RADIO INDUSTRY URGED TO EMBRACE NEW TECHNOLOGY Joe Howard – Radio & Records In a keynote address at yesterday's NAB2005 Radio Luncheon, Sun Microsystems co-founder and Chief Researcher John Gage encouraged the radio industry to use new media devices to expand its existing relationship with listeners. "The trust you build up, enabled by technology, is the essence of what we all can do in radio," he said, adding that radio must "look at the edge" of new technology and find ways to expand through new services.
In particular, Gage suggested that radio connect with listeners through the text-messaging functions on cell phones and encourage listeners to text in news tips. He also noted that mobile phones that are capable of streaming radio signals will soon offer radio another way to reach listeners. He therefore stressed that radio must stay focused on its strengths in order to maintain its relationship with listeners. "Your industry is changing rapidly, but maintaining that core of connectivity is vital," he said.
Verizon CEO Ivan Seidenberg made similar pleas to the industry during Monday's all-industry opening ceremony, stressing that his industry and radio can work together to build a mutually beneficial future. "All we know for sure is that a new generation of consumers have thrown all of our tidy definitions and old ideas into a giant multimedia Mixmaster to turn America into a broadband nation," he said. "Phone calls over cable; radio over the Internet; television on the tiniest handsets and the biggest plasma screens imaginable. Communications embedded in every electronic device and home appliance you can think of. What technology has long made possible, customers have now made a reality." |