REPORT: INTERNET RADIO UP 26% IN 2007. Web-based music radio services generated 4.85 billion total listening hours in 2007, a 26% increase over 2006, according to a report from AccuStream iMedia Research. Total listening hours averaged 404.2 million hours per month, compared to a 320.5 million hour average in 2006. AOL’s Shoutcast directory remained the top platform for Internet music radio, claiming 48% of total listening hours for the year, and was followed by Clear Channel Online, Yahoo Music, AOL Radio, and Pandora. (RAIN Analysis: Given the number of hours in a day and days in a month, that would equate to a Mon-Sun 6A-12M AQH, for the music-based portion of Internet radio, of about 720,000 listeners.)

SAME REPORT: INTERNET RADIO AD REVENUES UP 194% IN 2007. In the above-mentioned report, AccuStream estimated that the Internet music radio ad market was worth approximately $92 million in 2007. That included $80 million in audio ads — a 194% increase from 2006 — and another $12-$15 million generated through video ads placed within radio sites. Read coverage in Digital Media Wire here.

RAIN ANALYSIS: DO THESE NUMBERS MAKE SENSE? If you use AccuStream’s estimate that Shoutcast comprised about half of their hours tuned, that only leaves an AQH of just over 360,000 listeners for everyone else… and comScore Arbitron estimates that just their five clients alone have more listeners than that (here), leaving no room for Pandora, Last.fm, all broadcasters other than CCU, and for virtually all independent webcasters (i.e., except for those on Shoutcast). Somebody’s wrong. (Also, less than two cents in revenues per listener-hour seems light. One problem: This revenue estimate apparently does not include (A) sponsorships or (B) banner ads that run on the player.) (Of course, the “listenership up 26%“ conclusion could still be correct in relative terms, as long as the company used the same methodology for both years.)

TERRESTRIAL RADIO’S YEAR BEGINS “HORRIBLY“ WITH 6% REVENUES DECLINE. The Radio Advertising Bureau (RAB) reports that local revenues for all markets were off by 5% this January, compared to January 2007 and that national revenues fell 13%, making a combined local and national revenues decline of 7%. The only saving grace? Non-spot revenues grew 11%, bring up the total revenues decline, including local, national, and non-spot, to only 6%. Stock analysts, naturally, reacted negatively to the news.

BEHAVIORAL ECONOMICS MAY EXPLAIN ROYALTY RATE IMPASSE. In this week’s issue of The New Yorker, Elizabeth Kolbert reviews a new book called “Predictably Irrational: The Hidden Forces That Shape Our Decisions“ (Harper; $25.95) by M.I.T. professor Dan Ariely, which may explain why the Internet radio royalty process has been so beset by problems. See the “Latest CRB royalty news” section of RAIN at right for more.

BLOG OF THE DAY I: DEL COLLIANO DESCRIBES PLAN TO SAVE RADIO. In his “Inside Music Media” blog, former “Inside Radio” publisher and current USC professor Jerry Del Colliano proposes a ten-point plan: (1) Start by seeing “radio” under a larger umbrella. (2) Get into the local content business. (3) Stop the firing. (4) Start your own Internet-based record labels… (6) Start new streams and make them different than what’s on the terrestrial signal… Read the full piece here.

BLOG OF THE DAY II: RAMSEY SUGGESTS LEGISLATING-HD-INTO-SATELLITE RADIOS PLAN COULD BACKFIRE. Researcher Mark Ramsey, in his “Hear 2.0” blog, writes, “I think it is unlikely that HD would ever be legislatively bundled with satellite radio… (But) let’s pretend that every new satellite radio has HD plus hundreds of satellite radio channels available… What do you think would happen? Would this be the beginning of the HD radio era — or the end?” His logic is that any comparison between the two would be unfavorable to HD; thus, all HD radio promotion today may turn out to be inadvertent promotion for satellite radio tomorrow. Read the full piece here.

TRIBUNE COLUMNIST RATES WEB RADIO OFFERINGS. Chicago Tribune tech columnist Eric Benderoff ranks AOL Radio as his favorite Internet radio service when compared to similar services provided by other the web giants, Microsoft and Yahoo. Benderoff was impresssed with AOL’s 200 channels plus access to some of XM’s channels; says AOL Radio provides, “the best sound I’ve heard online that doesn’t require a software download.” Read full review here.

HOW DO YOU LIKE THIS NEW FORMAT FOR RAIN? This one-paragraph-per-story approach may be a two-day experiment; on the other hand, you might like it! Let us know by clicking the link below and adding your comments — either about the content of today’s stories or about the presentation format.

Comment

1. I like the format. More efficient for me.

   — Al Stewart · Feb 21, 11:16 AM · #

2. I would like for you to have a print button for articles. I frequently print out relevant articles and I don’t want to print the whole website page, only the article.

   — Justine Toms · Feb 21, 11:24 AM · #

3. Hi, RAIN:

   Lose the “one-paragraph-per-story” format.

   RAIN readers are motivated. Grabbing the headline without a grasp of the nuance, is like a dull knife: it just ain’t cuttin’ (James Brown). This is a news niche where nuance and complexity reign.

   Whether one reads RAIN for regulatory updates, “heads-ups” on technology, or marketing and industry events and trends, it’s the insight provided by Kurt’s exegeses or the apposite blogs by David Oxenford and others — today’s by Del Colliano.

   Rob Robinson

   — Rob Robinson · Feb 21, 11:42 AM · #

4. I find the format preferable to that which you have been using. It is clearly organized and easily accessible. I also would like the ability to print an article. (Currently you can’t even copy and paste!)

   — C. Edwards · Feb 21, 11:47 AM · #

5. Looks good

   — Dave Brehm · Feb 21, 11:55 AM · #

6. Hey RAIN Men:
   The new format is nice, and easy to navigate. Thanks for a great information resource!

   Best,
   Bill Wilkins
   Melted Metal Web Radio

   — Melted Metal Web Radio · Feb 21, 01:04 PM · #

7. I like it! More room for more articles. Then I can quicky skip over the ones that dont interest me. Also Id like to be able to print a story.

   — John Blanchard · Feb 21, 01:26 PM · #

8. I like the new format very much.

   — Bob Augsburg · Feb 21, 01:39 PM · #

9. works for me good overview as well

   — mike allen · Feb 21, 01:40 PM · #

10. Like what you’ve done. Good article selection and, critically, you maintained the ability to link to greater detail if one is interested.

    A first glance observation is that it feels cramped.

    — Lee Logan · Feb 21, 02:15 PM · #

11. Very much clearer

    Good job!

    — Curt Hansen · Feb 21, 02:46 PM · #

12. I like the new format—allows me to find the articles I’m very interested in fast.

    — Betty Luse · Feb 21, 03:15 PM · #

13. This is almost unreadable. The text is too large and cramped! Almost no change to the layout at all which I found confusing in the first place. This thing is just getting clogged with stuff and I’ve started to read only the summaries that I receive in email and not even look at the newsletter itself. You really need a change here. Yes. I do build websites and no this is not a promo for my other business. I just don’t like valuable information being poorly presented.

    Ed.

    — Ed Tankus · Feb 21, 03:37 PM · #

14. Lee and Ed — We’ve loosened the space between lines on the homepage a bit. Better?

    — Kurt Hanson · Feb 21, 03:37 PM · #

15. I like the new format but I’m not sure you need to do it daily. It could be more like EFF DeepLinks posting MiniLinks when they have the right selection. But please keep doing ALL you do and keep trying to do it better. You guys rock!

    — Philip Merrill · Feb 24, 09:35 AM · #

16. I like the brief paragraphs, but the overall layout is horrible. Unattractive font and very dense text. The right hand menus repel rather than attract the eye and are unreadable. Instant turn-off.

    — Erica Brown · Feb 25, 04:34 AM · #

Other stories
RAIN 09/05: DiMA's Potter disputes SoundEx's "lack of webcaster monetization" argument
RAIN 09/04: "Mission accomplished" for HD Radio Alliance
RAIN 09/03: Brian Parsons joins Triton Media
RAIN 9/2: Broadcasters should be on "as many wireless devices as possible," says Greater Media VP
RAIN 08/29: BBC PLANS MASSIVE MUSIC STREAMING SERVICE
RAIN 8/28: RIAA lobbying for radio royalties at political conventions
RAIN 8/27: Analyst warns investors away from "long-term loser" music industry
RAIN 8/26: In heavyweight online radio battle, CC readies "I Heart Music" to take on CBS
RAIN 8/25: Chrysler's in-car Internet launches
RAIN 8/22: Pandora's fight is radio's fight, says industry research expert