On March 4, 2010 I presented a case study over the somewhat new technology of internet radio and how digital radio with become the new way of consuming music and news. I specifically looked at the internet radio called Pandora and the benefits of this technology. Pandora is digital music service that can be accessed through the internet were users create a profile and personalized channels. The user types in an artists, song title, or genre in the search bar which allows the automated music recommendation program, Music Genome Project, to choose similar songs. The Music Genome Project uses almost 400 attributes to describe songs and a simple mathematical algorithm to organize songs looking at related characteristics. The user can then “Like” or “Dislike” songs to specialize the play list even further. This allows for the “radio station” to become more personalized and more tuned to the type of music the listener wants to hear. There is also significantly less advertisements on Pandora in relation to analog radio. This allows for less interruption in music content as well as advertisements that are more characteristic to the genre of music being played.
The question of the week was “How do older media serve as a template for a Wireless Culture?” In class, we discussed how companies such as AT&T, RCA, and GE were the basically the founders of radio and are still around today. However, these corporations are no longer concentrated in radio. Digital radio still carries the same content as analog radio, just better with better quality and more personalized. Another question was also asked in the class discussion, “Who owns controls the airwaves?” The FCC uses a “public interest” standard to renew broadcasting licenses. However, I would go on to say that the public controls the airwaves. Radio stations must play what the audience wants to hear so prosper and stay on the air. With the advancement of radio and technology, internet radio puts the audience in more control. With portable and personalized internet radio stations becoming more abundant and easier to access, radio consumers are gaining more and more control. I encourage my classmates to take advantage of this new technology.
Some digital radio station can be found at:
Additional information on digital and internet radio can be found at:
www.windowsmedia.com/radioui/home.aspx
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