RAIN: Radio And Internet Newsletter: RAIN 2/24: For NPR users, apps have their place but website still king


RAIN 2/24: For NPR users, apps have their place but website still king
·Feb 24, 11:12 AM
Posted by: Michael Schmitt

NPR iPAD APP USED MOST LIKE A RADIO

NPR Digital Media’s Web Metrics Analyst Sondra Russell recently published an interesting graph outlining the relative audience sizes of NPR’s website and mobile apps. The graph also shows how much of a “lean forward” or “lean back” experience each site or app is, as well as audio usage. So what can Russell and all of us learn from the graph?

First off, “the Main Site is still kicking butt,” writes Russell. The graph shows the main website as a large circle, but the mobile apps as tiny dots. In fact, the most popular NPR app — their iPhone News App — is only “5% the size of the main site; the others are between 1% and 2%.”

The graph also shows that NPR’s iPad app is the most “radio-like,” with users listening to a lot of audio in a “lean back” experience. “Statistically speaking,” writes Russell, “85% of the audio requests on the iPad are for long continuous streams provided by stations. In other words, 85% the time, people are using it like a radio. In some cases, they’re even leaving it on their nightstand.”

You can read Russell’s full, often zen-like article here.

eMARKETER: FACEBOOK REACHES OVER HALF OF U.S. INTERNET USERS, TWITTER LESS THAN 10%

A new report from eMarketer shows that more than half of U.S. Internet users accessed Facebook at least monthly by the end of 2010. The report predicts that 62% of web users and almost half of the total U.S. population will use Facebook by 2013.

Meanwhile, 9% of the U.S. adult Internet population used Twitter by the end of 2010. Find eMarketer’s full report here.

NEW COMPANY FROM TECH VETERAN ROBERTSON AIMS TO BE LIKE DVR FOR RADIO

Michael Robertson, tech entrepreneur and founder of MP3.com, has launched DAR.fm — a platform that aims to be like a DVR for radio. The service will record radio programming and even let users skip between different songs in a recording. VentureBeat has more coverage here and you can watch Robertson launch the service here.

Robertson will join us in Las Vegas on April 11 for RAIN Summit West 2011. You can find out more, and register, right here.

IS IT A TOASTER WITH RADIO, OR A RADIO THAT TOASTS BREAD?

If your everyday, run-of-the-mill digital radios just don’t have enough bang for your buck, take note. A new digital radio from Breville includes a toaster…or rather, a new toaster from Breville also tunes in to digital radio. It retails for around $79 and is available in the UK and Australia. Find out more here.

share:  del.icio.us.  post this at del.icio.us

 Reddit  post this at Reddit

 Digg  post this at Digg

 Yahoo   post this at Yahoo! my web

 Wink   post this at Wink

 Windows   post this at Windows Live

 Google  post this at Google Bookmarks

 Newsvine  post this at Newsvine


Comment


via textpattern.kurthanson.com

W&V: Hit-Radio Antenne Niedersachsen bringt mehr Ruhe ins Programm

Hier ein Jingle, dazwischen ständig Einspieler mit der Ankündigung eines Gewinnspiels – so sah das Programm von Privatradios lange Zeit aus. Viele Sender versuchen jedoch, vom krawalligen Image etwas abzurücken – so jetzt auch Hit-Radio Antenne Niedersachsen: „Wir vollziehen einen Paradigmenwechsel, indem wir das Sound-Bild drastisch reduzieren“, erzählt Programmchef Stephan Offierowski. Das bedeutet: „Wir entfernen Programmverpackungen vorsichtig, verbannen marktschreierische Superlative vom Sender und sind vorsichtiger mit Gewinn-Promotions.“ Denn häufig nimmt der Hörer derlei Elemente als nervig wahr – bis zum Senderwechsel ist es da nicht mehr weit.

Diese Gefahr hat auch Antenne Bayern erkannt: „Hörer arbeiten immer häufiger am Computer in Großraumbüros und immer seltener alleine an der Werkbank“, weiß Valerie Weber, Geschäftsführerin und Programmchefin. Man verzichte daher mittlerweile bei Sprech-Takes auf zusätzliche belastende Musikbetten, bei Produktionen auf laute und lärmige Effekte sowie auf zu viele Mitmach-Aufrufe. Denn Radio sei im Internet-Zeitalter nicht mehr der einzige Draht zur Außenwelt: „Jede Form zum Aufruf für weitere Interaktionen kann den Hörer überfordern“, so Weber.

Mancher Sender scheut jedoch das Risiko, bei der Media-Analyse an Reichweite zu verlieren, wenn dem Hörer nicht ständig der Name der Station eingebläut wird. Dass es dazu nicht kommen muss, hat Alexander Heine, Programmchef des Stuttgarter Hit-Radio Antenne 1, festgestellt. Er verzichtet bereits seit Anfang 2009 auf lärmige Geldgewinnspiele. Die seien zwar viele Jahre erfolgreich gewesen, doch „der Effekt wird immer geringer“. Der Beliebtheit des Senders habe das keinen Abbruch getan. Heine: „Die Hörer sind begeistert wie vor vier, fünf Jahren.“

via wuv.de

Exclusive: Social Music Startup Rdio Raises $17.5 Million, Adds Rob Cavallo To Board

Rdio, the social music startup founded by Skype founders Janus Friis and Niklas Zennstrom, isn’t exactly waiting around for Spotify to make its way to the United States (or Google Music for that matter).

TechCrunch has learned that the company has secured $17.5 million in funding from new investor Mangrove Capital Partners, along with earlier backers Skype, Atomico Ventures and Friis himself through some of his investment entities.

Ironically, Friis co-founded Rdio as well as most of its current list of investors, apart from Mangrove Capital Partners, which did famously back Skype during its very early days and made a ton when the company was eventually sold to eBay.

Rdio has also gained a new board member, and not just anyone; the company has appointed Warner Bros. Records Chairman Rob Cavallo as its new director. Cavallo is a Grammy-nominated producer known for his work with artists like Green Day, Dave Matthews Band, Fleetwood Mac, Jewel, Kid Rock and Alanis Morissette.

He joined the Rdio board specifically to help further strengthen Rdio’s relationship with the music industry, something rivals Spotify and even Google have been struggling with, particularly in the US. Rdio already has relationships with EMI Music, Sony Music Entertainment, Universal Music Group and Warner Music Group in place, as well as agreements with thousands of indie labels.

Users of the unlimited, on-demand social music service (such as myself) can currently build and share online music collections from a catalogue of over 8 million songs.

Rdio offers a Web-only music streaming music service for $4.99, and a premium version that adds mobile access for $9.99 per month.

Rdio will use the additional capital to expand to new platforms and new regions in the course of this year. Part of the funds will also go towards hiring new employees, ramping up marketing efforts and product development.

On a funny sidenote: word about Mangrove’s investment in Rdio leaked out last week, albeit without the size of the round or any other details, when Mangrove partner Mark Tluszcz sent a tweet to MC Hammer before any public announcements about their involvement. Doh!

Rdio image

Website: rdio.com
Location:San Francisco, California, United States
Founded: August, 2008
Funding: $17.5M

Rdio is an unlimited, on-demand social music service that lets subscribers listen to music on the web and mobile devices. Rdio differentiates itself by its social design which emulates the way music has typically been shared—from person to person. … Learn More

Information provided by CrunchBase
via techcrunch.com