Online personalized consumption:

Online personalized consumption:

How the radio opened Pandora’s box

Obercom 23/11/09 - jpmeneses

Music in portuguese radio: around 80%


- Music in USA radio: 88% are music radios;

- «The majority of stations in Britain follow a very similar

format dominated by music» (Fleming, 2002: 6);

- Music in Spanish radio: less than 50%;


Music and young people


- «91% of US seventh graders and some 96% of US ninth

graders are guided by the music in their choice of radio

stations (Felber, 1991, apud Boehnke et al., 2002: 195);


Music and digitalization


- «The new technologies of the Internet, at first, seem to

Offer a space in which music radio can be made free

of corporate interests, where innovation can take place,

and therefore where variety can flourish for the public

good» Wall (2004: 29);


Radio depends on music industry


- «Each week, on average, between one- and two-hundred

singles are released in the UK. To reach number one,

a single would currently have to sell on average some

125 000 copies in a week. Exposure on radio is a crucial

prerequisite of sales success on this scale»

(Hendy, 2000: 225);


Radio and its dependency

Obercom 23/11/09 - jpmenesesHow the radio opened Pandora’s box

- «Playlists» (narrow);

- «Airplay» (fight for);

- «Payola» (money, money...);


- «More radio stations do not necessarily bring about more choice for listeners and sometimes the only way to distinguish between one station and another is the station ident» (Fleming, 2002: 6);

Radio and its dependency

Radio lost next generation


«One of the many reasons radio has lost the next generation is that music stations are unremarkable. They are vanilla. Sound the same. Too repetitious. Too many commercials. Too phony. Not real» [1]

[1] COLLIANO, Jerry Del, «Radio: Bob Dylan, Program Director, Inside Music Media, 27/06/08


«The McDonaldization of radio»

(MaCFarland apud Berry, 2006a: 149).

Why musical radio loses ‘next generation’ (main reasons):


- iPod and mobile phones are more atractive and more

convergent;

- Internet allows choice, control and personalization;

- Free music (legal and illegal) without ads;

- Day has only 24 hours (but there are new players);

- New generation has different ideias and ‘needs’

(they listen when they want);

Why musical radio loses ‘next generation’ (other reasons):


- Radio is failing in convergence;

- Narrow radio playlists (repetion);

- Intrusive ads and less talent on ‘djs’;

- Sincronic formats (24/7);

- Ratings doesn’t care about youngs;


[1] COLLIANO, Jerry Del, «Redifene Radio – Don´t Reinvent it», Inside Music Media, 04/02/08

«Constant denial – that’s what's killing radio. (…) They have driven off the next generation -- have no clue what they want -- and think the problem is about perception. No one cares about perception -- they care about content and -- I might add -- how it is delivered» [1]

‘All’ music exists online


- Being MySpace nº 1 is already more important than

massive radio airplay?

- Radio is losing gatekeeper role?

New on-demand music services


- Listen thethe music I want;

- Listen the music whenwhen I want;

New on-demand music services


- iPod has ‘only’ the music I put;

- On-demand music services has ‘all’ the music;

On-demand music services


- They are free (even if there’s a premium

service without ads);

- They want I interact;

“Pandora radio”


- Created on 2000;

- «Listen to free Internet radio»;

- Original recomendation service ('music

genome project');

- Is a legal player (only on USA);

- Inspired hundreds of other services;

Online music services


- I can choose the song or the music;

- I can reject (skip) the song;

- I can create personal playlists;

- I can re-listen my music;

- I can share my profile and find other interesting profiles;




- 'Music genome project'- 'Music genome project' (Pandora), 'srobbling'srobbling' (Lastfm) or

Amazon ‘who-bought-this-also-bought-that’Amazon ‘who-bought-this-also-bought-that’ recomendation

creates a new way in music listening (social recomendation);

- «Listeners have tastes, radio has genres», says Ramsey [1]

[1] RAMSEY, Mark, «Radio's in the “scarcity” business», Hear 2.0, 11/09/06




- «Amazon.com’s approach to book reviews is also indicative

of a new gatekeeping without gatesa new gatekeeping without gates. Amazon.com seems

further instructive of how a digital future might operate along

the lines of McLuhan’s “everyone a publisher”»

(Levinson, 1999: 128);



- ‘Thumbs up’ or ‘thumbs down’ gives power to the consumer

(each service has is personal taxinomy);

- Is the new «matchmaking»matchmaking»

(Schmidt, apud Levinson, 1999: 129);




- «Services that allow users to customize their channels generate large, loyal audiences» [1]

- «Digital technology is creating an iPod generation who see radio, and content, as something they can create and control themselves and is fuelling a wildfire global network of niche, net-based ‘radio’ channels» (Shaw, 2005: 2);

[1] «The Radio Futures Study» (2008), Radionext (pág. 22)


My research


- «power to the peoplepower to the people» observed on 12 online music services:

- AccuTunes; Cotonete; Deezer; Finetune; Imeem; Jango;

Last.fm; Launchcast; Musicovery; Pandora; Playlist; We7;


My research - 22 items analized (some examples):

- Choose one song?

Listen complete version (not 30’)?

Choose an artist/band?

It sugests me other songs?

Skip the proposal?

How many times can I refuse?

Pause and play?

Create playlists?

My research (conclusions):


My research (conclusions from 4 chosen songs):


My research (conclusions from 4 chosen songs):


- Five give me what I want;

- Four didn’t give me any of the 4 songs;

Final ideas:


- If I want passive music, radio is ok;

- If I want to control what I want when I want, online music

services is the solution;

- «Any radio strategy that doesn’t include listener participation and active input will fail» [1]

[1] COLLIANO, Jerry Del, «Gen Y Consults Radio», Inside Music Media, 14/04/08

But it will be... radio?


the end (and thanks)

Online personalized consumption:

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