From PRNewswire: "In a move that is expected to create
the undisputed leader in the space of Internet
enabled advertising media exchanges, the industry's top two companies
are joining forces: Mediapassage, the leading provider of e-commerce
solutions for ad media transactions; and OneMediaPlace, the leading
single source destination for implementing buys for all media
types, have announced a merger of their two companies.
"The announcement was made jointly by Gilbert Scherer
(right), Chairman and CEO of Mediapassage and Jerry Machovina
(left),
President and CEO of OneMediaPlace...
"This is the second recent merger for Mediapassage,
which last September united with broadcastspots.com to become
the first end-to-end provider for both print and broadcast media
(see RAIN's coverage here).
The new entity is forecasting over $1.2 billion in U.S. media
transactions in the coming year...
"It is anticipated that the transaction will close
at the end of February. At that time the Company will be renamed
OneMediaPassage, signifying
the combining of business models. Gilbert Scherer will continue
to serve as Chairman, with he and Jerry Machovina serving as co-CEO's.
Also continuing in their current positions will be Jeffrey Trumper,
Vice-Chairman and Rich Warren, President."
Read the press release here.
From
VentureWire: "Internet broadcaster
eYada.com
said it has canceled 15 of its streaming radio programs, and in
the process laid off 30 employees.
"The company said it will now focus on 13 remaining
programs, which draw about 85% of its total audience. The company
said it plans to add new programs in the coming months."
According to Arbitron's latest Webcast Ratings (October 2000,
here),
eYada ranked 28th out of more
than 2,200 measured channels, with an ATH (Aggregate Tuning Hours)
of 112,000 -- representing a steady increase since the February
2000 study (52,800). This means that at any given moment, about
150 people were tuned in (or, for a more generous 16-hour broadcast
day, roughly 200 people).
Certainly, 15 percent of that number (the audience being
drawn by the cancelled shows) isn't very good. But if the 13 remaining
shows bring in 85 percent, that's still only 128 (or 170) listeners.
The site has scaled down their "channel" selection
from five (which included a "Specials" channel) to three
("Gossip & Entertainment," "Sports & Fitness,"
and "Sex & Comedy"). RAIN featured eYada.com as a
Site of the Week recently (
here).
The MeasureCast "Top 25" Ranking is out for the
week of January 8, and the company claims that online listening
of the top stations is
up 46 percent.
Click
here,
or anytime under the "Metrics" heading on the left-hand
menu of
RAIN.
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Have
an opinion on this article? Share it! Simply click
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form. |
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"Here
is what is needed to protect you and your companies..."
|
This is a call to arms. Netradio.com, Discjockey.com,
Ron Diamond.com and all the other large sites that STREAM broadcasts.
Any person whose dream to be in radio was wrecked by deregulation.
Any person who has a website where you want to BROADCAST music,
here is what is needed to protect you and your companies.
An organization would need to be formed to push back all
the unconstitutional bull**** that's being attached to Internet
Broadcasters.
STREAMERS do not offer DOWNLOADS they offer BROADCASTS. If
someone is going to RECORD broadcasts or find a way to store it
on their hard drives to burn a CD then Ms. Rosen, you'll have to
go after them. Internet Broadcasters already pay ASCAP, BMI and
SESAC.
If you're a webcaster and would like to become part of (such)
a group... e-mail
naaib@hotmail.com.
This refers to the webcasting basics article in
RAIN December 15 here.
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"The
hardest part of streaming...(is) drawing an audience..."
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The one thing you left off on your streaming basics
report, and the most important information every streamer needs
to know.
The hardest part of streaming, is not the technology.. Its
drawing an audience.
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--
Mark Cuban
Dallas Mavericks |
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"A
compelling case for a campaign to promote the medium..."
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A look at MeasureCast's recent ratings makes a compelling
case for a campaign to promote the medium. The fact that conventional
broadcast stations provide the primary gateway for awareness of
Internet radio means that most potential users see it as a more
difficult way to listen to the same Mc-Format stuff that fills the
FM and AM dial in Anytown USA.
For those looking for more diverse content, the fact that
such a high percentage of "Internet radio" is really just alternate
transmission of regular radio makes a bad first impression.
Internet only broadcasters offering content and formats that
are unavailable to conventional broadcast listeners need to combine
forces and use their uniqueness to promote the medium. An 'Independent
Internet Radio Broadcasters Association'.
This regard's
RAIN's Ralph Sledge's piece January 8 here.
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"Neither
are solving the broadcasters' problems..."
|
Enjoyed the
front page
article on Streaming wars. I did tests for European Broadcasting
Union. You cannot have industry associations with clout without
the two major players. Neither are solving the broadcasters problem
that they are making me victim of my own success...modern day drug
peddlers. The days of free samples were a long time ago.
| |
--
Jonathan Marks
Radio Netherlands |
B2B audio solutions provider
Octiv
has announced today that they will partner with
Coollink
Broadcast Network
(CLBN), which provides Internet broadcast solutions and ad-insertion
technology. Coollink will use the OctiMax product to improve audio
quality.
Octive claims that the OctiMax solution enables
better-sounding audio streams at lower bit rates, which thereby
also reduces bandwidth costs. The technology provides "loudness
normalization" across ad streams that vary widely in regards
to volume levels.
|
|
Simply
click the headline at left to bring up a convenient pop-up
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to use your own e-mail software. |
Reprinted
from yesterday's issue...
BY
PAUL MALONEY
Faithful RAIN readers are probably well aware of the existence
of a handful of Internet radio "appliances;" devices created
to make finding and listening to streaming audio as simple, intuitive,
and convenient as traditional radio.
Throughout the past year, we've described a few of these
products, most prominently Akoo's
Kima
(
RAIN story
here),
iM Networks' (formerly Sonicbox)
IM Remote
Tuner (
here),
and 3Com's
Kerbango (
here).
There do exist other, somewhat lower-profile products that
perform similar functions, and we thought
RAIN readers would
be interested to know about them.
Over a year ago, Mike Calvo and his Miami-based company Inhouse
Radio Networks introduced the
Radio Webcaster.
It's similar to the IM Remote Tuner in that users can remotely tune
to a station chosen from preselected group of streams, organized
by genre. And, like other products, the signal from the user's computer
soundcard can be "broadcast" to radio tuners anywhere
in the house.
But Calvo's big push these days is his latest product: the
Freedom Box. It's
a system designed to allow visually-impaired
users full access to the Internet -- including streaming audio.
Using voice synthesis- and recognition-technologies,
the
system turns links on web pages into voice commands. The user hears
his or her choices, and then literally "tells" the browser
where to go. There's an on-site demo that shows how easy it is to
tune to an Internet radio station using only your voice.
The device is available as a stand-alone unit (basically,
a PC with the appliance built in) or as an add-on module -- both
of which require Internet access and a subscription to the service.
If
the Radio Webcaster reminds you of the IM tuner, the next two
products should be reminiscent of the Kima. The first is from Jensen
Wireless, called the
Matrix
Internet Audio Transmitter. We haven't been able to find
out too much about the Matrix, other than it works along a model
we've seen before: one box connects to your PC's soundcard and transmits
a 900 MHz signal throughout a 150 foot range. The second box picks
up the signal and connects to your stereo. This system, however,
requires an input on your stereo (so it probably won't work on,
say, a clock radio). It retails for about $100.
Among the new devices demonstrated at the recent CES in
Las Vegas is
AudioRamp's
new iRAD-T product line:
"tethered" (that is, not wireless) appliances that play
both Internet radio and downloadable audio (MP3, WMA formats) stored
on the PC, which can deliver the signal to a stereo anywhere in
the home or office via an ethernet or "Home PNA" connection.
(
RAIN's report on other AudioRamp products is
here.)
Available as an add-on component or stand-alone "shelf
model," the iRAD adds the functions of a music-management system.
The new system uses the company's "Intelligent Audio"
technology: it (according to the site) "dynamically monitors
your listening behavior, reconciles
those actions against your preferences and then dynamically builds
relationships against a proprietary database of audio and music
content...including radio, streaming, music, news, events, merchandise,
and promotions." In other words, it figures out what you like,
and gets you more -- combining the functions of listening/tuning
appliance and a recommendation service (see
RAIN's story
on music recommendation
here).
Another interesting approach is the still unavailable Linux-based
Penguin Radio.
Linux is the open-source operating system preferred by many over
Windows and Macintosh for its reliability and stability. ("Open-source,"
by the way, means that the system's code is not kept a trade secret,
but rather made available in the interest of
encouraging others to participate in its innovation and advancement.
The penguin is the symbol of Linux.) See
RAIN's report on
the announcement of this product
here.
The company's also put together a small guide to streaming
stations, and features artist profiles and MP3s.
There's not a lot of information available about the product
yet, but it appears to be a design along the lines of Kerbango,
in
that it's a stand-alone device (no PC needed). The company claims
users can not only tune in streaming audio, but download MP3s as
well. There's no mention of what streaming formats are supported,
but if it's any indication, their radio guide features Windows Media,
Real, and streaming MP3 stations.
The Penguin Radio will have both a modem and an ethernet connection,
so both dial-up and broadband users can use it. According to the
site, the makers are aiming for a Summer or Fall 2001 release. In
fact, it was recently announced that Penguin Radio has commissioned
JB Design, a British company, to develop the appliance for mass
production. The price, at this point, looks like it'll be about
$200 to $250.
As mentioned, these products are decidedly low-profile, in
an industry which itself is below radar for many consumers. Perhaps
it'll be the popularity, ease of use, or effective marketing of
an appliance (as opposed to a content supplier) that will increase
the visibility of the new medium.
| xxx |
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Try
it out! Explore the wide world of
Internet audio by clicking the screenshot above.
