Etiquetas: internet

A Autoridade britânica Ofcom diz que sim:
De acordo com o relatório "The Communications Market 2005", pág 35:
"2.1.2 Radio moves into the hands of the listeners
Radio, as we noted in our June 2004 Communications Market report, has been at the forefront of convergence. Radio services are available across a variety of platforms from digital television, to mobile phones and the internet, as well as more traditional radio sets. Since last year’s report, GMG’s ejazz.com has entered the radio-on-demand arena, while the BBC significantly extended and enhanced its “radio player” – the pioneer in the UK market. On-demand services are also provided to a greater or lesser extent by other stations (e.g. Xfm provides listeners with the opportunity to listen to archived sections of some of their shows). In addition, “podcasting” has meant listeners are increasingly able to download and listen to radio on their MP3 players, where and when they want. The BBC, by extending its download trial recently, is getting increasingly involved in this area.
Multimedia and interactivity are increasingly becoming part of radio. Emap’s Channel Hopper, the BT Livetime service (due to launch later in 2005) and GWR’s “Hear it, buy it burn it” service are examples of new ways in which traditional radio and radio spectrum are being used to deliver listener benefits, and ultimately additional revenue.
However, although products such as the Reciva internet radio (which utilises WiFi and broadband connections) are coming onto the market they are not common, and most radio listening remains broadcast rather than internet based. DAB digital radio is the only widely available digital platform currently offered in the UK that allows portable reception (although DRM, broadcast from mainland Europe into the UK may launch later in 2005). Sales of DAB sets received a major boost during 2004 with total cumulative sales almost trebling from the 470,000 set sales at the end of 2003 to 1.4 million, raising household penetration of DAB sets to 5% (Figures to the end of March 2005 show total sales to date of 1.5 million sets. Source: DRDB).
Usage of all of these innovative services is growing. The BBC announced in February 2005 that 4.4 million hours of listening was to its on-demand services, while for commercial radio stations, 8.3% of all listening was to digital-only stations (1) by the end of 2004.
(1) Including digital listening to analogue stations outside their analogue areas (Source: Rajar)

Já nas páginas 40/41 encontramos mais informação sobre a capacidade da rádio integrar outras plataformas:
“Continuing the trend reported in last year’s Communications Market, the radio industry continues to be at the forefront of convergence in the communications sector. This is happening in a number of ways:
• Radio listening is increasing on digital platforms – digital TV, the internet and DAB digital radio
• There is a move away from live radio consumption through the use of “listen again” Internet services, such as the BBC’s Radio Player, “podcasting” and DAB receivers with built in pause, rewind and recording facilities (the first such receiver, “The Bug” was launched during 2004)
• Multimedia services which complement existing radio programming and enable new revenue streams are being developed and are due to launch this summer. These new services will develop against the backdrop of increasing DAB take up in the UK, the digitisation of the AM bands in mainland Europe, and industry initiatives to protect digital rights”. "

Desenvolvimento deste texto "A verdadeira convergência na rádio":

"There are so many digital choices for music today that if you’re on an Internet-connected computer, just about any song in the world is a click or two away.
But the folks at Palo Alto, Calif.-based Roku think digital music shouldn’t be trapped on computers or MP3 players. They feel consumers know and love their radios and that a tabletop radio-like device that can play digital tunes of all kinds is sure to be a hit.
Thus, they’ve rolled out their SoundBridge Radio Wi-Fi music system, and showed it off at the Demofall 2005 conference here, which ends Wednesday.
The system has the form factor of an actual radio, replete with knobs and buttons and an LED readout, and as such, offers comfort to those afraid of new, unfamiliar technology. It even has a clock and AM/FM radio functionality.
But its real special sauce is the ability to connect to a Wi-Fi network and access Internet radio stations as if they were regular stations. You spin the knob and go through the various choices before selecting one, and you can even define presets. A remote control lets you browse and select digital music from across the room.
(via Digital player dresses like a radio

Outros desenvolvimentos a partir do texto "Roku lança rádio SoundBridge em Novembro", Ciberia, JC, 2005/09/24:

"Ao contrário de outros aparelhos do género, o sistema prima pela facilidade de utilização. Como um rádio normal, possui sintonizador AM/FM, mas pode ligar-se a uma rede wireless e reproduzir emissões de rádio de todo o mundo.
O SoundBridge permite-lhe aceder a playlists directamente no computador (Mac ou Windows) e lê diversos formatos de áudio digital, incluindo MP3, WMA, AIFF, WAC e formatos AAC desprotegidos. Pode tocar a partir do iTunes, Musicmatch, Windows Media Connect e Windows Media Player 10, entre outros. O aparelho obteve também certificação para funcionar com o serviço Rhapsody, da Real Networks.
O sistema inclui ainda uma ligação para cartões SD/MMC, não sendo por isso obrigatória uma ligação à internet para reproduzir conteúdos digitais.
O ecrã LCD, do tipo VFD (Vacuum-Fluorescent Display), oferece uma imagem nítida e confere ao SoundBridge um look futurista."

Para muitos, o carro será no futuro o local de eleição da rádio, aquele local onde não entra(ria) mais nenhuma tecnologia, onde a rádio funcionará como meio secundário privilegiado, dando sentido ao binómio condução-é-o-mesmo-que-escuta-de-rádio.

Acontece que o carro não está obrigado a ter apenas rádio. E quer a indústria quer os fabricantes de leitores digitais de música sabem disso. Exemplo recente: O novo Honda Civic inclui não apenas leitor de AM/FM, mas também outras formas de reproduzir som (mp3, por exemplo) e um adaptador para ligar o iPod.
Depois disto, a única esperança da rádio musical é que os outros fabricantes automóveis não se lembrem de incluir leitores digitais de música nos carros... *
Fonte: http://www.honda-acura.net/plugins/p2_news/printarticle.php?p2_articleid=230

* ou então a rádio vai ter de encontrar alternativas à massificação musical...

(O site da Radio Academy apresenta isto como uma novidade. Não percebi se é a mesma coisa que a TSF, por exemplo, tem ao disponibilizar os ultimos noticiários, se é allgo mais complexo, mas aqui fica a informação:

"Virgin launches on-demand news bulletins
Virgin Radio has become the first UK commercial radio station to make news bulletins available online throughout the day. The latest daytime news bulletin are available at www.virginradio.co.uk, enabling listeners to hear the latest headlines and news stories across the day whenever they log on.

Mais aqui:
"Virgin Radio launched this free service in response to listener demand for additional news. On July 7th 2005, Virgin Radio’s online listening figures rose by 20% as the UK public tuned into the station as a trusted news source for the latest developments on the London bombings. The station reacted quickly to provide a 10 minute rolling news service ensuring listeners were kept in touch across the course of the day."

Quando já se fala que os downloads (e a música digital, de uma forma geral) vão acabar com a rádio de música.

Em Londres, dia 24 de Novembro, o assunto vai ser amplamente discutido (tirei do programa oficial):

"TECHNOLOGY KILLED THE RADIO FORMAT...?

"... recent report covering Warner Music Group, Morgan Stanley sounded an optimistic tone".

Um excerto: «Paid downloads enjoyed a nice growth spurt during the first half of this year, and that has helped to build a more bullish tone among analysts. "We have increased our assumptions for the digital recorded music revenues in 2006 by million to 0-145 million," Morgan Stanley states, while also offering a longer-term projection. "Total digital revenues (recorded music + publishing) should grow from 5 million in 2005 to 0 million in 2010."»

A rádio por satélite, beneficiando das suas vastas possibilidades, mostra que pode posicionar-se para o futuro. Competindo com a rádio na internet e, principalmente, encontrando ofertas especializadas que vão ao encontro daquilo que podem ser os trunfos dos leitores digitais de música.

A Sirius vai lançar uma rádio só com Bruce Springsteen (e não é caso único): " Fans of The Boss will soon have a station of their own, courtesy of Sirius Satellite Radio. Starting November 1st, the satellite underdog will open a channel focused entirely on Bruce Springsteen, a move that will loosely coincide with the reissue of the classic album Born to Run. The station, which will be called "E Street Radio," will offer rare cuts, live performances, interviews, and album tracks from the massive Springsteen catalog. Scott Greenstein, president of Entertainment and Sports at Sirius, pointed to the channel as "the most comprehensive presentation ever of Bruce's music and a true inside look at the work and artistry of an American icon."

E Street Radio is just one of several personality-driven stations for Sirius. Howard Stern, who is being given two channels, is the biggest example, though others like mega-rapper Eminem also have stand-alone stations. Such specialization is virtually impossible for the broad-strokes terrestrial business to duplicate, and is part of the larger advantage that satellite radio offers. Meanwhile, the Bruce channel will end on January 31st, though the station will probably entice a large number of subscribers during that three-month window."

É um exclusivo da Rhapsody.

"RealNetworks recently secured a major content exclusive involving Carlos Santana. As part of the deal, brokered with Arista Records, Rhapsody subscribers have been given access to an upcoming Santana album prior to its November 1st release date. The album, titled All That I Am, will also come packaged with an exclusive live performance of the track "Foo Foo". Additionally, RealNetworks will exclusively stream a day-of-release performance by Santana at the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York. All That I Am is the 38th album release from the guitar god, and most of those titles are available on the Rhapsody application. The concert begins at 8pm EST on November 1st, and can be accessed at rhapsody.com/santana.

Exclusives have come to define the digital music space, though Santana represents a prized plum. The artist has a massive following that spans multiple age groups, the result of a huge comeback engineered by Clive Davis. Meanwhile, other big exclusives could be ahead for RealNetworks, which now has a large pot of cash following an out-of-court antitrust settlement with Microsoft. Exactly how those funds will be used remains to be seen, though RealNetworks CEO Rob Glaser is likely to use the cash influx to heavily promote the Rhapsody brand." (Digital Music News)

Uma empresa norte-americana consultou 35 mil utilizadores de sites de rádios na internet e concluiu que a maior parte usa essas consultas para ouvir emissão streaming e para fazer descarregamentos (podcasts). E não para ler noticias ou outras informações ou para participar em concursos.

O estudo aqui.

O fabricante de automóveis General Motors acaba de anunciar que vai incorporar milhão e meio de auto-rádios com adaptadores de recepção para uma das duas empresas de rádio por satélite nos EUA, a XM Satellite Radio. Isto é muito importante para o mercado rádio, porque mostra que o satélite é uma alternativa credível.

"General Motors Increases Commitment to XM Satellite

Massive auto manufacturer General Motors has recently increased its in-dash commitments to XM Satellite Radio. The company just indicated that it would place 1.55 million XM-compliant, factory-installed receivers in its 2006 models, a 90 percent saturation rate. GM previously shipped 1.4 million XM-ready automobiles in 2005, and 1.17 million in 2003. "GM was out in front of the satellite radio movement and our customers have benefited enormously," said GM North America vice president Mark LaNeve. "We equip more GM vehicles with XM than any other manufacturer. Nobody else comes close."
For XM, the GM relationship couldn't be more important. The satellite leader recently crossed the five million subscriber mark, and a substantial number are coming from the GM partnership. For the satellite radio industry overall, the trend is becoming increasingly obvious, as car manufacturers are now including a satellite-ready receiver in a large percentage of new models. Whether that alone will create a long-term industry is unclear, though the automobile pre-installations lower the barriers tremendously for new subscribers. Most notably, a pre-installed, in-dash system means that consumers can instantly activate service over the phone or internet, a development that will help to move both XM and Sirius past the early adopter."

A propósito deste texto, em que se percebe a intenção de algumas rádios dos EUA de tentar reagir ao fenómeno do iPod (em sentido geral) com um alargamento da oferta de música, penso fazer sentido esta reflexão: há obviamente podcasts musicais, mas não é pela música que o podcasting pode fazer a diferença - e se está a impor.

O podcasting, além de demonstrar uma vontade de contrariar a formatação excessiva e a necessidade de alternativas na oferta audio actual, significa um regresso à voz. Ao toque humano. Quem se predispõe a gravar conteúdos audio, para serem ouvidos via internet, não o vai fazer para replicar simplesmente uma música. Há sempre uma voz (pelo menos), mais ou menos improvisada, mais ou menos sistematizada, mais ou menos prolongada. E quem os ouve é porque quer vozes - não apenas música.

O regresso à voz, que os podcasts indiciam, é o melhor sinal para a rádio do futuro. Uma rádio com menos música (pelo menos, menos música a metro) e mais gente dentro. 

Falei dele aqui.

Agora será comercializado em Portugal pela Optimus (informação divulgada pela agência de comunicação):

·         Dia 27 de Outubro nova Campanha multimeios, com um investimento de 1.5 milhões de Euros

“Ni siquiera la aparición de la televisión pudo con ella [com a rádio] – como algunos con pesimismo habían prometido –, antes al contrario, la  radio supo adaptarse a unas nuevas circunstancias y satisfacer necesidades distintas de modo que la venta de aparatos y los índices de audiencia, lejos de disminuir, aumentaron casi sin excepciones”

A rádio que sai da herança televisiva é marcada por diversos factores. Merayo Pérez (pág. 315) distingue cinco, como preparação para o segundo choque:

“1) Las consecuencias de la intervención arbitraria de las Administraciones Públicas 2) La ruptura en el equilibrio de las estructuras de propiedad a favor de las emisoras públicas que, sin embargo, no tienen semejante predominio en cuanto al número de sus oyentes 3) La crisis por la que atraviesa la OM 4) La obsolescencia tecnológica de las emisoras y las deficientes estructuras empresariales y de gestión 5) La competencia de las nuevas ofertas televisuales”.  

"Cuanto mayor es la debilidad económica del medio, mayor es la posibilidad de que los mensajes publicitarios adopten formas más descaradamente persuasivas, enquistándose en el conjunto del discurso radiofónico sin apenas diferenciación de los contenidos formales del mismo. La radio todo publicidad es aquella en la que el oyente no distingue qué partes son las que incitan al consumo de determinados productos y cuáles responden a la lógica del discurso programático, algo así como si el lector de un periódico no viera con claridad cuál es el espacio redaccional y cuál pertenece al publicitario."

Josép Martí i Martí, pág. 78

Mais do que a vertente lúdica...

http://ciberjornalismo.com/pontomedia/?p=163 

(via Digital Music News)

"Samsung Prepares iTunes Music Store Competitor

Apple flash memory partner Samsung Electronics now plans to create its own version of the iTunes Music Store. The news is confirmed by The Korea Times, and even comes from the horse’s mouth, company president Choi Gee-sung. “We are now in talks with our partners to debut a service like iTunes,” Gee-sung recently said. “Our number one priority is to help customers use our products with ease.” Gee-sung was speaking to journalists at a recent press call. He described China and Southeast Asia as potentially strong markets for such a service, as iTunes is not yet available in those territories.

Despite selling flash memory to Apple, Samsung is big enough to have its own intentions in the digital music market. The company is preparing to release several larger-capacity players, and aims to use its music service to grab 25-30 percent of the global MP3 player market by 2007. Samsung also revealed a new 36-story “digital product” research and development center during the press event, another indication of a very serious initiative ahead. But the timing is interesting: on October 15th, Apple and Samsung were reported to have been discussing a strategic .8 billion joint investment in flash memory manufacturing. A threat of regulatory review allegedly ended the talks. (Story by news analyst Jonny Evans)".

Em apenas dois meses, a NPR (serviço público de radiodifusão dos EUA) conseguiu que 4 milhões dos seus programas fossem descarregados via internet, para ouvir no computador ou no leitor digital (portátil) de música - os podcasts.

"According to the group, several NPR podcasts have ranked in the top 10 on both Yahoo and iTunes, helping to create the snowball effect. NPR delivers podcasts containing news, information and cultural programming, and also offers a music-based podcast called "All Songs Considered". That podcast is an extension of an online-only program that highlights artists, reviews, interviews and other music-related content"

Where Are The HD Radios?
Sep. 23, 2005
By Paul Heine
PHILADELPHIA -- If a 5.1 surround-sound tree falls in a digital forest, does anyone hear it?
iBiquity director of broadcast marketing Don Kelly offered an update on the most important question in the digital radio discussion taking place at the National Assn. of Broadcasters Radio Show here: Where are the radios?
Five different after-market car stereo HD receivers are currently available from a variety of manufacturers, he said, including JVC, Panasonic and Kenwood. A Boston Acoustics tabletop HD radio is expected in late October or early November.
Radiosophy will deliver portable receivers later this year and high-end units from Polk Audio will be available early next year. Kelly says at least another 15-17 manufacturers will have product coming to market.
“There will be hundreds of thousands of [HD] receivers in listeners hands in 2006,” Kelly said. 2500-3000 stations will beam digital signals within the next 18-24 months, covering 95% of the U.S. population, he added.
Noting that it took FM about seven years to achieve parity with AM, Kelly said the HD radio tipping point will occur sooner, because technology moves faster today than it did in the ‘70s.