Video goes viral, but what about audio? I have never even heard the expression “viral audio,” have you? “Going viral” means “being shared.” So why is it so tough to share audio online? In some cases the sharing capability is clunky or nonexistent. But even where conventional sharing functions exist there are two larger problems: Consumption and discovery. Consumption: Online audio is hard to consume. Okay, not hard, but taxing. If one picture is worth a thousand words, then i

In a November survey by Morgan Stanley (released this week and reported in Quartz), more than 2,000 American adults were asked what audio platforms they used. Their answers: Now this question is roughly analogous to what broadcasters would call “reach.” It does not really address frequency of usage or “time spent listening.” Radio tops the list with 86% of respondents saying it’s part of their usage routine. That’s by far the highest number (although not as high as Nielsen wa

Never let it be said that the automakers don’t listen to feedback, because when it comes to Ford’s clunky Sync platform, they got an earful. And guess what? Ford responded. This week the automaker introduced the latest and greatest version of its Sync infotainment system, and it looks great. It will make its debut on at least some Ford 2016 models, meaning it will be in the showroom in the fall of 2015, just months from now. The primary value proposition of the platform has l

Nielsen recently released a study that was not representative of the entire population. I know, so what else is new, right? Actually, this was their intention this time. It was a study of 5,985 respondents 18+ years old who either use or are extremely, very, or somewhat interested in at least one of the three connected life technologies—connected home, car and/or wearable technology. It is, in other words, the low-hanging fruit of the connected car market. The Connected Car A

A recent Piper Jaffray report focused on the behaviors of teenagers and the consequence of trends in those behaviors. One of the questions asked teens what percentage of their time was spent listening to music in the following categories: mp3’s, Pandora, local radio, other streaming radio (e.g., Spotify, Songza, etc.), CD’s, or SiriusXM. The result: About 16% of teen music listening time is spent with radio. Pandora’s share was slightly higher, while mp3’s were more than twic

Bob Lefsetz penned a great piece in praise of Howard Stern recently. I recommend you check it out. It’s great not simply because he hits all the right notes about Howard, although he does. It’s great because Bob deciphers the real secret to Howard’s success, a secret available to anyone who considers themselves “talent.” Says Lefsetz: Unless you have the confidence to woodshed in the wilderness until you’re appealing to the masses you’ll never become a legend. And this: When

From Tom Taylor Now: A site named GMAuthority says among the changes for the [Chevrolet] Traverse, “HD Radio [is] removed.” There’s more. For the 2015 Silverado truck, GMAuthority says “HD radio feature removed from all radios.” Same for the 2015 GMC Sierra truck, here. For the high-end Buick Enclave, the previous “Color Touch AM/FM/SiriusXM/HD Radio with CD player” is replaced by “AM/FM/SiriusXM radio with CD player.” No mention of HD. As for the Chevy Impala, no HD, and Sir

Today, Pandora (and pretty much every other online radio provider) is famous for its music, not its talk. That’s going to change. Yes, I know Pandora has comedy content driven by the secret sauce of its “genome project.” But I’m talking about much more. Yes, I know there are other platforms out there featuring various flavors of spoken word, most of which is repurposed from terrestrial commercial and public radio. Yes, I know there’s a world of podcasting which is virtually a

It’s shaping up to be perhaps the most diverse gathering of professionals in the audio information and entertainment space ever. Just take a look at this word cloud version of all the company names present in the room: From broadcasters to podcasters, from commercial radio to public radio, from startups to established players, from digital innovators to traditional radio stalwarts, from U.S. to International. It’s a full house for hivio 2014, the audio future festival, set fo

From Radio Ink: The FCC’s  detailed explanation why it’s not allowing more deregulation is very specific about what radio is expected to deliver. In rejecting the NAB’s increased competitive environment, the FCC points out that Satellite Radio and Internet Radio are “national platforms,” not likely to respond to competitive conditions in local markets. And, no evidence was provided that either plan to become local. The FCC said, “only local broadcasters provide programming ba

In the race to exploit new digital opportunities, Kleiner Perkins partner Mary Meeker has described three “consumer Internet ‘white spaces’ yet to be reimagined.” One of these was the “ear” and another was the car. And she describes the latter as “largely untapped.” Naturally, broadcasters are in a tizzy because one industry’s white space is another industry’s breadbasket. Indeed, roughly two-thirds of radio listening occurs away from home, largely in autos. What to do? What

Personalization is a rainbow extending all the way from “lowest common denominator” to “all mine.” The former is what you get on the radio while the latter is what you find in the iTunes store. SXM’s version of personalization, which appeared in the iTunes store this past weekend, is closer to the former than the latter, not that there’s anything wrong with that. Want to skip songs or create your own custom channels? Sorry, Charlie. This isn’t the place for you (assuming you’

On the surface, retailer Target may not have a lot to do with your radio brand. But look closer, because the similarities are staggering. Like radio, Target has a wide array of items, together aimed at a broad-based, massive audience.  Like radio, Target is suffering from a million tiny cuts as Internet options eat into their business with lower pricing or greater selection (i.e., in the radio context, greater value).  Like radio, Target is a trusted brand that includes human

Okay, so I have weird tastes.  I’m the guy whose favorite dishes in restaurants are discontinued for lack of interest.  And my music tastes are just as irregular. But thanks to the Internet you can find anything nowadays, and thanks to personalized radio services you can create what you want out of nothing if you so desire. It so happens that there’s a channel on SiriusXM that gets close enough to one thread of my weird tastes.  Also,  I created my own version on one of the p

It hasn’t gotten a ton of attention, but SiriusXM’s recently revised mobile apps add some functionality which I think makes a dramatic difference in the quality of the user experience and also transforms the meaning of satellite radio online using the familiar metaphor of the DVR (not new for the conventional satellite radios, but certainly new for their streaming versions). It’s no longer simply the mobile way to stream most SiriusXM channels via the Internet.  It now allows