the major TV networks are relying on reality shows to make it through the writer’s strike, but in radio there is an unreality show going on and a new episode developed Monday. The radio industry’s lobby group — the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) is asking the FCC to “consider continued relaxation” of the ownership rules having breathed … Continue reading →

There is increasing evidence that using your cell phone can cause brain tumors. In a British study some scientists say there is a chance that talking on a mobile phone for as little as 10 minutes could trigger changes in the brain that are associated with cancer. And a new Israeli study says regular use of mobile telephones increases the … Continue reading →

Somebody lock Citadel CEO Farid Suleman in his office. Don’t hurt him but don’t let him out. It’s time for the good and great employees of Citadel to take back their radio company and turn it around themselves. Farid hasn’t been able to. In the past year alone Citadel stock took a nose dive from the $10 range to $2.05 … Continue reading →

The young people I have been working with and studying the past four years voluntarily remind me that they have iPod fatigue. I have written about this before but I keep hearing it — and the term iPod fatigue is theirs not mine. There is no doubt in my mind that you’d have to amputate their arms to pry an … Continue reading →

The phrase screw the pooch appeared in Tom Wolfe’s book The Right Stuff meaning to mess up, commit a grievous error. It’s a euphemism from US military slang that uses much stronger language involving a dog. How apt, then, to apply this phrase — which also appears in the Urban Dictionary — to the current FCC which has begun the … Continue reading →

The news broke yesterday that entrepreneur Sam Zell — the founder of the Jacor radio group — is bringing Randy Michaels back to work for him again when he takes over control of the newspaper and TV Tribune Company. I predicted this months ago and I added that Randy will likely be involved in radio again — a prediction I … Continue reading →

I’m wondering. What kind of investment bankers fail to close on their acquisitions by year’s end if they really want to buy? After all, they don’t get their considerable fees unless they close. Lee and Bain have been postponing their closing of Clear Channel ostensibly because the FCC hasn’t approved the deal. Some skeptics might say that the FCC could … Continue reading →

As everything in the radio business ground to a halt for the Christmas holiday I kept getting the feeling something big is up with Sam Zell and Randy Michaels. That we’re seeing only a small part of the master plan. That the big bang is yet to come. Consider that over the weekend and in uncharacteristic stealth fashion Sam Zell … Continue reading →

Did you see a lot of CDs under the tree this year? Guess not. CD sales are off and when the final figures are in that include the fourth quarter of 2007, it’s not going to be pretty. If you follow the logic record labels are applying in seeking to lift the royalty tax exemption from radio, now is a … Continue reading →

Detroit Radio Advertising Group (DRAG) legendary President and COO Bill Burton coined the catchy phrase “An automobile is a radio with four wheels”. True enough to radio people, but if that phrase is accurate then “An Automobile Is An HD Radio Without Four Wheels”. In fact, the wheels are coming off. I say this because something is very suspicious in … Continue reading →

This has been a horrific holiday season for radio people in terms of pink slips, wrecked careers, disappointed hopes and even unemployment while fighting illnesses. I will not forget the fine people who are the backbone of the radio industry even if the consolidators can dismiss them so easily. When I attended Temple University in Philadelphia, one of my wonderful … Continue reading →

he owns a Mac (that dastardly machine from the record industry nemesis, Steve Jobs). 3. Jerry Del Colliano lives in Scottsdale and he likes Steve Jobs. 4. Therefore, Jerry Del Colliano must be a criminal. Don’t stop there — the RIAA’s got plenty more lawyers to employ: 5. If Jerry Del Colliano is a criminal in Scottsdale, then there must … Continue reading →

You’ve probably noted how impressed I have been with Apple as a company — mostly for their ability to understand and market to the next generation. While they succeed at marketing to the next generation on a major level as witnessed by the sale of iPods, iPhones, and Mac computers, they prove that doing right by Gen Y is good … Continue reading →

Breaking news. Arbitron shows WBEB (B-101), Philadelphia doubling its December ratings from an 8.2 to a whopping 15.8. Praise be to God. No. Praise be to the People Meter that tracks seasonal format changes like lightning. Clear Channel’s KODA in Houston jumped from a 5.2 to an 8.9 thanks to Christmas music and the PPM. Even in New York, Clear … Continue reading →

I always get a kick out of it when someone asks “what would Jesus do”. We’re hearing it a lot these days. Who knows? How could you ever be sure. But when it comes to HD Radio and Apple together — I think even Jesus would pray. Pray a lot. The radio industry is setting itself — and its advertisers … Continue reading →

Barack Obama, the author of the book The Audacity of Hope, and Mike Huckabee, the spiritual GOP presidential candidate are the news media’s new catalysts for change. Their surprising and convincing wins in the Iowa caucuses last week have forced many of their competitors into embracing change if for no other reason than to get elected. Consumers of entertainment also … Continue reading →

That’s what Jerry Lee’s WBEB-FM (B-101), Philadelphia got among women 18+ for the week of December 13-19. That’s a 27 share adults 25-54. A 1.2 million cume and double the listeners of the number two station — all news KYW. All this courtesy of the Arbitron People Meter. A few days ago I wrote a piece about the irony of … Continue reading →

It’s all becoming evident now that the revolution begun by the next generation is dramatically changing the world and, along with it, the music media business. David Bowie sang “Time may change me, But I can’t trace time”. Change is everywhere. Ironically enough, one of the few things I could do within my core skills when I served my four … Continue reading →

Inside Radio is quoting sources as saying the FCC is going to approve the Clear Channel sale to investment bankers Lee and Bain. Department of Justice approval would likely follow. Then, sit back and enjoy the action thriller. You read the headlines. You know that the radio industry is posting declining revenues. Most analysts say the best radio could hope … Continue reading →

Is it too late for radio? No. Yes. Can’t say I’m not direct. I am asked this question constantly — not by my young students but by people working in the media business. The students represent Gen Y and they really have no meaningful connection to terrestrial radio. They have their own means of finding, storing and listening to music … Continue reading →

The world is worried about whether Britney Spears is going to off herself eventually and Dr. Phil McGraw got himself in trouble for allegedly reaching out to Spears and her family for the purpose of furthering his top rated TV show. So who should the record industry call when they can’t call ghostbusters? Dr. Phil, of course. The record industry … Continue reading →

A week or so ago I mentioned I had an idea for building a killer morning show. The theory being — terrestrial radio is not likely to attract new young listeners but if it snags more listening from the available audience in the mornings then it will ring the cash register. Radio stations are fighting the first effects of a … Continue reading →

There is a controversy brewing in the industry and on the major boards such as Radio-Info about how the R&R Talk Conference has rescinded its planned Lifetime Achievement Award to Bob Grant — the always and still equal opportunity offender that he is. In the interest of full disclosure, I know Bob Grant from his Philly talker days and I’ve … Continue reading →

Today is the commemoration of Martin Luther King’s birthday. In our lifetime we can count on the fingers of only one hand those who have meant more to our society. Yet we feel it more appropriate to honor such icons with a day off and 50% off sales at the mall. In the radio industry, we suffer from a similar … Continue reading →

One of the more startling things to traditional broadcasters is that today’s young audience wants to sometimes be their own program director. The iPod is an example of how a generation decided to program their own “radio stations” with the music they choose to buy or steal online. And their stations really do have fewer commercials and more music unlike … Continue reading →

The Fed further cut interest rates by three quarters of a point in an emergency move that is designed to help the U.S. economy avoid a deep, dark recession. The market lost 465 points before greed saved the day and buyers took advantage of lower stock prices and bought back in. The housing market is one of the major problems … Continue reading →

The post Christmas radio ratings are in for the two People Meter markets — Philadelphia and Houston — and you should not be surprised to observe that the two bellwether Christmas stations lost half of their huge ratings gains acquired in December. Jerry Lee’s WBEB (B-101), Philadelphia slid from a 29.6 share in women 18+ during the week December 20-26 … Continue reading →

There is quite a controversy building around whether CBS-owned Last.fm is an eventual replacement for terrestrial radio. The Motley Fool investors publication says Last.fm could mean the end of radio. Kurt Hanson, who I respect more on these issues, says wait one minute — Last.fm isn’t even radio. It’s an interesting prospect either way. To bring you up to date … Continue reading →

The HD Radio Alliance has gone and done it. It has officially opposed the merger of XM and Sirius Satellite Radio. That tells me enough that if I’m at the DOJ, I’m going to approve the merger immediately — which they’re likely to do anyway. You may remember that iBiquity, the designated manufacturer of HD radio, unofficially asked the FCC … Continue reading →

Tom Taylor broke the news of John Hogan’s “draconian” first quarter contingency plan in his Taylor on Radio-Info publication Monday. It’s bad — all bad. Hundreds of additional jobs are in jeopardy — this from the industry leader that has been cutting jobs at a record pace in preparation for what they hope will be the completed sale of Clear … Continue reading →

There was another abortion in the music industry this week. QTrax, the startup that promised free music from the four major labels, and a number of indies launched without the music of the four major labels. This is an advertiser supported project that had been at least a year in the making — not unique — just another whack at … Continue reading →

I was surprised to find many young people enthusiastic about the prospect of paying $5 for a CD. I’m sure the record business is not. I can hear them right now: “We can’t make money on $5 CDs” — like they can make money on free downloading, right? I put the question to students in my USC class “Music, Broadcasting … Continue reading →

There is so much coverage of the possible closing of Clear Channel’s $19 billion privatization sale to Bain Capital and Thomas Lee Partners, but I’m afraid even the best financial publications are distracted from what’s really important. The Super Bowl is this weekend in Phoenix and this is as good a time as any to invoke the imagery of the … Continue reading →

Constant denial — that’s what’s killing radio. Last week we heard the same old song again at the Southern California Broadcasters Association gathering. I don’t know about you but these guys are starting to scare me. Radio-Info’s Tom Taylor reported that Clear Channel’s John Hogan said “performance and capability is not our problem. Our problem is one of perception”. No. … Continue reading →

I’ll admit it. The HD Alliance has got my number. It is the most incredible or should I say incredulous group of intelligent people in the radio industry. The only problem is, they are not giving you any credit for being intelligent. Thus the recent headlines that 2007 was a “breakthrough year” for HD radio sales. It’s getting to the … Continue reading →

Clear Channel’s stock price is now under $30. Down to $29.76 as it closed yesterday on a trading session that saw the Dow drop 370 points on continued fears of a recession. You may remember CCU was once a $90 stock way back when. The recent and infamous John Hogan memo calling for deeper cutbacks ahead of the potential closing … Continue reading →

Yahoo just turned over its “Music Unlimited” operation to the rental music service Rhapsody. True, Yahoo is in short pants these days. True, Microsoft knows this which is why they are making an unfriendly move to buy Yahoo. Rhapsody isn’t lighting the world on fire, either. Rhapsody charges $12.99 per month for millions of songs. It promises “Play all the … Continue reading →

Move over, Sheryl Crow — the first cut is not the deepest. The worst is and it’s happening right now. The other shoe has now dropped as many of the major consolidators have followed their leader — Clear Channel — with layoffs, firings and cost-savings caused by bad business and bad strategy. We’re now seeing CBS with program directors overseeing … Continue reading →

MSNBC

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At the Grammy’s the other night, Recording Academy President Neil Portnow stepped up on his nationwide soapbox and promised to “fight to pass legislation to once and for all ensure that, just like in every other developed country in the world, all music creators are compensated for their performances when played on traditional radio”. Fortunately, no one heard him. The … Continue reading →

Five years ago when I moved out west from New Jersey I had to give up my EZPass, an electronic toll collection system based in New Jersey and used extensively throughout the Northeast. We have freeways out here. I slapped the device on my windshield out of the way under the rear view mirror and I could cruise through toll … Continue reading →

It’s hard to fathom that a consumer electronic device that is both so cool and so hot may have finally peaked. In my work with college students I have discovered one thing if I have learned anything at all — you can hardly find a student on campus without an MP3 device (usually an iPod). That is, until now. Several … Continue reading →

There are few things that aggravate radio executives more than satellite radio. For years they were so blinded by the prospect of competition from satellite radio that terrestrial operators actually thought they were competing with satellite. Some still think so. This in spite of the fact that together XM and Sirius only have about 15 million paying subscribers. They run … Continue reading →

My old friend and radio executive Bill Figenshu wrote to me over the weekend with some thoughts on the recent New York Times article about why National Public Radio is thriving and PBS television is hurting. Fig says, “..they (NPR) have grown, have none of the negative commercial radio issues, and did it without taking the 8th caller, TV or … Continue reading →

Inside Radio is reporting that at least one analyst (Blair Levin of Stifel Nicolaus) thinks the FCC may mandate radios that include HD plus satellite stations as a condition of winning approval for the XM-Sirius merger. The HD Radio Alliance and iBiquity (the folks who brought you radio

One of my readers asked if I had any ideas on how the radio industry could redirect its efforts in light of all its mounting problems. He said,

It doesn’t take long to figure out that the next generation doesn’t like advertising. Its curious because their world — the Internet — is cluttered with ads, search results, links, videos, pop-ups and the like from companies desperate to get through to them. TV isn’t getting the job done. Radio? Forget about it. Any medium that thinks six commercials in … Continue reading →

Lost in all the cutbacks, firings and cost adjustments that consolidators have been making the last few months is the demise of the morning radio show. The morning slot is responsible for up to 50% of a radio station’s total revenue yet that apparently means nothing to consolidators desperate to make their latest poor quarter look a little better. Clear … Continue reading →

An ex-program director is like an ex-Marine. There are no such things. Like the Marine, once a PD always a PD. We have worked in the trenches. We performed well before consolidation and we know what is working about today’s radio content. I’m one. Many of my friends are one — some still have jobs in radio. There is a … Continue reading →

Next week I am appearing on a panel in Santa Monica (The Copyright Office Comes to California) devoted to repealing the performance tax exemption from radio. The NAB will have Suzanne Head, a representative, on the panel. I guarantee you we’ll both be in agreement that any attempt to tax radio for helping the music industry make money for free … Continue reading →

Have you heard about what Ford Motor Company and Microsoft are partnering to do? They

This isn’t personal. I don’t even know the man. I know he has had an excellent career as a bean counter for Mel Karmazin, but something needs to be said. I am tired of reading news accounts of the implosion at Citadel without anyone standing up and saying what’s on everyone’s mind. Citadel CEO Farid Suleman must be fired. He … Continue reading →

I was on a panel yesterday for the California Bar Association in Santa Monica dealing with the issue of repealing radio’s performance tax exemption. Besides the fact that everyone was very nice as expected, it was a scary hour and a half that I thought you’d like to hear about. These guys are clueless — the record industry — about … Continue reading →

Nine Inch Nails is thinking out of the box with its next-generation Radiohead marketing of the band’s new 36-track record which was recorded over a ten week period last year. Where Radiohead shook up the industry with its — you name the price (or don’t pay a price) model, Trent Reznor’s group is adding a few more nuances to their … Continue reading →

The radio revenue figures for 2007 are out and the industry is down just 2%. I say just because it could have been a lot worse and it probably will be a lot worse going forward. It seems non-traditional revenue may have helped mitigate some of the damage this time. Radio is a business that has been on the decline … Continue reading →

Radio doesn’t want 6-11 year olds. The Advisory Board has asked Arbitron to stop measuring listening for these children and “redistribute” the People Meters to the 12+ sample. There must be a shortage of People Meters. Or a shortage of foresight. It’s as if the radio industry believes that the more People Meters you put out there, the more 12+ … Continue reading →

Hillary Clinton

Last week the CEO of National Public Radio

Call me suspicious, but the Clear Channel buyout is supposed to close shortly and Randy Michaels keeps hiring more radio people for the television and newspaper business. What’s a person to believe? There are a lot of funny things about the Lee and Bain $29 billion Clear Channel bailout starting with the price. That price was determined over a year … Continue reading →

The fall of New York Governor Eliot Spitzer — the hated zealot who among other things forced the record and radio industries to own up to their failings and pay for them — has now been forced to do the same. Spitzer resigned as governor yesterday in a scandal over paying prostitutes and the once squeaky clean former New York … Continue reading →

At left with the program consultant Todd Wallace (center) and former KOOL-FM, Phoenix morning personality Bill Gardner. We had a great lunch in Scottsdale Wednesday that could accurately be described as “good times, great oldies”. I’ve known Todd Wallace from the very, very early days of Inside Radio and Bill Gardner and I worked under Paul Drew when he was … Continue reading →

Clear Channel, sometimes referred to as The Evil Empire in the consumer press, has finally let the FCC know the merger conditions it is requesting should the Commission approve the merger of XM and Sirius. That is, after the DOJ decides. Clear Channel is a minority owner in XM and has been for a long time. And, they provide some … Continue reading →

CNBC’s Jim Cramer has been out to get terrestrial radio of late. The circus-like Mad Money show is hard to watch and even harder to tolerate if you work in radio. Cramer’s advice to investors owning radio stock is “sell, sell, sell” which is easy to say because he doesn’t own Citadel at $1.32. I don’t know whether to advise … Continue reading →

It never surprises me that the music industry is in the mess that it’s in. Consumers want one thing and the record labels want another. In any other industry, this type of thinking would put companies out of business. But in the music industry, it’s standard operating procedure. Examine the evidence. 1. Starbucks sells CDs when customers obviously want coffee. … Continue reading →

No doubt those of you who follow the music media business have heard that Steve Jobs is supposedly working on a program with the major labels to sell fully-loaded, “all you can eat” iPods with virtually everything ever recorded. Well, if you have you may not be getting the real story. My contacts at the record labels confirm that discussions … Continue reading →

The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to hear a case concerning vulgarity on the airwaves — you know, Bono using the F-word in an unscripted broadcast, etc. The FCC wants the power to punish carriers that are responsible for such slips — like the ones Cher and Nicole Richie made at a Billboard Awards show. I guess the Supreme Court … Continue reading →

With the NCAA’s March Madness annual collegiate basketball frenzy underway, I see too many parallels to the music media business to not mention them. Imagine if the key components of the music media industry were basketball teams — with real nicknames, coaches and game plans. Let’s see if anyone other than Jim Cramer would bet money on them. The Wireless … Continue reading →

Yesterday the DOJ fired the shot heard ’round the entertainment industry. It paved the way for the long-anticipated merger of Sirius Satellite Radio with XM. Now the only thing standing in the way is FCC approval which will come — maybe in a month or so. But the question is: how will the FCC screw up this merger by mandating … Continue reading →

When The Wall Street Journal reported yesterday that Clear Channel’s privatization deal was near collapse it sent shock waves throughout the radio industry. This ill-conceived way for the Mays family to have one more payday has been teetering on the brink for well over a year. I say teetering because the economy and the radio industry has been declining since … Continue reading →

Every time I write about how better off the radio industry would have been without consolidation, I get a barrage of email telling me a) you

There is a YouTube video making the rounds these days that is worth a look. It’s about CKLW’s 20/20 News concept when The Big 8 was a dominant rocker in Detroit and Windsor, Ontario. In my career I also had the opportunity to do this form of rock ’em sock ’em news which in many ways went beyond what news … Continue reading →

What does it take to pierce the brain of record label executives who keep insisting that subscription models will save the music business? Last week, SonyBMG jumped aboard the Titanic for another try at offering an unlimited iPod-compatible library of its music for between $9-12 a month. The plan is likely to sink in Europe before it arrives by lifeboat … Continue reading →

Yesterday, Live Nation, the largest concert promoter in the world announced a 12-year deal to continue its long relationship with the group U2. Under the terms, Live Nation will lock up rights to produce U2 events, make and sell all its merchandise and handle licensing. U2 also gives up control of its web site and fan club. What’s not included … Continue reading →

Okay, that’s it. 50 Cent, the rapper, is now officially smarter than the four major record label heads put together. How do I know this? While the labels are out dreaming up more hair-brained schemes to force consumers into paying monthly fees for music they can already get for free, 50 Cent is becoming more anti-social. He’s moving on — … Continue reading →

The news business is imploding. CBS Television just recently let a couple of hundred employees go at its local TV news operations. A few weeks earlier CBS pruned its radio news operations nationwide. Newsweek is offering over 100 of its staffers including some pedigreed reporters and correspondents early retirement. The New York Times, Tribune

You have to hand it to the record labels. When they get a good idea, they get it too late. Take the new music service that three of the big four labels (Universal, Warner and SonyBMG) are going to launch within the next few months that they think will revolutionize the digital music business. Dream on. The labels are eight … Continue reading →

Look at all this talent — in one place. Randy Michaels. Bobby Lawrence. Frank Wood. Lee Abrams. Jerry Kersting. Mark Chase. Steve Gable. The last three stolen away from Clear Channel late last week. It’s the best radio team that doesn’t have any radio stations (except WGN). Sam Zell and Randy Michaels are sly foxes. Zell owns newspapers (what a … Continue reading →

The new USC Annenberg Digital Future study is out and it’s worth consulting for a snapshot of where traditional vs. new media stands. It provides some insight as to how the audience is changing. Some in traditional media think that radio can be fixed (just about every consolidator says so) and that even newspapers can be revived (Tribune Company’s pitch). … Continue reading →

It

Who can live without a cell phone these days

Look, this is getting ridiculous. It’s insulting. Citadel CEO Farid Suleman made over $11 million in 2007 — and that’s without his usual bonus. Oh, and his pay is down from almost $18 million the previous year — if that makes you feel any better. I don’t. Didn’t this guy put a lot of people out of work at Citadel … Continue reading →

From time to time I like to share the insights of the next generation as it pertains to traditional media. I do this because there is a great disconnect between what media executives think they want and what these quirky, Gen Y’ers say they want. When I arrived at USC four years ago for my radio sabbatical, I was shocked … Continue reading →

There’s a new chip coming that will allow iPods, mobile phones and other consumer devices to hold as many as 500,000 songs. The biggest iPod currently holds only 40,000 tunes. Still, that’s about 39,700 more than some radio stations play — which is exactly part of the problem with the next generation. IBM is behind this new chip. It will … Continue reading →

Just when the radio industry needs straight talk it gets this. The head of the NAB sounding clueless and blaming radio’s problems on being taken for granted. Really. It happened yesterday at his organization’s annual convention in Las Vegas. David Rehr dispensed some kind of joy juice at a time when an industry is being left behind by technology and … Continue reading →

When cable companies, cellular operators and Google think about going into business together, I listen. Not that I don’t think that they will eventually kill each other, but … Comcast, Time Warner and other companies are thinking about financing a new wireless company that would be a joint venture of Sprint and Clearwire to build a nationwide WiMax wireless network. … Continue reading →

Radio is losing the local and out of home franchises. Within a few years, radio’s last line of defense will likely be penetrated by the new WiFi and WiMax technologies that will allow the Internet to be accessed on the go in automobiles. Detroit Radio Advertising Group President and CEO Bill Burton came up with the fabulous motto “An Automobile … Continue reading →

I read in Inside Radio last week that Citadel

Sounds funny doesn

Sony BMG has agreed to allow Nokia to get access to its entire catalog following the lead of the largest label aggregator Universal Music. The labels’ “Comes With Music” program lets users who buy certain cell phone models download any song from the participating record company catalog to their cell phone or computer for the first 12 months. Universal gets … Continue reading →

Did someone forget to tell Apple CEO Steve Jobs that we

Clear Channel used to be the one and only Evil Empire. I didn’t give them that name. I believe Eric Boehlert of Salon came up with the greatest description of a ruthless company that doesn’t — in my opinion — care for its audience or its personnel. But today there are even more Evil Empires. Citadel is one of them. … Continue reading →

Radio has had an illustrious history of selling merchandise and services. That’s why Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama can’t buy enough of it when they are battling in Democratic primary states. It’s cheap (especially for politicians) but it’s not all that prohibitive for the rest of the advertising world. Still, as powerful as radio is with older listeners, there is … Continue reading →

As many of you know I love ice hockey. More specifically, I love the Philadelphia Flyers for their physical play and great passion for winning. I see a lot of similarities between hockey and life. In fact my son and daughter were raised on Flyers hockey from six months old. The Flyers never give up, I told them. Look at … Continue reading →

There’s new research I thought you’d like to know about that is in direct conflict with what I have been observing in my work with the next generation. I’ll report. You decide. Let’s breakdown a fairly recent RCW Wireless news account: “A recent study from TNS Global Telecoms found that 43% of all mobile users listen to some form of … Continue reading →

Now that the Polk iSonic is on sale in Apple stores nationwide — and soon to be available at Best Buy can we talk? I mean this is as close as an HD radio is going to get to Apple coolness. The Polk iSonic lets listeners buy the songs they hear on HD radio stations — that is, if only … Continue reading →

So much for Radiohead’s publicity-laced experiment to give their music away for free online — or more precisely, let their fans determine if they are going to pay for it. The band recently announced there will be no more pay-if-you-like releases from Radiohead. I read an account of the story online the other day and the reporter wrote “The band … Continue reading →

For those who may not remember it, radio (back when it did great on-air contests) used to feature a game called Beat the Bomb. My first recollection of it was at the legendary top 40 station WFIL in Philadelphia — either under the brilliant programmers Jim Hilliard or the late Jay Cook. A listener is chosen at random and the … Continue reading →

When public radio has to consider making its programs shorter because young listeners won’t listen, we officially have a documented attention span problem. Of course, it doesn’t take any more than a few minutes in the company of the next generation before you realize that the number one problem going forward isn’t too many commercials or too little new music … Continue reading →

Radio groups that have been chopping away at expenses are beginning to see the ratings repercussions of their actions. Morning shows — down and in some cases out. Total ratings down (especially with a weakened morning show). The decision makers decided they had to cut to the bone and their companies are getting ready to pay the price. You can’t … Continue reading →

My longtime friend Dan Mason, the CBS Radio President who is leading the dramatic turnaround of the company made a statement the other day about technology and radio. Dan reportedly told his new media road show in New York that “$1 billion in ad dollars were telling you that the iPod or satellite radio will lead to the death of … Continue reading →

No, the CEO of Citadel is not talking about his company’s stock price — that’s much lower than half. At about $1.50 a share, what’s half — 75 cents? Farid Suleman, the bean counter loosely disguised as a wannabe Jack Welsh, is considering cutting his sales staff. Brilliant. And you wonder why this hapless radio industry can’t get it turned … Continue reading →

Radio One CEO Alfred Liggins doesn

I saw a video of Randy Michaels speaking to a group of newspaper people at the Allentown Morning Call. I

The radio business is really the airline business. Flying back to Philly for the hockey playoffs this week, it occurred to me that the similarities are so striking. Radio and airlines crave consolidation and each has failed miserably as consolidated industries. That doesn

Did you see how Clear Channel began saying publicly that the Lee and Bain bailout may never happen? Then, a few days later brinksmanship brought the banks and Clear Channel together to arrive at a lower, more realistic purchase price at $36 a share along with other considerations. Now their fate is in the hands of the shareholders once again. … Continue reading →

(On the road with the Flyers NHL playoffs in Philadelphia pictured with my daughter, Daria and wife, Cheryl). A few weeks back the RIAA was dealt a blow in a music piracy case. Perhaps you saw it. A judge in the Atlantic vs. Howell case ruled that the sole act of making a music file available in a “shared folder” … Continue reading →

All too often lately the major broadcast groups have been firing able and talented people to save money. Last week CBS pulled off a double firing of a PD and morning personality with surgical precision. WYSP, Philadelphia morning jock Kidd Chris lost his gig because of a March 21st in-studio guest named Lady Gash who sang the song

Look, I know Paul Harvey is old. He is a remarkable throwback to another generation

I received a very inspirational email from a long time friend that has prompted me to put together the essential qualities of the next generation of program directors for terrestrial radio. In doing so I am taking into account that radio today isn

Record labels just can

CBS CEO Les Moonves took out his checkbook last week and agreed to pay $1.8 billion in cash for CNET.com. CBS is a TV and radio company but increasingly you can see how Moonves is not going to be left behind the way Tom Freston was when he disappointed their boss

I don

There isn

At the end of June I am going to teach an interactive session for radio executives at the Conclave in Minneapolis. It will be conducted as I have taught classes for my university students over the past four years

Perhaps you saw why the world

Can you name the best run radio group that has the following characteristics? 1. Never had a layoff. Could have made more money by running a leaner staff or cut back in hard times, but chose never to layoff an employee. 2. They honor their employees constantly through financial rewards, special perks and/or recognition under the theory that without happy … Continue reading →

My mother lived to a ripe old age and there are two things I will always remember from her lips to mine. One, there is no city better than Hoboken, New Jersey, where she and I were born

I was in New York last week on business and had the occasion to dine at my favorite Italian restaurant in the Village

On May 31st 2008, I read an obituary for radio. No, I didn

Leave it to the Federal Communications Commission to come up with a way to control the free Internet. It is proposing giving away broadband Internet for free in exchange for their right to control it. There is an upcoming airwaves auction and if the FCC has its way the winner would be offering free wireless Internet to most consumers

Tribune owner Sam Zell has declared newspapers dead. In fact he reportedly memoed Tribune staffers recently “What has become clear as we have gotten intimately familiar with the business is that the model for newspapers no longer works”. So Zell

The CEOs at Cox, Saga and ICBC Holdings (Inner City) climbed out of their sandboxes briefly last week to shoot rubber bands at Arbitron once again over the issue of People Meter accreditation. At least, that

The NAB Board meeting in Washington this week has FM on cellphones as a big agenda item. Too bad the NAB and most radio CEOs do not understand Apple CEO Steve Jobs’ thinking in continuing to exclude FM radio from the increasingly popular iPhone. Radio people think that if you build it, they will listen. As I frequently point out, … Continue reading →

Sometimes radio people say the darndest things

First, the record labels: 1. Stop the RIAA lawsuits against college kids and youth by declaring victory and giving up on this failed strategy that has backfired by increasing piracy not stopping it. 2. Give up trying to sell monthly subscription plans so listeners can access millions of songs

Version 1.0 was Lowry Mays and Red McCombs building their little Texas radio group pre-consolidation. And 2.0 was Lowry and sons Randall and Mark with Randy Michaels telling them how to build radio clusters. It was when Jacor and AM/FM were acquired to build the 1,10o station platform Clear Channel used to dominate the industry, that is — until it … Continue reading →

C. Montgomery Burns is

I am expanding my private practice to include advising new media and broadcasting on future content models that could reap financial benefits. And here’s why. One of the many concepts that I believe passes the litmus test with the next generation

Thomas Lee Partners out of Boston and Bain Capital, the buyout firms behind the Clear Channel privatization (and many other buyouts) have one way of doing radio. They buy a large established industry leader, cut expenses to the bone, operate it until the market allows them to — sell it for a greater profit than what they paid. That’s the … Continue reading →

The latest Don Imus mess is on Farid. The CEO of Citadel — the guy who brought Don Imus back from the dead after he insulted the Rutgers girls basketball team — should be held accountable for his decision. Not that Farid Suleman is ever held accountable for his many mistakes running Citadel. The $1.42 stock price. The excessive $11 … Continue reading →

I thought it was bad enough when Eagles lead singer Don Henley demanded that radio pay additional performance taxes. But now, the insult of all insults. Nancy Sinatra, the unplatinum daughter of the Chairman of the Board is lobbying Congress along with other ingrates to see if Congress can do something. (Sorry about the imagery here

Have you heard about Twitter? It’s the hottest new social networking tool that allows people to “stay in touch” all day by exchanging frequent answers to the question “How are you doing?” (or as we say in South Philadelphia, “How ya doin'”). Try this thing to get the hang of it. The next generation will. Less than 200 words — … Continue reading →

I love to watch the legendary, brilliant programmer Lee Abrams talk about Bob Dylan’s XM Satellite radio show “Theme Time Radio Hour” which is heard on XM’s Deep Tracks channel every Wednesday at 10 a.m. EDT. Now that’s a great reason to have satellite radio. Dylan’s show was the topic of a Friday Wall Street Journal article which describes it … Continue reading →

I just returned from a fabulous time at Tom Kay’s Conclave in Minneapolis where I had the honor of doing a two-hour teaching seminar for a most remarkable group of learners. These are radio people who got up to arrive on time for an 8 am session on The Next Generation of Radio. I didn’t know what to expect. For … Continue reading →

The shareholder vote is in just a couple of weeks. All Access was reporting over the weekend that Clear Channel President John Hogan will be returning for at least another five years — longer than either Barack Obama or John McCain will serve their first term as president. You can’t just sit dispassionately by when the largest radio group goes … Continue reading →

Chrysler announced recently that starting with many of next year’s models, it will offer a new option that will include WiFi’s capability to bring the Internet to the car as a dealer installed option. Luckily for the radio industry the auto industry is also in the tank. As a recent article in the LA Times put it: Have you ever … Continue reading →

Chrysler announced recently that starting with many of next year’s models, it will offer a new option that will include WiFi’s capability to bring the Internet to the car as a dealer installed option. Luckily for the radio industry the auto industry is also in the tank. As a recent article in the LA Times put it: Have you ever … Continue reading →

Those HD advocates have gone and done it. As Kurt Hanson reported in RAIN recently: The ASCAP has proposed to the Radio Music License Committee that HD2 radio pay a music license royalty. Broadcasters maintain that since they’re generating no revenue from their HD2 channels, a royalty isn’t justified. In making their case, the ASCAP cited research, long ago debunked, … Continue reading →

Those HD advocates have gone and done it. As Kurt Hanson reported in RAIN recently: The ASCAP has proposed to the Radio Music License Committee that HD2 radio pay a music license royalty. Broadcasters maintain that since they’re generating no revenue from their HD2 channels, a royalty isn’t justified. In making their case, the ASCAP cited research, long ago debunked, … Continue reading →

You’ve got to hand it to Clear Channel CEO John Hogan. He could teach President Bush a thing or two about how to handle the quagmire in Iraq. When Hogan loses, he simply declares victory and withdraws. That’s what he did last week when Hogan circulated an ominous email around to Clear Channel employees to tell them that his personal … Continue reading →

You’ve got to hand it to Clear Channel CEO John Hogan. He could teach President Bush a thing or two about how to handle the quagmire in Iraq. When Hogan loses, he simply declares victory and withdraws. That’s what he did last week when Hogan circulated an ominous email around to Clear Channel employees to tell them that his personal … Continue reading →

Back in the Reagan years the move began to repeal what was thought to be radio’s burdensome Fairness Doctrine. No need for a provision requiring equal time for other sides of the issues — so the thinking went. The marketplace would take care of itself. There were enough voices. What followed was some of radio’s best talk franchises — The … Continue reading →

Back in the Reagan years the move began to repeal what was thought to be radio’s burdensome Fairness Doctrine. No need for a provision requiring equal time for other sides of the issues — so the thinking went. The marketplace would take care of itself. There were enough voices. What followed was some of radio’s best talk franchises — The … Continue reading →

I’m kidding — just kidding. A little. Let’s say some of you are right and I’m wrong — Tribune CEO Randy Michaels is raiding Clear Channel for radio talent to reinvent — newspapers. That’s what some people believe. Now Randy has hired former KIIS-FM, Los Angeles GM and later Clear Channel market and regional exec Roy Laughlin as a Special … Continue reading →

I’m kidding — just kidding. A little. Let’s say some of you are right and I’m wrong — Tribune CEO Randy Michaels is raiding Clear Channel for radio talent to reinvent — newspapers. That’s what some people believe. Now Randy has hired former KIIS-FM, Los Angeles GM and later Clear Channel market and regional exec Roy Laughlin as a Special … Continue reading →

Shane Media’s Lee Logan is a smart fellow. After I wrote about the ingrates at the record labels who are trying to get radio’s performance royalty exemption revoked, he contacted me with a genius idea. Pay it. That’s right, pay the labels their extra tax — the rights fee. Oh, but it gets much better that. Here’s Lee’s premise: Let

Shane Media’s Lee Logan is a smart fellow. After I wrote about the ingrates at the record labels who are trying to get radio’s performance royalty exemption revoked, he contacted me with a genius idea. Pay it. That’s right, pay the labels their extra tax — the rights fee. Oh, but it gets much better that. Here’s Lee’s premise: Let

(Pictured left, front, then clockwise next to John Sebastian, Bill Gardner and Todd Wallace) At our monthly lunch out here in Scottsdale, John Sebastian, Bill Gardner, Todd Wallace and I kicked around a lot of topics as is our custom. But the one that I’d like to share with you today is what the radio industry could have been if … Continue reading →

(Pictured left, front, then clockwise next to John Sebastian, Bill Gardner and Todd Wallace) At our monthly lunch out here in Scottsdale, John Sebastian, Bill Gardner, Todd Wallace and I kicked around a lot of topics as is our custom. But the one that I’d like to share with you today is what the radio industry could have been if … Continue reading →

There is a military term for a situation caused by too many inept officers — clustering — referring to the insignia worn by majors and LT. Colonels, oak leaf clusters. In Clint Eastwood’s 1983 movie about the invasion of Grenada (Heartbreak Ridge), Eastwood, who played Gunnery Sergeant Highway had this dialogue with a colonel during a readiness exercise. Col. Meyers: … Continue reading →

There is a military term for a situation caused by too many inept officers — clustering — referring to the insignia worn by majors and LT. Colonels, oak leaf clusters. In Clint Eastwood’s 1983 movie about the invasion of Grenada (Heartbreak Ridge), Eastwood, who played Gunnery Sergeant Highway had this dialogue with a colonel during a readiness exercise. Col. Meyers: … Continue reading →

Young people tell me they love two things that we should keep an eye on: 1. Cars that have large hard drives built into their on-board entertainment center — allowing them to download music from other sources for personalized listening. 2. Portable flash drives that hold whatever they want — use your imagination. In fact, the students from one of … Continue reading →

Young people tell me they love two things that we should keep an eye on: 1. Cars that have large hard drives built into their on-board entertainment center — allowing them to download music from other sources for personalized listening. 2. Portable flash drives that hold whatever they want — use your imagination. In fact, the students from one of … Continue reading →

Yesterday I wrote about the coming of flash drives and factory installed hard drives in automobiles as yet another threat to the radio and record industries. I asked at the end of my piece (scroll down to read it, if you like) — game over? To which I answered – game changer. So, let’s build upon this latest “opportunity” disguised … Continue reading →

Yesterday I wrote about the coming of flash drives and factory installed hard drives in automobiles as yet another threat to the radio and record industries. I asked at the end of my piece (scroll down to read it, if you like) — game over? To which I answered – game changer. So, let’s build upon this latest “opportunity” disguised … Continue reading →

Recently I spoke to the broadcasters who attended my teaching seminar at the Conclave in Minneapolis that young listeners want to hear new music — and that they wished that djs would play their own music. This corporate record list stuff — the fabric that runs through all of us — is overrated. We know what’s best, right? The playlist … Continue reading →

Recently I spoke to the broadcasters who attended my teaching seminar at the Conclave in Minneapolis that young listeners want to hear new music — and that they wished that djs would play their own music. This corporate record list stuff — the fabric that runs through all of us — is overrated. We know what’s best, right? The playlist … Continue reading →

I’ve got some ideas for broadcasters, new media companies and record labels with regard to the growth industries of Internet and mobile content. 1. Don’t confuse a terrestrial radio station’s Internet stream with Internet radio. Young listeners aren’t confused. There is certainly nothing wrong with a branded commercial radio station distributing their signal via Internet radio. It’s helpful for at-work … Continue reading →

I’ve got some ideas for broadcasters, new media companies and record labels with regard to the growth industries of Internet and mobile content. 1. Don’t confuse a terrestrial radio station’s Internet stream with Internet radio. Young listeners aren’t confused. There is certainly nothing wrong with a branded commercial radio station distributing their signal via Internet radio. It’s helpful for at-work … Continue reading →

The radio industry gets excited at even the mere thought that radio will be included in the Internet and mobile future. Remember the high-fiving over HD radios that dock an iPod and allow music heard on HD sub-channels to be purchased by listeners on iTunes? It was going to be the next big thing. It wasn’t. Now that Apple CEO … Continue reading →

The radio industry gets excited at even the mere thought that radio will be included in the Internet and mobile future. Remember the high-fiving over HD radios that dock an iPod and allow music heard on HD sub-channels to be purchased by listeners on iTunes? It was going to be the next big thing. It wasn’t. Now that Apple CEO … Continue reading →

I was just blown away when I saw the front page of Inside Radio Friday in which they described the results of their special survey on voice tracking. Now, you know I love Inside Radio. But the results are from another planet. I know they are telling it like it is so I have to assume that the participants in … Continue reading →

I was just blown away when I saw the front page of Inside Radio Friday in which they described the results of their special survey on voice tracking. Now, you know I love Inside Radio. But the results are from another planet. I know they are telling it like it is so I have to assume that the participants in … Continue reading →

< br />Last week Jupiter Research came out with some new research that pandered to the radio industry — reassuring it that radio is the most powerful means of music discovery. They assert that “Even among the 8% classified as trend setters because of their influence over other music users, radio, at 59%, is second only to recommendations from friends, … Continue reading →

< br />Last week Jupiter Research came out with some new research that pandered to the radio industry — reassuring it that radio is the most powerful means of music discovery. They assert that “Even among the 8% classified as trend setters because of their influence over other music users, radio, at 59%, is second only to recommendations from friends, … Continue reading →

I love this. Greater Media’s WBT in Charlotte is standing up to the record industry. Ever cost-conscious these days, WBT has had it with spending $30,000 a year on royalty fees for one show — “Boomer” Von Cannon’s “Time Machine” oldies show. Don’t get me wrong, I’m sorry to see the show go. Maybe, for now, the show needs to … Continue reading →

I love this. Greater Media’s WBT in Charlotte is standing up to the record industry. Ever cost-conscious these days, WBT has had it with spending $30,000 a year on royalty fees for one show — “Boomer” Von Cannon’s “Time Machine” oldies show. Don’t get me wrong, I’m sorry to see the show go. Maybe, for now, the show needs to … Continue reading →

Twenty-one Los Angeles stations have a cume of over one million according to the Arbitron Portable People Meter. By comparison the diary method reports ten. Twenty one — or ten? Which would you choose? Don’t ask Bob Neil or his band of die-hard diary proponents. They want the People Meter — their way — perfect. And on their timetable – … Continue reading →

Twenty-one Los Angeles stations have a cume of over one million according to the Arbitron Portable People Meter. By comparison the diary method reports ten. Twenty one — or ten? Which would you choose? Don’t ask Bob Neil or his band of die-hard diary proponents. They want the People Meter — their way — perfect. And on their timetable – … Continue reading →

While you may be out there worrying about the future of the radio industry without a new generation coming up through the ranks, Consolidation’s Founding Fathers have been working diligently on how to work their “magic” on network syndication. Farid Suleman, Citadel’s $11 million man, has found a way to re-sign a talk show host he needs on several of … Continue reading →

While you may be out there worrying about the future of the radio industry without a new generation coming up through the ranks, Consolidation’s Founding Fathers have been working diligently on how to work their “magic” on network syndication. Farid Suleman, Citadel’s $11 million man, has found a way to re-sign a talk show host he needs on several of … Continue reading →

Eighteen months after the Sirius/XM merger was announed, the FCC finally approved it. The entire process was a joke — and a not very funny one at that. In a world where the Justice Department allows almost any two companies to merge, for some reason this merger was held to another standard. It was pure hypocrisy at best. It’s as … Continue reading →

Eighteen months after the Sirius/XM merger was announed, the FCC finally approved it. The entire process was a joke — and a not very funny one at that. In a world where the Justice Department allows almost any two companies to merge, for some reason this merger was held to another standard. It was pure hypocrisy at best. It’s as … Continue reading →

So Universal signed the Rolling Stones. Just great. It’s the latest installment in a sleepy record industry that has no answers and thinks with a calculator. After all, the Stones are a great rock and roll band but they are not exactly the future. The deal was made for the catalogue. When Trent Reznor has to experiment with ways to … Continue reading →

So Universal signed the Rolling Stones. Just great. It’s the latest installment in a sleepy record industry that has no answers and thinks with a calculator. After all, the Stones are a great rock and roll band but they are not exactly the future. The deal was made for the catalogue. When Trent Reznor has to experiment with ways to … Continue reading →

Google has released its new page view rankings and Inside Music Media has increased from a 4 to a 5. For those unfamiliar with this standard, a 7 would be a large aggregator of viewers such as CNET. I am blown away as it has all been done virally. This is beyond our expectations and is possible only because so … Continue reading →

Clear Channel went private yesterday at long last. Thomas H. Lee Partners and Bain Capital Partners are in charge now. They are investment buyout companies and their business is buying companies to sell them for greater profit. Clear Channel — the Mays version — ended as a colossal failure when shareholders lost confidence and eventually the founders saw privatization as … Continue reading →

Google has released its new page view rankings and Inside Music Media has increased from a 4 to a 5. For those unfamiliar with this standard, a 7 would be a large aggregator of viewers such as CNET. I am blown away as it has all been done virally. This is beyond our expectations and is possible only because so … Continue reading →

Clear Channel went private yesterday at long last. Thomas H. Lee Partners and Bain Capital Partners are in charge now. They are investment buyout companies and their business is buying companies to sell them for greater profit. Clear Channel — the Mays version — ended as a colossal failure when shareholders lost confidence and eventually the founders saw privatization as … Continue reading →

CBS is selling 50 of its mid-market sized radio stations. It’s never a good thing for a troubled industry when companies want to unload assets — especially your number two operator. CBS is thinking that it can make still money in the larger markets and there is some evidence to back up that rationale. Meanwhile, CBS has not announced the … Continue reading →

CBS is selling 50 of its mid-market sized radio stations. It’s never a good thing for a troubled industry when companies want to unload assets — especially your number two operator. CBS is thinking that it can make still money in the larger markets and there is some evidence to back up that rationale. Meanwhile, CBS has not announced the … Continue reading →

ESPN is a phenomenal operation in many ways. The company that made a franchise out of “Sports Center” — not to mention many innovations in sports broadcasting — is about to do it again in podcasting. Those of you who read me every day know that I believe podcasting will replace radio for the next generation. It cooperates with their … Continue reading →

ESPN is a phenomenal operation in many ways. The company that made a franchise out of “Sports Center” — not to mention many innovations in sports broadcasting — is about to do it again in podcasting. Those of you who read me every day know that I believe podcasting will replace radio for the next generation. It cooperates with their … Continue reading →

I want you to know that the word discovery and the concept that it embodies is emerging as a key factor in the media needs of the next generation. Again and again I’m hearing it and discussing what it means with members of the next generation. It’s worth your attention. Generation Y — the social generation — relies on each … Continue reading →

I want you to know that the word discovery and the concept that it embodies is emerging as a key factor in the media needs of the next generation. Again and again I’m hearing it and discussing what it means with members of the next generation. It’s worth your attention. Generation Y — the social generation — relies on each … Continue reading →

Katz Radio in conjunction with numerous radio groups is launching an online platform soon that will allow terrestrial stations to be sold along with Internet streams. Only a small amount of their programming is Internet only content. National, regional and geographic targets will be made simple for advertisers when it goes into operation shortly. The service will also allow for … Continue reading →

Katz Radio in conjunction with numerous radio groups is launching an online platform soon that will allow terrestrial stations to be sold along with Internet streams. Only a small amount of their programming is Internet only content. National, regional and geographic targets will be made simple for advertisers when it goes into operation shortly. The service will also allow for … Continue reading →

This is one of the toughest pieces I will ever write. It