From PR Newswire: The entire ABC Radio Group of stations has become the newest affiliate to sign with broadcastspots.com -- the real-time internet media buying and selling service that allows stations to post inventory where media buyers can purchase it 24/7.

Adding the ABC stations to its existing affiliate list, broadcastspots.com now has representation in all of the country's top 10 markets, 19 of the top 20 markets, and a majority of the top 50 markets including six stations in New York, four in L.A., six in Chicago, and six in San Francisco.

According to the Radio Ink website, AMFM's Kenny O'Keefe has been added to the group head panel at the upcoming Radio Ink Internet Conference, to be held May 15-18, 2000 at the Copley Theatre in Boston.

The panel is to be moderated by Jenny Sue Rhoades of Clear Channel will also include David Kennedy of Susquehanna, Lew Dickey of Cumulus, and Ivan Breaker of New Northwest.

RAIN has returned to America from a week in Tokyo, where we were reporting to you on the latest in home electronics, wireless Internet (via cell phone), station website ideas, and more.

It was a little disappointing to learn that basically nothing is happening in Japan yet in terms of audio streaming of radio stations (due to music licensing rights issues), but we still learned lots of interesting things -- and we've got some follow-up reports coming later this week, too.

(For example, PlayStation2 sales fell short of Sony's goal of 1 million units the first weekend by 20,000 units; read a CNET News article on the subject here.)

If you missed any of RAIN's coverage, you can access it via the links below. (Each day's issue included two or three stories from Japan; the issue's lead headine is described below.)

I looked all over Akihabara (Tokyo's famous home electronics shopping district) last week, and I didn't see a more stylish new home electronics item than the Sony Music Clip audio player (see photo).

And now you can win one in the first-ever RAIN Viral Marketing Contest!

To be eligible to win it, all you have to do is tell a few of your friends and/or co-workers about RAIN via e-mail, with a "cc:" to "RAINreply@kurthanson.com." (Need help composing the e-mail? Click here for some suggested language.) (If you've already done this, just send me an e-mail reminding me and I'll throw your name in the hat.)

RAIN is already up to about 800 "subscribers" (i.e., registered readers; see form above) and we've been hearing from about 10 new readers per day. So here's the plan: If RAIN gets 100 new subscribers in the week that ends today, we'll give away the Sony Music Clip to one lucky winner (chosen randomly from those who sent out the e-mail recommendations). If not, we'll roll over all the entries, add something more to the prize package, and try again next week.

So think of a few people you know who might like to read RAIN -- co-workers, college friends, subordinates, friendly competitors, clients, vendors -- and do them a favor and tell them about this daily, Web-based newsletter about the key issues affecting radio and the Internet. And win!

More coming soon! Contribute your suggestions here.