For the past century, radio’s primary method of delivery was by radio waves – amplitude modulated and frequency modulated signals. In order to hear broadcast radio transmissions, listeners required radio receivers. In the early days, these were big bulky devices but technological developments in the mid-20th century allowed radios to become much more portable. Battery-powered transistor radios could now be taken to the beach!
The 21st century marked the start of the digital age and with it came a host of cable and Internet-delivered audio and video. What was radio to do? The initial response of radio broadcasters went something like this: “We’re radio! Our listeners can hear us wherever they go. They don’t have to pay a thing to hear our programs. Nothing to worry about!” Then came Spotify, Apple Music, Pandora, Tidal, Amazon Music and You Tube.
Whether we like it or not, our love affair with radio transmitters may be coming to an end. The good news is that listeners can now hear our programs digitally. For portability, nothing beats the smart phone and radio broadcasts are easy to find if the listener knows where on their smart phone they are located.
Our monopoly of audio content has long passed. However, radio is still competitive if we make accessibility to our programs obvious to existing and potential audiences.
The following steps can help to make your transition to digital a bit easier.
- Teach listeners how to access your programs in ways in which they perhaps are not familiar. A simple example is to tell listeners that they can listen to your station on any device that accesses the Internet.
- Radio programs no longer need to be heard in real time. Make your breakfast program available at any time during the day. Special programs should also be available beyond their specific broadcast times.
- Make yourself visible. Think beyond audio and embrace visuals. Listener loyalty can be enhanced if listeners can make visual connections with your air personalities, programs, and services. Your website is the perfect place to do this.
- Give listeners incentives to move beyond traditional modes of transmission. Create and promote programs and services unavailable via AM or FM.
- Programs and services available only digitally offer value added to advertisers and create new sales opportunities
- Promote, promote, promote! In this new media environment, radio’s best hope for survival is to move into a digital mindset and bring our listeners along with us. Our top promotional priorities should be directed toward this end.
By Andy Beaubien, BPR
Digital distribution of program by Audio On Demand and streaming via either the mobile phone or the NBN systems are increasingly popular.
The BBC and the Germans have found that Digital Audio Broadcasting (DAB+) is the cheapest and least polluting method of program distribution. AM is by far the most expensive method of distribution. Our promotion of DAB+ in all our capital cities, Gold Coast and Mandurah seems to have all but disappeared. This is despite the fact that more that 76 % of new cars can receive DAB+. Digital radio should be prominent in vehicle particularly because 'AM' broadcasters can transmit their programs in stereo sound with high pitch sound can be heard without noise.
40 % of the Australian population do not have access to digital radio because DAB+ cannot cover large areas. The newer Digital Radio Mondiale (DRM) can cover from a local area to the whole country depending on the power and frequency used. When used in the VHF band a single FM transmitter can transmit from 3 to 18 programs with additional information. This puts the cost of transmission at DAB+ levels or less. The coverage area is larger because there are hundreds of transmission channels available allowing high power to cover up to 100 km radius. Ideal for regional stations.
With all the floods and fires lately both DRM and DAB+ can transmit emergency warnings with maps and detailed text to just the affected area, without affecting the rest of the audience of that transmitter.
These network leaders, along with the ABC and SBS should follow the 2013 conversion of TV from analog to digital to make their businesses more profitable and give the public better services.
I fully concur with Mr St. John.
In addition consideration must be given to the data consumption per hour. An hour of reasonable quality audio online can be 80MB per hour.
Consider that is nearly 1GB per day, 30GB per month, 720GB per year if you like listening to your favourite station 24 hours per day.
Then consider whether one can afford additional cost for listening to radio programs via the internet.
Furthermore consider if driving in rural and remote areas as well as mobile phone black spots. Even access to digital signals in tunnels and other structures with metal.
Sure the latter problems exist for terrestrial radio reception but not for driving in remote and rural areas where mobile phone access is scant.
There may be justification to close AM transmitters because the carrier frequency consumes energy regardless of the presence or absence of information.
But don't close or abandon FM or digital forms of terrestrial radio.
I have been listening to "AM" stations on DAB since 2009 for its crystal clear signal. I listen to AM such ABC News when I want to listen to our Federal Parliament which is not broadcast on its DAB signal.
There may well be a case to close AM transmitters to save energy but not digital forms of terrestrial radio.
Mr St. John may well be correct in determining that dissemination of content via IP delivery bay consume more energy than delivery of content terrestrially.
Also it costs more money to consume all your media content via IP.
Thank you
Anthony, Strathfield South, in the land of the Wangal and Darug People's of the Eora Nation