Enjoy great online radio at AccuRadio

FRANCE’S FiP A CLASSY, COMPACT WEBCAST: French webcast FiP is so intuitively designed, even a uni-lingual English speaking user (like myself) can easily navigate the site. A clearly identifiable play button launches the pop-up web player, which streams an interesting mix of French music and current adult rock (e.g., Robert Plant). The stream is continuous, so no song skipping features are included, though the upcoming tracks are listed. The player itself is beautifully designed, well matching the sophisticated music it delivers. Also featuring a detailed archive of recent tracks played, the FiP site is compact, classy, and easily accessible for anyone—French-fluent or otherwise. — MS

MUSIC INDUSTRY TRYING TO THIN NET RADIO HERD?: In reporting on the recent “pull-the-plug” announcement by Tim Westergren of Pandora, Pollstar adds their own analysis, writing, “There’s also the underlying suspicion, first voiced last year when the CRB announced the new rates, that the music industry does not want to see Internet radio thrive.” Currently, the plethora of webcasting choices allows “that garage band down the street to compete against major-label recording artists,” a situation that takes power out of the labels’ hands. Rather, the industry wants “a smaller, more robust Internet radio industry,” and are perhaps attempting a “thinning of the Internet radio herd,” through high royalty rates. To read the full Pollstar article, click here.

DEL COLLIANO, DARDIS SAY WEBCASTING’S PLIGHT WILL HURT BROADCASTERS, MUSIC INDUSTRY: Offering analysis of Pandora’s recent doomsday warning are industry experts Ken Dardis (pictured left) and Jerry Del Colliano (pictured right), both of whom see the music industry as well as broadcast radio attacking Internet radio—a situation Del Colliano refers to as a “conspiracy.” Dardis writes, “It’s apparent that radio broadcasters want pure-play internet radio dead. Internet radio is nothing more than competition.” However, by trying to destroy Internet radio, both broadcast radio and the music industry are hurting themselves. Both analysts call for unity rather than continued squabbling. Del Colliano argues that the NAB should take up the defense of webcasters while Dardis writes, “Internet radio better stop its whining and start organizing into one mass industry…If Washington won’t listen to [Pandora], everyone else is going to lose too.” Read Dardis’ article here, and Del Colliano’s here.

NEXTMEDIA SELECTS ABACAST FOR STREAMING: NextMedia Radio Group has picked Abacast, a provider of Hybrid Content Delivery Network services, to stream content from 27 of NextMedia’s stations. Abacast will also provide ad management and audience analytics. For more, read RBR’s coverage here.

Comment

1. On the story about PollStar and thriving internet radio all I have to say is: “UH DUH!”
   In fact I wrote a comment on this months ago about the EXACT same thing. Anyone with half a brain can figure this one out. Labels are dead. Big name artists can go do all the publishing themselves now. No matter what the major labels think, traditional ways are dying a hard death and they can’t stop it.

   — Matt · Aug 20, 11:48 AM · #

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