The Digital Future of Radio Radio 2016 : broadcasters, economies and content in a digital age. Helen Shaw, Amsterdam November

Radio 2016 Who will be listening? To what? How? Where? And will it still be ‘radio’?

It is the message, after all. What’s pushing innovation is the desire to communicate – to realise the potential for interaction so that media allows a two way flow Digital cross media hybrids, McLuhan’s hybrid energy: ‘the hybrid or the meeting of two media is a moment of truth …from which new form is born’.

How has digital changed radio? Shifting time-space dimension ‘my media’ – on-demand/personal Allows enhanced local and global radio networks Lowers barrier of entry and production Alters commercial/advertising base

Radio in a ‘my media’ age Mobility and personal – what I want, when I want it, where I am Interaction with live programming Creating your own media (internet+rss+mp3 players=podcasting) Integration with visual –multimedia radio

What do people want? To communicate – express self To control content/media flows Digital media growth marked by e- communications Bottom up drive: /texting/blogging/podcasting Radio’s future depends on ability to meet that need

Podcasting economies…. Adam Curry: ‘its totally going to kill the business model of radio’ – self- proclaimed Pied Piper of podcasting

Podcasting economies… Dave Winer: Harvard Law – developer of RSS – open source software behind podcasting ‘ podcasting is going to be medium of niches – with audiences in single digits’. Yet NPR – had 4 million downloads and BBC Beethoven experiment had over a million But who pay for bandwidth?

Podcasting: tipping point Feb 2004 – The Guardian in UK calls audio-blogging ‘podcasting’ BBC launches podcasting pilot May- Dec 05 October 31 – NPR in US announces 4 mil downloads of its podcasting pilot Nov 05 – Goggle ‘podcasts’ 9 million hits - but hype or phenomenon?

Back to the Wireless Future: Radio’s original business model not built on spot adverts but sponsored programmes New business model built on same premise as content – give people what they want, when and where they want it – less ambush more consent

Consenting to adverts? Collapse theory based on assumption of advert avoidance New model built on giving people reasons to let you ‘sell’ to them – because internet allows you to target your audience – and know them Free quality content associated with permission to sell – through offers

Micro payments Think ring tones – multi-billion market People are prepared in mobile, telephony to provide micro payments for content they value Radio needs added value to achieve ‘micro payments’

Subscription radio It’s a working business model in US Gives people what they want/when+where Paying for content and for it to be advert free or near advert free We pay for Digital TV and still accept adverts and sponsorship

Digital Radio in UK Rajar Sept % - listen digital 5.5% DAB sets 2.9% TV 1.8% Internet DAB radios sets to hit 3 mil by Xmas

Limits of the digital future The fragile business case Move from spot advertisement to sponsorship to push button multimedia sales Loss of mass audiences – need to personalise offering to niches Bandwidth!

Flow of content….. Broadcasters/Content/radi o Digital platform/sat/DAB/Internet audience

Broadcasters/content creators ‘pyjama media’ Users as content creators Audience/users