Dru Blood - I believe in the inherent goodness of all beings: Liveblogging The Future of Radio

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Liveblogging The Future of Radio

March 14, 2006

I'm sitting with George, because he's cooler than you! This is not going to be a point by point recap, but just random thoughts.

Hirschman puts the history of the record industry into context. Radio used to be the single most important economic element of recording industry. The people at the top of the record companies are clueless about the digital world. The record industry is not in the same business as the creators.

Westergren doesn't subscribe to the "music industry is evil" mindset. Has had good experiences with record industry. Payola is mentioned.

Nordling had to shut down SOMA due to the RIAA. Can't play requests within 20 minutes. I love her hair!

Mars talks about development of content.

Westergren says that people don't want access to a gazillion songs that they can pick and choose at will. I think he's wrong. He thinks the solution are services that help you browse. I think he's wrong. I think we need BOTH. We need to have access to everything, along with having the ability to browse. These things aren't mutually exclusive, particularly in the digital world.

Hirschman says that music...perfume...garments are based on a sense of trust and a willingness to discover. She thinks we want to trust that we're going to turn on the radio and here a quality of music that we are familiar with...and that we are going to discover something new. The thing is that I rely on my friends for that discovery - they are my radio, and sharing files and information about music is how I make discoveries. Maybe this is why I haven't really joined the podcast revolution.

They totally just mentioned "Bob Edwards" I will have to explain why that is so funny. Later. OK. Now. Drinks were consumed. The Bob Edwards dream was mentioned. And then Tracy related his little "thing" for Nina Totenberg. We were totally having more fun than anyone else in the entire building. Possibly the most fun of anyone on 6th street.

OK...back to the panel.

Westergren is saying something about something. I don't know. He says it's hard to find new music. There has to be ways for hundreds of thousands of stations so we can start promoting the "middle class" of musicians. He's saying it's either feast or famine

Hirschman says that the independents do cater to this "middle class" by doing direct sales. She says the hardest part is getting the baby bands access to the media. She feels that not only the radio model, but the record label model needs to change. It's several different landscapes shifting simultaneously.

Smokler - from the listener's point of view - do we hit a natural limit of what we can consume? What are we going to do when our ipods can hold a terabyte? (I say "ROCK!!!!") Dude, it's TOTALLY bottomless.

Westergren says that radio listenership drops when they get an mp3 player, but that they go back to the radio. And only about 5% of the mp3 player is filled, and not refreshed. this so does not apply to me. I almost never listen to the radio. Again, I discover music through other friends. Why aren't they mentioning personal radio stations/file sharing/etc?

Nordling finds that her experience is people like to hear something familiar mixed in with something new.

Westergren doesn't like mobility. He feels it's socially disruptive. Again, I disagree...I think we need to make devices that allow for multiple headsets! George is doing a search for splitters.

Mars says "commercial radio lost me so long ago that I don't even know what I'm talking about with them." He grew up listening to public radio. Public radio is more one-to-one. Radio will live forever as long as there are cars

Hirschman was just thinking that the difference for her is that radio provides a place for her to not being alone, to feel a sense of community, and to hear new stuff. She listens to a DJ because she wants to know what he or she thinks.

Nordling thinks the primary function of radio is that people want company - like people who leave their television on all the time. It's hearing somebody talking to them.

Questions from the audience:

Q: could we have a hybrid of pandora/soma - like you hear a song and you like it and can choose to have "more like that"

A: Westergren - some technical stuff that I don't understand.
A: Hirschman - There's a tricky difference between radio station and on-demand w/r/t rights.

Q: about podcasting that I missed - something about jukeboxes.

A: Westergren - We're losing money, podcasting is not a money-making thing. It's a rights-infringing, money-losing thing. The question is how to support it. Terrestrial radio makes money through advertising.
A: Hirschman - Podcasting is more of a promotional vehicle. It costs nothing, but there's no economic model. Terrestrial radio has quantified their adverstising...the new portals needs to do the same to generate income.

Q: has a friend who has a program on kcrw (the blueprint) part of this is that people in the scene were creating their own market. Not just with podcasting. What does the panel see as the future of internet radio. Pirate. Internet. Radio. ROCK. Creating a community by networking directly with artist and doing livestreaming through chatrooms. Majors are BLOCKING distribution. So communities of listeners and artists can aid in this distribution.

A: Hirschman addresses local scenes - every community has something going on in it. Media needs to be sensitive to that and transcribe it to a larger audience. One of the problems in the equalizing of the internet is the infinite number of choices. When you look at how music evolves, you find it's about the scene. There hasn't been a place on internet radio to focus and captivate local scenes.

A: Mars says radio existing in a location is one of the things that makes radio special, especially with regard to news and public radio. Content shifts based on location.

Q: The question is about sound exchange - the organization that collects the fees for the RIAA

A: Nordling says Sound exchange shut them down recently. They collect about 12% of their funds, and they are currently lobbying congress to up it to 37.5% and collect a yearly fee. They want to apply this retroactively? I think is what's being said. Nordling says she's involved with a group of independent broadcasters who have lawyers to fight these things.

Q: Spitzer effect?

A: Hirschman - radio stations are less likely to work with independent label. Great work by Spitzer, but the reality is that commercial radio stations are advertising vehicles. The don't want to take risks on new artists, unfamiliar music, unfamiliar artists, unfamiliar branding.

Final shots What is the future of radio

Westergren - Right now, if you sell music on Itunes for 99 cents, you make a nickel. He feels every artist should have their own website, recording studio, and the ability to create music without going into debt. At that point, the artist can sell for 25 cents and make 20 cents. Then people can afford to buy.

Nordling - Doesn't know. She hopes that commercial radio comes down. She's tired of the 100 song playlist with two hours of commercials in between. People need more input.

Mars - The future favors the content makers, particularly those who aren't currently getting paid. He wants to break free of the hour format. Most of his time is spent either filling time or cutting. Freedom of format should be used more to create stuff that is different.

Hirschman - Her ideal is that we eliminate the itunes model and we operate on access to all music. ISPs charge a monthly fee (2 dollars) and you can download everything you want any time. An invisible world of library that you can use at any time. Also moving towards flexibility, timeshifting, and portability. Handheld devices with buy buttons. Ubiquitous access points. Radio stations are the purveyors of taste, lifestyle, identification, and community.

Posted at March 14, 2006 11:31 AM

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