Matt May is a Web accessibility specialist, and has written on the interaction of people and technology since 1995. He keeps his own weblog at bestkungfu.com, and produces a podcast called Staccato, which features Creative Commons-licensed music.
Alex Williamsblogs, consults and produces unconference style events, where people immerse in DIY media. These are fun occasions, designed for people who want to get together with authors, artists, technologists and leading thinkers to converse, eat, listen to music, write, shoot photos and post podcasts and videoblogs. Alex also works with companies to establish DIY approaches, where writing, photography, voice and video come together to create new conversations and communities. Alex is currently fascinated with digital photography. His girlfriend calls him a Flickrholic. Send Alex a nice message: alexhwilliams at gmail.com.
Nicole Simon loves blogging and podcasting, dashed with an European view. As consultant she helps to facilitate such tools for business purposes or personal publishing empires. She can be found at cruel to be kind and on her private blog Useful Sounds.
Roland Tanglao is a well known podcasting enthusiast and a passionate advocate of blogs, RSS, and social software as a means of online expression for people, organizations and businesses. He is a prominent participant in the blogosphere and online communities and one of the founders of Bryght and as Bryght's Chief Blogging Officer reads hundreds of blogs daily. He graduated from the University of Waterloo, worked at Nortel Networks where he ran its first internal corporate blog, has has been blogging since 1999, and was the first business blogging consultant in Canada.
Check out the The AppGap - a group blog on the tools and trends that are changing the way we work.
Here come the corporations. In recent weeks, podcasting as a story has evolved from basement hobby and curiosity to untapped market, and it's no surprise what comes after that. Virgin Radio, following the lead of a number of public radio outlets, has started a podcast of its morning show. Warner Bros. is not only sponsoring Eric Rice's podcast, but has cleared music for the show as well.
Now the 800-pound gorilla of American radio, Clear Channel, has jumped into the fray. Yes, folks, in a Reuters article, a bigwig at the radio conglomerate has said the P word. (Hat tip: Dave Hodson)
Clear Channel announced its online strategy yesterday. Starting next week, the company will be offering original video programming on 200 of its 1200 outlets. As early as July, says the Reuters article, the company plans to sell subscription services, digital tracks, CDs and ringtones.
Oh, and make podcasts. Did we mention podcasting? Still no hint on what they consider to be a "podcast", however. Will they charge a fee? Will the product be a standard MP3 file? Will they use RSS enclosures? Sources hazy. This could be a sign of big media starting to get the concept of the distribution model, or it could be another exercise in buzzword-compliance.
"Online is radio's for the taking," says Clear Channel executive VP Evan Harrison. Such big talk. I wonder if they realize just what they're getting into. A radio-sized market for podcasting is certain to benefit independent podcasters. Those listeners who are already bemoaning the cookie-cutter uniformity of terrestrial radio will soon discover podcasts that offer compelling alternatives to Mitch and Marty's Wacky Morning Drive. The question isn't whether moving online will slow radio's downward slide. The question is whether it will accelerate it.
How funny. They'll be like a fish out of water. "Radio's for the taking..." Um. Ya. Sure, buddy.
I'm thinking that since they can't use the strategy they have on the airwaves of licensing every last bit of open spectrum, they'll need to find another way push independents out of the picture. I can see them getting full on behind RIAA and assisting attempts at law suits against podcasters for playing unlicensed material.
Too bad they've never heard of Matt May, Magnatune, and Lawrence Lesig, eh? ;)
Dear Clear Channel... you can not survive out here unless you learn one important thing. The podcast audience is one who listens by choice. Unless your content is something they want to hear, they won't bother with you. This is far from the world you are used to of being able to play what you want and convince people it's what they want to hear simply because they have no other choice.
Alex Williams
Matt May
Nicole Simon
Roland Tanglao
1. andy on March 25, 2005 7:02 PM writes...
How funny. They'll be like a fish out of water. "Radio's for the taking..." Um. Ya. Sure, buddy.
I'm thinking that since they can't use the strategy they have on the airwaves of licensing every last bit of open spectrum, they'll need to find another way push independents out of the picture. I can see them getting full on behind RIAA and assisting attempts at law suits against podcasters for playing unlicensed material.
Too bad they've never heard of Matt May, Magnatune, and Lawrence Lesig, eh? ;)
Dear Clear Channel... you can not survive out here unless you learn one important thing. The podcast audience is one who listens by choice. Unless your content is something they want to hear, they won't bother with you. This is far from the world you are used to of being able to play what you want and convince people it's what they want to hear simply because they have no other choice.
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