 RAIN 01/08: Interoperable satellite radio coming in spring ·Jan 8, 11:15 AM OVER FIVE MONTHS AFTER MERGER, SIRIUS XM PRESENTS FIRST INTEROPERABLE RADIOThe first satellite radio device that can receive all Sirius and XM channels will arrive in spring, Sirius XM announced today, five months after the competitors’ merger was approved.Dubbed MiRGE, the player features a color screen with programming guides, a rotary knob, and will alert users of favorite artists playing on other channels. Additionally, the player will be able to pause and replay up to 60 minutes of programming. MiRGE will be available in early spring for $249.99. To tune in to both Sirius and XM programming, listeners must subscribe to the “SIRIUS Everything plus XM Everything” package for $19.99 a month. Read the official press release here. PC MAG: SLACKER ON BLACKBERRY AS GOOD AS PANDORA ON iPHONESlacker is now available on Blackberry mobile devices. PC Mag’s Dan Costa recently reviewed the free application, and liked what he found. Costa says the Slacker’s mobile features are “identical” to those found online, and that sound quality was good with the caveat of buffer delays. “Inevitably, people will compare Slacker for BlackBerry to the wildly popular Pandora for the iPhone,” Costa writes. “I find that both perform the same basic functions and do them well. But given the iPhone’s native audio features, however, the Slacker option means a lot more for the BlackBerry platform. By delivering smooth Internet radio, this software adds some much-needed flash to the once-staid BlackBerry platform.” Read the full review here. WUNDER RADIO TO BE AVAILABLE FOR WINDOWS MOBILE RadioTime and Weather Underground announced at CES Tuesday that their WunderRadio application, up until now only available for the iPhone, will be brought to Windows Mobile devices. WunderRadio tunes in to Internet radio through RadioTime’s guide (RAIN coverage here). For more, read RBR’s coverage here.
EMMIS LAUNCHES FOUR STATION-CENTERED iPHONE APPSEmmis Communications has debuted iPhone applications for New York stations Hot 97, 98.7 Kiss FM and 101.9 RXP. The apps were developed under a partnership with RadioVoodoo, and feature iTunes tagging. Industry analyst Mark Ramsey discussed such applications recently at his Hear 2.0 blog (here), writing, “While it’s fine to have your own station’s button on the iPhone, history will prove that listeners will be way more interested in buttons that allow access to many stations rather than just one.” Read more on Emmis’ new apps at FMQB here.UNIVISION ONLINE RESTRUCTURESUnivision Online has been renamed Univision Interactive Media and will include not only Univision.com, but also mobile suite Univision Móvil. Kevin Conroy, former EVP of AOL, has been named president. For more, read RBR’s coverage here.share: del.icio.us.  Reddit  Digg  Yahoo  Wink  Windows  Google  Newsvine 
Comment Other stories RAIN 9/2: Apple makes iTunes experience more social, more "radio-like" RAIN 9/1: FilterMusic.net excels at helping you discover new streams RAIN 8/31: Pandora's Les Hollander to speak at RAIN Summit East RAIN 8/30: Former Forrester analyst to deliver second keynote of RAIN Summit East RAIN 8/27: Radio vet Bill Gamble to consult AccuRadio's country stations RAIN 8/26: Clear Channel's digital chief Evan Harrison to leave at end of year RAIN 8/25: Pandora spotlights improved "genre-based" listening options RAIN 8/24: NAB presents details of proposed royalty settlement to members RAIN 8/23: Mobile media growth will even outpace Internet, predicts Nielsen RAIN 8/20: New deadline for Internet Radio Awards is August 31 |
