This was the headline: “Fox adopting YouTube’s Six Second Ad Format.” “This is the first time that a broadcast television company has committed to the ad format, which YouTube introduced last year,” the companies said. That means Fox TV will be airing six second spots across its platforms, including linear television. And don’t think that this trend will stop there, folks. At my hivio event last year I presented research which explicitly tested what consumers – listeners – wa

Lizzie Widhelm is Pandora’s Senior Vice President of Ad Product Sales & Strategy where she spearheads the team that brings advertising products to life and to market. At this Q&A from hivio, the audio future festival, Lizzie talks about the evolving Pandora platform and how it’s changing its sales strategy to meet the future head-on. Here are some of the questions we cover: Why is this evolution of Pandora so important? How is the new shape of Pandora likely to be different f

So people are freaking out about the new Edison data indicating that consumers – that’s you and me – switch stations 22 times in an average commute. …unless you’re my beautiful wife, in which case you switch stations 2200 times in an average commute. Is that number (the 22) shocking? I don’t know why. Anybody who has ever been in a car has seen this firsthand. I know we want to imagine that no advertiser will ever figure this out, but hey, advertisers know this already. They

I have largely steered clear of the Voltair/Nielsen discussion (except for this piece) because it’s so simple: It’s a classic evolutionary dilemma, and in those evolutionary dilemmas the individuals who are most capable of adapting survive and those most finely tuned to their changing environments thrive. In other words, those who spend their hard-earned bucks on Voltair gadgets will have an advantage over those who do not. Now Nielsen announces that it’s “improving” its tech

hivio, the audio future festival, is LIVE THURSDAY and FRIDAY! You can watch it for FREE! Radio, online radio, podcasting, agencies, social media, brands, talent, and voices from transmedia brands like TV Guide and TheBlaze and a special appearance by Marilu Henner. It’s all happening at hivio. We’re live on Thursday, from 1 – 5pm PT and Friday from 9am – 1pm PT. Join us as we take the stage at the legendary Hollywood Improv. Just click the image below and click “add to calen

hivio is the audio future festival, and it begins THURSDAY! You can watch it LIVE for FREE! Radio, online radio, podcasting, agencies, social media, brands, talent, voices from transmedia brands like TV Guide and TheBlaze, and a special appearance from Marilu Henner. It’s all happening at hivio. We get started at 1pm PT / 4pm ET, Thursday June 4. LIVE from the legendary Hollywood Improv. Get notified when we go live! Just click the image below and click “add to calendar” or w

Recently I was in a gathering of brands. Not agencies, brands. Among my conversations was one with the VP and Director of Global Media & Digital Marketing for a well known company that, among other things, produces one of the most famous brands of whiskey in the world. I asked him: What do you spend your day doing, thinking about, worrying about? He talked to me about the time he and his team spend creating personas representing the user segments of his brand. He talked about

Pandora is changing more than the way folks consume radio – it’s changing the way agencies view audio advertising. This was at the center of my conversation with Pandora VP Audio Sales Doug Sterne at the hivio audio future festival in San Diego in June, 2014. Among the questions Doug answers: What impact has online radio in general — and Pandora in particular — had on audio as a force among agencies? For online radio, audio is more than just audio. What creative opportunities

So I’m talking to a digital solutions provider who has created a platform featuring new value for consumers as part of a radio station’s online brand. Right in the middle of his on-screen experience, surrounded by the new stuff he created for his radio client, is that particular station’s Facebook feed. “Why is that there?” I asked, since it has nothing to do with the value proposition of the content around it. “The station wanted it there,” he replied. “Why?” I asked. “Becau

So what’s best, digital-only or integrated? Don’t get lost in this “either/or” – it’s a myth. It’s all about value, folks. Good or bad, high or low. Period. I think radio buyers can only respond to what’s in front of them, and many of radio’s digital-only doo-dads are not exceptional enough to capture their attention or interest (or the attention and interest of our own audiences). So make better stuff with better ideas and you can sell it better to people who don’t know

Yesterday I talked with a broadcaster who is considering simulcasting their over-the-air stations with their online streams, including ads. Is this a big middle finger to AFTRA rules which (for now at least) discourage such actions?  You bet it is. They are not alone.  The radio industry’s dirty little secret is that many broadcasters are matching their on-air content to their streams, including ads, even as their competitors comply with the rules and “play fair.” So why are

“Total Audience Measurement” (TAM).  That’s Arbitron’s term for their in-the-works scheme to count your listeners on whatever platform they’re listening to your station (on radio or online) all in one tidy report. I’ve been thinking a lot about TAM lately, and the closer I look the more questions I have about this latest initiative from our friends in Columbia who have profiting hand over fist from the radio industry even as that industry itself continues to struggle. What pr