Pandora nearly beats CBS in Online Radio

Change is in the wind.

Just take a peek at the new rankings from Ando Media from the fast-growing world of online radio – and keep in mind these statistics are from the US only:

CBS Radio is number one – but look at who's number two, Pandora.

Pandora, the company with exactly zero terrestrial radio stations.  Pandora, the company that has no Arbitron nor any need for Arbitron.  Pandora, the company that actually charges folks who use the service the most. 

Pandora is a handful of streams away from being the leading source of online radio in the US (among those that Ando measures).

During September, Pandora was launched more than 80 million times – 20 million more than CBS Radio and 60 million more than Clear Channel and its hundreds of streaming brands.

60 million more!

Recognize, of course, that this industry is young.  Recognize, of course, that it will only grow.

But recognize, most importantly, that your station – our industry – need not be the leading players or even significant players in this world unless we specifically set out to do so.

You don't win at online radio by repurposing your over-the-air signal online.

You win at online radio by providing an experience matched to the digital medium and the expectations of a digital audience.  You win by catering to the audience, not to your pre-existing over-the-air brands.  You win by thinking digital, not by thinking analog belongs digital.

This is radio's game to lose.

(Note:  AAS is "the average number of streams of one minute or more that are active within a time period." And SS is "the number of streams of one minute or more that are started within a time period").