BY KURT HANSON
Continuing a tradition that began at the NAB in Las Vegas in April and grew at the Radio Ink Internet Conference in Boston in May, you're invited to join fellow RAIN readers this evening at 5PM for cocktails and appetizers in a private patio at a nice bar and grill directly across the street from R&R Convention 2000 in Los Angeles. I hope you can join us.

Because I haven't figured out exactly how to monetize RAIN yet, it's going to be a cash bar -- but RAIN will buy lots and lots of appetizers (fresh Blue Point oysters, escargots with Roquefort, pesto pizzas, shrimp cocktails, and more). You'll be able to socialize with an enjoyable crowd, you'll hopefully have a nice time, and then we'll all head back together for R&R's official opening cocktail party at 7PM.

As shown in the photo at left -- and on the map above -- simply leave the hotel lobby, cross the street, walk under the "M:I-2" poster, and keep going for about twenty more yards. (Do not stop to watch "M-I:2," which is a rotten, rotten movie.) You'll walk right into Harper's Bar & Grill; you won't be able to miss it.

If you're going to be in L.A. today, I hope you can join us. Feel free to bring your friends. We'll have a good time. See you there!

"Just a belated message to say I'm impressed with your efforts with RAIN. There's so much ground to cover in Radio and its exploding relationship with the Internet, it's nice to see someone trying to get their arms around it in such a focused way. Thanks for the effort."                     -- Dennis Gwiazdon, SalesInsights.com

From Fox MarketWIre: "A recent conference on Internet radio sponsored by trade magazine Radio Ink offered a session entitled, 'Is radio dead?'

"In an entertainment age when an increasing amount of digital audio is posted on the Net, many in the traditional radio business are concerned. The current choppy quality of sound in cyberspace may have kept some of those fears in check. But a recent study by Arbitron, a radio rating service, showed that despite the poor audio quality, the number of Internet radio listeners is rapidly growing.

"The Arbitron study found that 43 percent of Internet users had listened to 'streaming' Internet radio or video at some point — a 30 percent increase over last year. However, the study also found that only 10 percent have listened to music on the Net in the last month. Critics cite such data as evidence that a majority of the Net radio audience is casual. Even regular listeners tune in for only one hour a week, compared to 10 hours a week for traditional radio, according to Forrester Research, a Massachusetts-based technology research firm." (Note: That figure is wrong. The average listener to traditional radio actually listens about 21 hours a week. -- KH)

"So it may be a long time before the amount of Internet listeners rivals the number that tunes into traditional — or as it is now called, "terrestrial" — radio...

"But just as 'bricks and mortar' stores with Web sites are proving victorious over Net-only e-commerce sites, traditional radio stations will have an edge in the Internet radio war, analysts say. For example, a traditional radio station can bring its regular listeners and established brand to the Net — an international arena that can only raise the station’s profile and increase its audience. The Net also allows radio companies to more finely target their audiences..."

Read the full piece from Fox MarketWire here.

Yesterday's issue generated a lot of reader response. (To visit previous days' issues, simply use the blue arrow to the left of the issue date at the top of the page.)

"Dr. Dre knew NOTHING..."                       -- Allen Johnston

Kurt: I was a featured guest on "CNN TalkBack" Live with Chuck D & Howard King (attorney for Metallica & Dr. Dre), concerning the Napster law suit. During that hour a few interesting things came to light.

1. Dr. Dre knew NOTHING about Napster nor the law suit. Suggesting that this was something completely initiated by the attorney, for the attorney.

2. The record industry CD sales have increased within the past year. And the decline in sales around college campuses happened before there was a Napster. There is even evidence that suggests an increase in CD sales since the inception of Napster based on Internet sales at colleges.

Howard King's position seems to be one of creating a larger client base for himself and his firm.

                                    -- Allen L. Johnston, The Music Specialist

"Sometimes I wonder who is consulting these people..."

kurt . . . i check your site every morning and must say its great. im a student in college and am planning on working in web radio land somewhere.. . just thought it would be refreshing to hear a "kid's" point of view for a change. HA

i have hit every site on your web radio list plus more then those, i agree with gulliver. sometimes i wonder who is consulting these people? for example when i surf through www.com i cant get over how ugly it is. give me ten minutes with their staff and i can redesign the whole site, the two major things for me (being a daily web listener) is appearence and user friendly -- www.com has failed

i probally sound like a snot nose 20 something but maybe these old suits need to reconsider their staff and scout kids like me. ;P

anyway sorry for the rant, i really love your site it helps me out alot!

                                    -- mike, chicago, il

"The answer is simple...Choice!"

[Yesterday, "Gulliver" asked, "Why would anyone listen to Internet radio when it doesn't work more than 90% of the time?"]

The answer is simple really -- one word: Choice!

I think it's funny that you would ask that when you begin by describing yourself as a person who looks for choices. Terrestrial radio has always inhibited the number of choices available to the consumer due to spectrum limitations and fcc regulations, however, on the Internet that is no longer the case, and we are once again given the freedom to pick and choose from a plethora of sources what sounds we want to hear.

                                    -- Milan Cole, ekani.com

"My travels have matched Gulliver's..."

My travels have matched Gulliver's. I have stared at some sites and thought, "Can I be so stupid that I can't figure out how to turn this thing on?" I can navigate my boat, program a GPS, pass my pilot's test, passed college chemistry, I even passed the old FCC license test. But, I cannot figure out some of these sites! Even my web-savvy girlfriend sits and stares with a dumb look on her beautiful face.

                               -- Bob Christy, Straightline Communications, Boston

"I thought the same thing when I saw those statistics..."

"I thought the same thing when I saw those statistics..."

I just read the response from one of your readers talking about the trials of listening online.

We here are CableMusic.com may not be a branded website but we do have reliable and high quality streams. With no advertising to date, we continue to grow our listener base. The real time station flyover information has always been a big hit and unique to internet radio. See what is playing and what is next.

Our growth is due to the simplicity of the site and the quality of the streams. "If you stumble into an unknown restaurant and you like the food and serviec, you will more than likely go back, and tell your friends about it. That's us!" Yes, I am groveling for some exposure, but we do have a great site for listening to good music all day. Our strength may not be a big name but it is QUALITY.

Contribute your thoughts using your own e-mail software here or via the form below.

June 14-17	R&R Convention 2000, Los Angeles
June 14-17	PROMAX & BDA, New Orleans
July 13-16	Upper Midwest Conclave, Minneapolis
August 3-5	Morning Show Bootcamp, New Orleans
September 20-23	NAB Radio Show, San Francisco
October 5-7	Billboard/Airplay Monitor Seminar, New York
November 5-7	NAB European Radio Conference, Berlin
Nov. 28-Dec. 1	Radio Ink Internet Conference, Santa Clara, CA

xxx

Try it out! Explore the wide world of Internet audio by clicking the screenshot above.

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