FCC Commissioner Ajit Pai’s AM radio revitalization agenda
Federal Communications Commissioner Ajit Pai spoke at the National Association of Broadcaster’s Radio Show gathering on Friday. He talked up AM radio “revitalization,” a topic suddenly hot now that The New York Times explored it earlier this month. Here are some of Pai’s ideas (some firm; others more tentative): 1. Repeal the FCC’s “ratchet rule” […]
iTunes Radio: What’s the big deal?
Apple’s first foray into online radio shipped last Wednesday as part of the latest version 7 of its iOS mobile operating system. The big question is: What’s the big deal? Or, rather, Is it a big deal? After using the service for four days I have to conclude that iTunes Radio is a big deal, […]
ASCAP/Pandora war notes: is online radio really still “new media”?
By now everybody knows that Pandora has prevailed, at least for the moment, in its legal effort to win the right to stream all content from the ASCAP repertory. The Southern District of New York has ruled that efforts to limit what Pandora can play violated a consent decree between the online streamer and the […]
A Bit of Lore from Swarthmore College Radio Station WSRN
With the start of a new semester, college radio stations are often getting nice write-ups in their campus publications. In a profile in The Phoenix, the back-story of Swarthmore College’s long-time radio station WSRN is revealed. According to the piece, “…WSRN was founded by engineers prior to the ’70s. At one point they ‘rigged up […]
FCC to hold next LPFM webinar on October 3
Attention potential low-power FM applicants: the FCC’s second, and probably final, webinar for you is happening October 3 from 1 PM to 2:30 PM Eastern time at http://www.fcc.gov/live. Keep in mind that the window for submitting your LPFM application starts just 12 days later, October 15 – 29. This webinar will focus primarily on questions […]
College Radio Day Launches Campaign to Fund Album
With 24 days left to go in its Indiegogo campaign, College Radio Day is hoping to raise a total of $5000 in order to produce volume 2 of College Radio Day: The Album. When the album is completed, it will be distributed to college radio stations all over the United States. The CD compilation will […]
Checkin’ My Vibe – First impressions review of Slacker for iOS 7
Typically I’m a little more cautious when upgrading my mobile device OS. I usually wait a couple of weeks for the early adopters to upgrade and find the bugs and hassles, and maybe even wait for the first patches to fix those bugs before taking the plunge. But today I had two reasons to upgrade […]
Slacker launches “My Vibe” to deliver curated playlists for your mood
Ever want some music go with what you’re doing, but can’t quite figure out where to start? Maybe you’re studying, doing housework or having a nice dinner, and you don’t want to pick just one artist or album, but you don’t have a whole playlist ready to go. Today Slacker Radio releases “My Vibe” which […]
Louisville arts Internet station will apply for Low Power FM license
Happy birthday to ARTxFM in Louisville, Kentucky. The Internet radio station has just finished celebrating its first year of streaming. Now its General Manager Sharon Scott writes to tell us that the non-profit will apply for a Low Power FM license this October. Scott was responding to my essay on “Hybrid Highbrow” radio. “While the […]
Pandora ponders competing with AM/FM for local advertising
I’m eyeballing Pandora’s latest Security and Exchange Commission risk filing, which notes that the Internet streamer has yet to significantly penetrate local markets like conventional radio stations do. Seems like the company is thinking about the challenge, though. “Radio advertising has traditionally attracted primarily local advertisers, and we are still at an early stage of building […]