fonte: «Apple fecha acordos para conectar iPod a novos modelos de carro», Reuters Brasil, Quinta-feira 3 de Agosto, 2006 4:49 GMT-

Mais: «No caso da GM, prevê-se que os 56 modelos que a marca pretende lançar, em 2007, nos EUA já estejam equipados para a conexão com o famoso leitor de MP3 da Apple. Na Mazda, o acordo prevê que todos os modelos lançados pela companhia no mundo já disponham de uma conexão para o iPod. O iPod pode conectar-se aos sistemas de som dos automóveis através de um pequeno compartimento específico. Além da tradicional escuta, a conexão vai permitir carregar e descarregar músicas entre iPod e o “auto-rádio” do automóvel.»

Mais: «Apple Computer announced at its 2005 Macworld Expo on Tuesday that this year, legendary sports car maker Ferrari and four other automobile manufacturers plan to offer kits that meld its iPod music player with their car stereo systems. Mercedes-Benz USA and Volvo, the first two companies to detail their plans for the U.S. market, will offer iPod adapters for several of their models. The adapters will allow drivers to access songs stored on their iPods via their car stereo controls, including steering-wheel-mounted buttons. Alfa Romeo, Ferrari and Nissan will announce their respective iPod adapter plans later in the year, Apple said in a statement. Mercedes, Volvo and the others are following a trend started by BMW in 2004. BMW now builds several car models whose steering wheels incorporate iPod controls; it also offers a 9 iPod-stereo adapter for several of its car models. Several car stereo manufacturers have also begun offering adapters that connect iPods directly to their respective car stereo models. Alpine offers the KCA-420i adapter, which costs about 0 and can connect iPod and iPod Mini players to several Alpine-brand stereos.» Cnet News 

«A Apple quer proibir que outras empresas usem a terminologia Pod nos seus produtos. A empresa quer proteger a marca iPod e para isso está a desencadear processos contra fabricantes que incluam o termo Pod nos seus produtos, segundo notícia o Financial Times. Designações como a TightPod, uma linha de capas para sistemas Mp3 e portáteis, e a ProfitPod, um scanner de infravermelhos utilizado em consolas, estão entre os alvos da Apple.»

fonte: Meios e Publicidade, Apple quer proteger marca Pod, Ana Cavaco, 17 de Agosto de 2006

fonte: Showbuzz, «CBS To Air Evening News Live On Web». NEW YORK, Aug. 17, 2006

Am I Crazy or Didn't XM Promises Commercial-Free Music?
No, you're not nuts. As a matter of fact, on February 4, 2004 that's exactly what XM stated. Have a look at this article:
XM Satellite Radio Drops Commercials On All Music Streams »

fonte: http://radio.about.com/b/a/257731.htm?nl=1

The service will cost Alltel subscribers .99 per month; a subscription to XM's regular satellite radio service is not required. This is not Alltel's first move toward making its service more media-rich. Recently, the wireless provider entered an agreement with podcasting site Melodeo to make podcasts searchable and streamable via Alltel's Axcess media platform.»

fonte: C.Net.news.com, «Alltel launches satellite radio service with XM», By Caroline McCarthy
Staff writer, CNET News.com, Published: August 10, 2006, 7:48 AM PDT

mais sobre os telemóveis e os canais de rádio:

«Today, we can get our Radio via satellite, the Internet, through cable, even in our PDAs and cell phones. Oh yeah and even through those old "AM/FM Radio things".So, where is all this going? My gut tells me your cell phone is vehicle of natural portability - and the heir to the transistor radio which revolutionized Radio’s portability in the 1960’s. The convergence of wireless technology, content and size make the cell phone the perfect host for taking your favorite sounds to the beach, a doctor’s waiting room or the park near your home. Many higher-end cell phones have already incorporated the ability to receive FM signals. This ability will only continue to increase as new generations of lower-end phones become even less expensive to manufacture and providers strive to offer more options to new users.» (Corey Deitz)

«Devices that play music held on iPods over FM radios are set to become legal in the UK, as a law that bans such devices is about to be overturned. Communications regulator Ofcom has announced that it wishes to lift Britain's ban on the use of such devices.

By "such devices", we are referring to gadgets such as Griffin Technology's iTrip, which allows users to listen to digital music in cars or around the home. They are very popular in the US and Europe, but are illegal in the UK. They work by allowing car radios or household stereos to tune in to iPod signals and play music, and were outlawed because it was feared that they would interfere with commercial radio, despite the fact that their range is only a few metres. Even once the ban was in place, thousands of people continued to use their iTrip or Belkin's TuneCast wireless transmitter to listen to their music whilst out and about.»

Fonte: Techspot, «iPod radio transmitters to become legal in the UK», By Derek Sooman, TechSpot.com, Published: July 16, 2006, 5:27 AM EST

Mais:

«RadioTracker operates under to allow users to stream practically any Internet radio station and automatically grab the music and write it to mp3 files for your iPod or any other digital player.

RadioTracker “rips” the music as it “listens” to the stations you choose either by: Genre, Favorites, or your “Wishlist”.

Finalized cuts are placed in separate folders by genre, artist, station if you choose or all in your main music directory.

RadioTracker has a built-in database of over 13,000 Internet radio stations (updatable) you can select from. You create your own Favorites list from the stations you’d like the software to rip from.» (Corey Deitz)

O software aqui (a pagar...)

«Listening to an iPod over a car stereo may be easier in the future, judging by an invention Apple Computer is trying to patent. Apple's patent application (No. 20050286481), which the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office made public recently, describes "a method, apparatus, and system" that wirelessly plays iPod audio files over an FM radio receiver, such as a car radio. The invention, described as a "method for data transmission utilizing a portable multimedia device," also taps an FM radio technology known as the Radio Data System (RDS) to wirelessly transmit data, such as artist and song title, to a receiver. Several gadget blogs have speculated that Apple will build the technology into future versions of the iPod, putting pressure on companies that sell iPod add-ons that deliver similar capabilities, such as the popular iTrip from Griffin Technologies (...)»

fonte: «iPod to get built-in iTrip?», By Alorie Gilbert, CNET News.com, January 10, 2006, 3:54 PM PST

Um estudo da Comscore World Metrix diz que os portugueses são, a nível mundial, os nonos que mais tempo passam na net (via Expresso/Economia/19-08-06):

«will folks listen to the podcast AND the station or the podcast INSTEAD OF the station?»

Mark Ramsey dá a resposta:

«Good question. And the answer is... It depends.

If the podcast is FREE and your show is LONG (e.g., a few hours long) and DAILY (or so)...

If you podcast highlights or bits or interviews of your show as online bonuses or delay the podcast for a reasonable time, I believe this will ADD to your on-air audience, i.e., "I can listen to the podcast, but to hear the REST of the content I need to listen to the station." If you podcast your entire show online on the same day it runs live, I believe you will SUBTRACT from your audience, i.e., "I can listen to the podcast, I don't need to listen to the station." And for those who don't already listen to the station, they may be reluctant to sample such a large slice of your show's pie. Tidbits, that's what they need.

If the podcast is FREE and your content is SHORT, ALWAYS REPEATING and UPDATING (e.g., newscasts)...

If you podcast the entire newscast you have the ability to sell other elements of your station. Meanwhile the news always changes and is stale as soon as the mp3 player leaves its computer. Thus you will ADD to your on-air audience.

If the podcast is FREE and your show is SHORT (e.g., a public radio show) and WEEKLY (or so)...

If you podcast the whole show you will certainly substitute the online audience for an iPod one. That's because finding one half-hour or one hour during an entire broadcast week is infinitely harder than synching your iPod to your computer on a daily basis. The more your station is about programs than about audiences, the worse off you are in podcasting those programs in their entirety in near-real time (assuming your goal is to increase listenership to the station). In the Public Radio world, for example, many of the weekly programs are podcast in their entirety. As much as I appreciate this, it absolutely reduces the listening for many would-be listeners.

Yet what is not podcast (so far as I know) is a daily sampling of Morning Edition or ATC or Fresh Air - just a sample, not the whole show. And this type of podcasting would absolutely send more listeners to their radio stations because of what's NOT on the podcast and what IS on the radio on a regular, daily basis.

This is what we mean by the term "tease." But tease with substance.

There are lots of other cases and scenarios. But they have to do with combinations of TIME, CURRENCY, BREVITY, PROGRAM POPULARITY, COST, and SCHEDULING.»

Trata-se de um estudo que inquiriu apenas ouvintes de rádio do formato AAA (“Adult Album Alternative”), mas os resultados são elucidativos:

«- Ownership of a portable MP3 player (iPod or other brand) has jumped from 13% to 48% in two years.
- Listening to an iPod/MP3 player as the primary music choice is up over 400% in two years.
- IPod/MP3 users (48% of total) and Downloaders (33% of total) spend far less time listening to music on FM radio than the total.
- iPod/MP3 Users and Downloaders are more likely to buy CDs than the total.
- CDs purchases as the primary way to obtain music has decreased significantly.
- Satellite listenership has grown 166% in two years but total audience still pales compared to audiences of other music choices like FM, internet, iPods, etc.»

O estudo está aqui.

Um condomínio nos EUA que oferece, como equipamento-base, rádio via satélite (isto é importante porque mostra que esta rádio se está a implantar):

«Alchemy Properties has become the first real estate developer in the state to install SIRIUS satellite radios into a multifamily complex -- the 47-unit Lookout Hill Condominium in Brooklyn.

In order to complete the project, Alchemy partnered with Applied Media Technologies Corp., the exclusive business service provider of SIRIUS. Residents of the complex, located on State Street in Brooklyn Heights, will not be charged for their first year of service»

via Hear2)

Interessante reflexão de Mark Ramsey sobre os méritos do iPod (que permite a personalização total) versus a rádio que é a soma de muitos gostos médios:

«That’s the attraction to the iPod. The very filling of it turns it into myPod, not yourPod. And when ourPods are different from theirPods, what does it mean to be “average”?»

«Mp3 files, iPods, Satellite Radio, SmartPhones, PDAs, and other technology is forcing commercial Radio to take a long, hard look at what it has become and how it can stay relevant. If a station pops up in your city named “JACK” or “DOUG” or any other number of names don’t be surprised. This past October 7, 2004, the former KFME-FM (105.1) in Kansas City became JACK-FM. Their slogan? “Playing What We Want”. The Susquehanna owned radio station has taken a cue from the changing challenges of what listeners really want: a library of music that offers real variety and an irreverant but fun attitude. That’s what you get from JACK. (...) The JACK stations are using the iPod “shuffle” metaphor. In other words: don’t expect the same 150 songs over and over again (...)» (fonte: Corey Deitz, (”Maybe Commercial Radio Didn’t Know JACK All These Years“, 20/7/05)

«ll it "whatever" radio, because the programming philosophy is to play hits from the 1970s, '80s and "whatever we feel like." It's part of the latest wave to hit broadcasting in the era of the iPod.  (...) "Take that and contrast it with the amazing success of the iPod. A lot of folks, myself included, have a diverse selection of music on the iPod and put it on shuffle." Put that format on radio and you have a new phenomenon. (...) The variety format is seen, in part, as a way to appeal to listeners used to loading their own iPods with music from different genres or to keep the loyalties of those thinking about switching to satellite. More than that, it's a mea culpa to music lovers who started tuning out as their favorite stations shrank their playlists in the 1990s, playing the same old songs hour after hour. The stations tell listeners "we play what we want" or "we play anything." But they're really carefully crafted to keep advertisers happy, observers say. Song choices target a lucrative but musically hard-to-define demographic, 25- to 54-year-olds who want to hear new music but not rap and bubblegum pop and who declare themselves too young to listen to the oldies (...)» («Random format comes to radio Stations try varied approach to please iPod generation«, San Francisco Chronicle, 31/05/05)

«A empresa Paragon Medias Strategies estudou o impacto do formato JACK nos ouvintes de seis mercados norte-americanos (Denver, Dallas ou Kansas City, entre outros três).
Foram analisadas 12 rádios que aderiram a esse formato e estas são algumas das conclusões:
- 63 % têm entre 25-44 anos;
- mas os 35-44 prevalecem (36%) sobre os 25-34 (27%)
- comparando com outros formatos, a sua fatia de 25-44 é a mais elevada;
- 54% são homens e 46 mulheres
- 8% são ouvintes com idades entre 18 e 24 anos;
- 45-54 anos: 20 por cento;
Conclusões aqui: http://www.paragonmediastrategies.com/rfax/111.pdf»

Mais aqui

Para a industria do rádio via satélite nos EUA e Canadá:

«In a potentially devastating blow for satellite radio operators, drivers will be able to plug iPods directly into the stereo systems of a majority of 2007 models of Ford, GM and Mazda vehicles in the United States. Satellite radio operators XM and Sirius have developed their subscription businesses largely through people who buy cars with factory-installed equipment. Carl Bayard, an analyst at Desjardins Securities in Toronto who tracks the satellite radio business, called the development of "seamless" integration of the popular portable iPod device and car stereos "a major negative blow for the entire satellite radio industry." In February, Mr. Bayard highlighted the iPod as the "most worrisome" substitute to satellite radio because, he says, "it offers users better control over music selection."»

E o contra-ataque:

«In an attempt to adapt to the iPod world, the satellite radio services are building MP3 music players into their receiver equipment, and have begun to avoid the hardware altogether by selling their unique sports, talk and music packages to cellphone and cable operators. XM Canada, for example, recently forged a deal with Telus Corp. Still, Mr. Bayard told clients he sees "no upside" for the parent company's stock, "given the overwhelmingly negative recent news flowing from the U.S."»

A resposta de Mark Ramsey: «(...) Besides, much of the most popular programming on satellite is non-music programming - and some of it is exclusive to satellite. And little to none of this will be available on even the most packed-full iPod. (...) So will easy and attractive hook-ups for iPods affect radio and satellite radio? Absolutely. But it won't kill either. It will, howevever, be another speed-bump out of the starting gate for HD. And another nail in the coffin for CD's».

Um estudo (EUA...) diz que o extra mais desejado pelos jovens num LDA (como um iPod) é um rádio FM. O estudo: http://www.ipsos-na.com/news/client/act_dsp_pdf.cfm?name=mr060629-1tb3.pdf&id=3124

Um excerto: «Even more than video content, however, radio listening is one of the most desired additional uses for portable MP3 players. Nearly half (46%) of teens and college-aged downloaders are interested in portable FM radio and 39% express interest being able to access satellite radio on their portable device. Older American downloaders are also interested in using their MP3 players to listen to radio broadcasts, with roughly one-third of 25 to 54 year old downloaders interested in FM and Satellite Radio capabilities (37% and 32%, respectively)»

«The company said Wednesday that it sold 8.1 million iPods in the third quarter, while analysts were expecting about 8 million. (...) Apple's share of the digital audio player market is stronger than ever, according to NPD Group, which says Apple's May market share was 76.9%. At the end of 2005, Apple's share was 72.7%.»

fonte: Forbes.com, «Apple's Profit Soars On iPod Sales», Rachel Rosmarin, 07.19.06, 6:45 PM ET

A convergência chegou ao mundo da rádio:

«I-Sonic entertainment system, the first product to include an HD Radio tuner, a DVD/CD player and XM Satellite Radio receiver in a single unit. The system sells for 9 in the U.S. and 9 in Canada. The I-Sonic is a small unit -- measuring only 14.5" x 9.75" x 4.75" -- for use anywhere in the home or office. The single disc DVD/CD player also plays MP3s, as well as many other formats, and the unit has two sets of auxiliary inputs to allow the hook up of any stereo audio device. The I-Sonic also features a headphone jack, 30 radio presets and a wireless remote control»

fonte: FMQB, Polk Ships Combined HD Radio/XM Satellite System, August 21, 2006

feitos pelo «guru» norte-americano em marketing, Seth Godin:

«I see three or four alternative futures and they depend on some technology and marketing bets.

Scenario A: Everyone has Wi-Fi or WiMAX in their car. Once that happens, we're not talking about 200 XM radio stations, we're talking about 2 million, and all bets are off.

Scenario B: The aftermarket people get very focused on putting hard drives and iPod docks in cars. If that happens, again, radio is in trouble, because people are gonna bring their own pre- recorded content with them.

Scenario C: We end up in the satellite world, they figure out how to get a little bit more content through those pipes and we end up with 300 or 400 channels in the car. I had XM radio for a year to check it out. What's interesting is it doesn't matter how many stations there are, sooner or later you end up with four. And so the thing is, what do you have to do to be one of the four, and how do you live in a world where you've got hundreds of competitors a click away, but if you spend all your time not offending anybody, you'll never get anybody.

Scenario D: A hybrid of what we've got now: Traditional analog radio combined with HD combined with satellite. This scenario will, I think, not make anybody particularly happy, because the advertisers are going to be faced with an increasingly splintered audience that's hard to address, and as a result, it will be hard for that local car dealership or that politician to do a sensible radio buy»

fonte: «Seth Godin on Radio's Future», Hear2.com, por Mark Ramsey, 23/8/06

Isto significa o quê?

Coincidência?

Um excerto:

«A rádio foi o único dos cinco meios a registar uma queda do investimento publicitário nos primeiros sete meses deste ano, comparativamente ao mesmo período do ano passado, revelam os dados ontem divulgados pela MediaMonitor. Todos os outros meios aumentaram a sua captação de investimento, com a televisão – que já recebe a fatia de leão dos gastos do sector – a registar a maior subida. Os ‘outdoors’ também registam um crescimento, enquanto a imprensa se ficou por um aumento muito ligeiro. O cinema, que capta valores irrisórios quando comparados com os dos restantes meios em análise, consegue também uma pequena subida. No total, o investimento em publicidade aumentou 11% de Janeiro a Julho, em relação ao mesmo período de 2005, embora estejamos a falar de preços de tabela, que servem de referência para o mercado, mas estão muito acima dos valores reais praticados, uma vez que a aplicação de descontos é habitual nos media»

fonte: Diário Económico, Carla Castro, 2006-08-24, «Rádio é o único meio com menos investimento publicitário até Julho»

«A TVI só avança para a Mobile Tv 'quando encontrar um modelo de negócio que seja vantajoso', afirmou ao Jornal de Negócios José Louro, responsável pela área Multimédia da estação da Media Capital, numa altura em que a RTP já arrancou com o RTP Mobile e a SIC anunciou que vai avançar até ao final do ano. (...) admitem que ainda não conseguiram chegar a acordo com as operadores de telecomunicações - TMN, Vodafone e Optimus - acerca dos valores a pagar pelos conteúdos que a estação pode fornecer. (...) 'Não gostaríamos de entrar agora num negócio com valores muito baixos porque, daqui a seis meses, o mercado pode crescer em tal ordem que esses valores se tornam completamente ridículos. (...) Em Portugal é difícil avaliar este mercado. O serviço é recente e faltam dados que permitam quantificar o numero de utilizadores de serviços 3G ou 3,5G (...) e as próprias televisões avançam para os modelos de negócio sem números concretos, como já admitiram a RTP e a SIC»

fonte: »Modelo de Negócio do Mobile TV ainda não atrai a TVI», Jornal de Negocios, 24/8/06, Catarina Carneiro de Brito (pag 39)

É a opinião (excertos) de Corey Deitz (a merecer boa atenção):

«One of the scenarios I see coming together is the devaluation of AM and FM radio stations as technologies like WiMax take hold (...) WiMax will help to migrate Internet Radio from desktops to autos and other portable devices. WiMax radio signals (carrying broadband content at 70 megabits per second) should initially have a range of 30 miles. So, theoretically, an Internet radio station made available through a WiMax transmitting station centered in the middle of any American city will have the power to easily cover a 60-mile circumference, easily providing enough reach to rival most AM and FM stations being measured by Arbitron. (...) So, when the time comes when any enterprising programmer can create an Internet radio station which has the reach potential of terrestrial AM and FM properties, what does that do to their value? Well, I’m no financial genius but it seems to me it lowers their value – substantially. Before Internet radio, satellite, cell phones, and podcasts, AM and FM stations were considered non-renewable resources. In other words: the radio spectrum could hold only so many and no more could be created. (...) But, Internet radio stations can operate on low overhead which means they can also take more chances in specialized programming. They do not need as big an audience as a terrestrial station to be successful. An Internet radio station also doesn’t need 12 minutes of commercials each hour to be profitable, like many AM and FM operations. (...)And, although much weight has been put on HD Radio as part of the future saving grace of AM and FM, at least one question arises: will HD Radio infrastructure outpace WiMax infrastructure – and even if it does, will it matter?»

«“Instead of waiting as long as a month for a ratings report that only reflects the average audience for the previous three months, radio station executives will now have a single week of reliable audience ratings to see how a programming strategy is working. And thanks to the reliability of the PPM ratings, programmers won’t have to resort to home-brew, back-of-the envelope extrapolations of Arbitron data that can lead to misleading conclusions about the behavior of the radio audience. With PPM, when you run a strong promotion, make a personality or format change, you'll have credible audience feedback within weeks."» (Gary Marince, VP, Programming Services, Arbitron Inc)

fonte: Radio Ink, «Radio One Softens Stance On Houston PPM», 25/8/06

A Dixons, loja de produtos electrónicos on line, anunciou que deixará de vender rádios analógicos. Rádios só mesmo digitais (DAB). Sinais dos tempos...

«“The growth in demand for digital radios is further evidence that we’re living in the digital age,” said Nick Wilkinson, Group managing director for Dixons. “The snap, crackle and pop of the traditional wireless is rapidly being replaced with the crystal-clear sound of digital audio broadcasting.”

He added: “The traditional radio has been a huge part of home life in the UK, through good times and bad, over the last 100 years. Some of the most pivotal events in our history have been communicated to UK homes from analogue radio transmitters to wirelesses in homes around the UK. There is probably no other piece of technology that conjures such a powerful mental image as the old wireless perched on the mantelpiece with the family gathered around it.”»

- Quanto mais rádio se ouve menos música nos LAD (mp3)

«According to a new Bridge Ratings consumer study the number of songs stored on MP3 players varies by amount of weekly radio listening. The study found an inverse relationship among those consumers who spend less than the average amount of time per week listening to radio of any kind (terrestrial, satellite, internet).

According to the study of 2900 persons between 12 and 64 years of age, the average weekly radio listening is 34 hours per week. This includes listening to terrestrial, satellite and internet radio. Listeners who spend less than the average 34 hours a week with radio of any kind tend to have more songs on their digital music players. The average user of a high-capacity digital music device stores only 349 songs the study found. One in four players holds between 100 and 499 songs, while 25 percent have 500 songs stored on them. 59% of those surveyed said their digital music player holds fewer than 100 songs.

Light users of radio average 410 songs while average or heavier consumers of radio average 289 songs.

The Bridge Ratings study was conducted during July and August of this year.»

fonte: «New Bridge Study Examines Radio Listeners' MP3 Players», Bridge Ratings; tambem aqui.

There will always be lots of people wanting dedicated cameras or iPods, but the majority of people in future will opt to have all these functions on one device rather than two or three. They already are. It is no coincidence that in the first quarter, when Apple suffered a sharp drop in iPod sales (blaming it, implausibly, on seasonal factors), the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry said that half of all digital music sold in 2005 went directly to mobile phones (including ringtones).

The decline of iPod sales continued in the second quarter, while sales of music-enabled mobile phones soared. Nokia alone, a late entrant to music, plans to ship 80m music phones this year (almost double last year's iPod sales). Sony Ericsson is enjoying success with its popular Walkman phone, as is Motorola with its Razr, while LG's Chocolate was Carphone Warehouse's biggest ever seller.

fonte: Guardian, Dump your iPod, the mobile's taking over, Victor Keegan, August 24, 2006

Etiquetas: telemóveis, iPod, convergência

«(...) The iPod remains an amazing phenomenon but its heydays are over unless, as happened before, it reinvents itself with a new line such as a much-rumoured cameraphone. Tomi Ahonen, a mobile expert, claims that with a fall in total market share (of players and phones) from 80% to 14% in 18 months, the iPod is "wilting away before our eyes"(...)».

fonte: Guardian, Dump your iPod, the mobile's taking over, Victor Keegan, August 24, 2006

«Internet radio will greatly benefit from pervasive Wi-Max or wide-area wireless access, which will bring Internet radio to portable devices, including car radios, by 2008»

fonte: «Bridge: HD Radio Will Impact Satellite Growth; Wi-Max in Cars by '08», RWonline, 24/8/06

é a aposta da BBC, que estará a trabalhar num aparelho capaz de transformar os leitores de mp3 (e de outros formatos) em recpetortes de rádio digitais:

«Currently plans are at an early stage and there are no firm details for the capabilities of the gadget or how much it will cost. There is also no timetable for when the add-on radio might appear. "It's important for to us to make sure that people can listen to digital radio on their own terms," said a BBC spokesman. (...) "We have a duty to make sure digital radio is relevant and clearly portable MP3 players are a massive area of growth," he said. The plug-in gadget would not be limited to playing the BBC digital radio stations. Versions might also be available for mobile phones and cars.»

fonte: «BBC plans clip-on digital radio», Friday, 11 August 2006, 13:10 GMT 14:10 UK , BBC News

The tests are the lead-up to the full market test, and the company will start recruiting for the full market test in the fall. The results of those tests will be released this winter. If The Media Audit/Ipsos system is selected as the electronic radio ratings service, New York, Los Angeles and Chicago will be the first three markets to be surveyed after the completion of the full market test in Houston. The company plans to provide the service to 12 markets in 2007 if adopted.

The Media Audit/Ipsos system uses a Smart Cell Phone to capture the ratings data, so there is no hardware to manufacture for listeners to carry»

fonte: «Media Audit, Ipsos Plan First Measured Markets», Radio Currents Online, 7/8/06

«It's a "radical experiment," said Mark-Hans Richer, Pontiac's marketing director, conceding the effort won't generate as much awareness as TV and other traditional mass media. But it's a calculated risk, because Pontiac is targeting mostly younger men for the niche model. "We know where the bull's-eye is," he added, "so it's easier."

Mr. Richer might be a pioneer, but he's not the only one. A large part of the auto industry seems to be in the toe-dipping phase of a marketing transition that could see it go from a billion traditional advertiser to a leaner, meaner player more dependent on interactive and direct tactics»

fonte: «Pontiac G5 Blazes Trail to Internet-Only Advertising», AdAge, By Jean Halliday, Published: August 27, 2006

(curiosamente, tem ligação de kjack para leitores de audio digital... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pontiac_G5)

Excertos de um texto da BBCNews sobre os problemas criados pelo iTrip (desenvolvimento destes textos):

«(...) As these gadgets have to be tuned to an FM frequency, using one in the congested airwaves of a major city disrupts the user's listening pleasure. Chris Price, publisher to Techdigest.tv, used to have an iTrip to listen to his iPod while driving. But for a year it has languished unused - he grew fed up with local and pirate radio stations cutting in as he drove around London. It's completely useless in London as there are so many FM frequencies in use. I kept having to retune the thing each time to find a free FM frequency. Sometimes I'd get snippets of a station, sometimes it just took over. Obviously this is less of an issue if you live in the back of beyond." (...) "If I stopped at the lights next to someone with their iTrip using the same frequency, I could overhear the other driver's music or simply static. But it's not that likely - it would have to be the exact same frequency, and there are about 100 to choose from," says Mr Price. And by the same token, they can disrupt ordinary radio broadcasts. Many users tune into low or high FM frequencies, well away from major radio stations. But these ends of the dial are commonly used by public radio, given over to talk and news programming.»

fonte: «Transmission Breakdown», BBCNews, 20/7/06

PS - tenho os mesmo problemas no Porto com o iTrip, uma vez que as frequencias padrão estão ocupadas; alguém tem uma solução?

«Um em cada dez portugueses já usa o leitor digital portátil (MP3) para ouvir música (...). Os numeros falam por si: nos ultimos dois anos foram vendidos 693 mil leitores digitais de Mp3 em Portugal, segundo dados do Gfk Group. Só no ano passado venderam-se mais 245% de leitores de música digital do que no ano anterior, num total de 45 milhões de euros (...)

fonte: «Tv entra no podcasting», Manuel Posser de Andrade, Expresso/Economia,  26/8/06 (pag. 15)

Números do podcasting em Portugal:

«registamos uma média mensal de 26 mil dowloads do programa 'Caixilhos & Laminados' da Rádio Comercial, cerca de 16 mil para os 'Apanhados' da Cidade e 14 mil para o 'FMHistérico' da Best Rock», salienta o mesmo responsável [Carlos Marques,  director de Multimédia da Media Capital Rádios] (...) As três rádios deste grupo [Antena 1, Antena 2 e Antena 3] iniciram as emissões de podcasting em maio, sendo os mais procurados o 'Há Vida em markl', o 'Portugalex' e o 'Mix Show'. A Tsf, também pioneira no podcasting, já registou mais de 80 mil acessos desde Janeiro com o programa «Pessoal e transmissível» (...) O podcasting também está na mira das televisões nacionais. Tanto a Sic como a RTP disponibilizam alguns programas em áudio, mas só com a massificação dos dispositivos que possibilitam a leitura de ficheiros de video se deverá consolidar essa aposta. Desde Julho do ano passado foram vendidas 24 mil destas unidades , que representam um aumento de 4091% face ao ano anterior, de acordo com a Gfk. A RTP prevê lançar uma série de programas em videocasting no último trimestre deste ano (...)»

fonte: «Tv entra no podcasting», Manuel Posser de Andrade, Expresso/Economia,  26/8/06 (pag. 15)

«Navegar na Internet é a ocupação preferida de 40 % dos jovens portugueses depois do jantar, revela o estudo «Crianças e Jovens: A sua relação com as tecnologias e os meios de comunicação», realizado pelo Centro de Investigação e Estudos Sociológicos (CIES) do ISCTE, com a PT.COM. A televisão aparece em segundo lugar com 30% das preferências, à frente dos jogos (12%).. Mas se tivessem que optar apenas por um meio de comunicação, o inquérito, realizado on line no portal SAPO durante um mês (1353 respostas), indica que 70% optariam pela Internet e que a TV seria primeira opção para apenas 20%. Menos folgada é a escolha quando colocados perante a opção entre Internet e telemóvel. A maioria (505) continua a preferir navegar na Web, mas já há um numero significativo (43%) que optaria pelo telemóvel (...)»

fonte: Expresso/Economia, «televisão já não é a preferida», João Ramos, 26/8/06 (pág. 14)

«The internet delivers thousands of traditional stations and even more music streams and podcasts - downloads for personal MP3 players.

With these broad changes afoot, delegates at the International broadcasting Convention (IBC) in Amsterdam have been considering what it all means for the future of radio.

They conclude that radio has a rosy future as it enters a new era, where sound is accompanied by pictures, textual information and other content.»

fonte: «Future looking 'rosy' for radio», BBC News, 11 September 2005, By Ian Piper and Chris McWhinnie
BBC Monitoring, in Amsterdam

Mais do projecto «Visual radio» 

 «(...) According to Reidar Wasenius, of Nokia Multimedia, Finland, radio and mobiles go hand in hand. Many new generation mobiles already have radios in them and more people carry a phone than a radio. Visual Radio, which started in Europe in March 2005, is a system of direct two-way interaction between the listener and the radio station.

Visual radio lets you interact with the radio station

A broadcaster can create other content to display on the phone at the same time as being tuned to their FM radio station. This combines GPRS technology for transfer, data and existing FM technology. Using traditional FM is controversial however, when part of the radio industry is encouraging and investing in digital take-up. But the combination of two existing systems appears to be a simple solution. When questioned about the choice of FM and not digital, Mr Reidar said that "FM rocks and it works". Nokia also wanted to use conventional technology so give access to the mass market of billions of FM listeners. The phone would show the artist and title of the music with an option to buy the track and download it as a track or ringtone.

'Red button radio'?

For the first time this would deliver impulse buying to the radio. It would be possible to see the presenter, check a weather map, read about the current programme topic or take part in a phone vote or a competition. This is the equivalent of TV's red interactive button. So far a dozen stations across Finland, UK and Germany have installed the additional server the system requires and all users have to do is to have enabled their mobile phone handset. The station will have to update the information. Its inventors, Nokia, and marketing partners Hewlett-Packard, are very exited about visual radio. They hope to reach some of the estimated 760 million mobile phone users worldwide. Many users upgrade regularly, so it is easy for a manufacturer to introduce a new system. Michael Mullane from the European Broadcasting Union, Switzerland, said that people wanted more choice and radio-on-demand, alongside additional programme information. According to Mr Mullane, "radio has never sounded so good" and is "a vibrant medium with a rosy future". James Cridland from Virgin Radio, which is only on AM frequencies in many areas of the UK is seeing a drop in AM listening. (...)»

fonte: «Future looking 'rosy' for radio», BBC News, 11 September 2005, By Ian Piper and Chris McWhinnie
BBC Monitoring, in Amsterdam

«Arbitron announced today that it has begun installing its Portable People Meter (PPM^SM) system among Philadelphia-area consumers for the all-electronic radio ratings service, which is scheduled to replace the current paper and pencil diary method that the company has employed to collect radio audience estimates in Philadelphia since the late 1960s. Arbitron is recruiting a panel of 2,040 consumers (age 6 and older) to carry the Portable People Meter, a cell phone-sized device that automatically detects inaudible station identification codes. The first release of radio ratings will take place after the completion of an audit report by the Media Rating Council® (MRC) and a review of the audit report findings with the MRC radio committee. The MRC audit process in Philadelphia currently is under way.»

fonte: «Arbitron Installs First Households For Rollout Of Portable People Meter Ratings Service In Philadelphia», 31/08/06, Arbitron

e é a primeira empresa de telemóveis a anunciar uma coisa destas...

«Sprint Nextel Corp. announced that it plans to develop and deploy its fourth generation nationwide broadband mobile network using WiMax. Backed by Intel, Sprint plans to launch its 4G network in test markets in late 2007, and then expand to the top 100 U.S. Markets in 2008. "None of us today can envision our lives without wireless connectivity or the Internet," said Gary Forsee, president and CEO of Sprint Nextel, in a statement. “...We will have a unique broadband capability for meeting the growing access and mobile Internet needs of businesses, governments and consumers when and where they want.” Sprint will pour billion in 2007 and between .5 billion and billion in 2008 into the new mobile broadband network. The company will be working together with Intel, Motorola, and Samsung to implement the 4G network. There has been no word on how much this will cost the consumer, but a WiMax infrastructure will be considerably less expensive to build than traditional networks.»

É uma mera especulação, mas há quem diga que pode ser mais do que isso...

«a WiFi-equipped iPod would be able to stream music from Internet radio stations and even purchase and download songs Over The Air (OTA) from the iTunes Music Store. The problem with streaming is that it's only as good as the WiFi access point that you're connected to. I don't know about you but my MacBook Pro seems to have consistently poor Airport reception. If the iPod is going to rely on WiFi it's going to have to be well implemented. The bandwidth required for audio streaming is relatively small (less than 1Mbit/second) and you don't need much local storage when streaming, other than a little space for the cache. Streaming video on the other hand, requires requires 2-3Mbit/second of bandwidth.

Two things would be needed in a wireless iPod:

1) The iPod user interface is going to need a tune-up. If the iTunes Music Store is going to offer streaming radio stations and possibly even television the UI needs to be overhauled. It seems only logical that Apple would create a version of iTunes that runs on the iPod. People are familiar with iTunes from using it on their desktop machines and if they're not iTunes users, placing it on the iPod gives more exposure to Apple's flagship music application.

2) Wireless networking preferences will need to the added to the iPod to control the configuration of access points. Some form of data entry (either clickwheel based scrolling or a touchscreen/stylus combination) will be needed to enter credentials at protected hot spots.

A wireless iPod could also be the forbearer to a new subscription version of the iTMS where subscribers could download all the music they want for a flat fee per month. There are several of these subscription music services already on the market (Rhapsody, Napster, Yahoo, AOL, Virgin) and Apple may be considering ways to extend it's market dominance in digital music into subscriptions as well. (...)»

fonte: «Coming to an iPod near you: streaming and subscriptions», ZDNet, Posted by Jason D. O'Grady, 28/08/06

«The UK's radio industry will die unless it embraces multiple platforms and technologies like mobile DAB, according to a BBC executive. In an interview with industry newspaper Broadcast, BBC controller of interactive radio and music Simon Nelson said he feared for the future of radio in Europe and across the world unless it embraces new technology.  He said he wants to see DAB chips in mobile phones and portable devices so that digital radio can be accessed by more people. "If we don't change quite radically as an industry we will die,” said Nelson. “It's imperative that we have a digital transition for radio, a transition across multiple platforms. Radio is the most flexible of all mediums and has the potential to exploit what is going on in technology."

fonte: «Radio must adapt to technology or die», Jane Hoskyn, vnunet.com 04 Aug 2006