ASIA

According to a report by the Afghanistan Journalist Center (AFJC), the Taliban Directorate of Intelligence prison has released Mirza Hasani, former owner and editor of Radio Aftab, a local radio station in Daikundi province of central Afghanistan, after four months of detention.Hasan was arrested at a checkpoint in Herat city while trying to move to Iran for a safer life on May 24, when the agents of the General Directorate of Intelligence (GDI) searched his phone. After seeing journalistic posts on his social media accounts, they suspected him of working as a reporter for the National Resistance Front (NRF) and transferred him to the intelligence agency’s prison in Kabul.He was released on Sunday afternoon, his wife Sakina Rahimi confirmed to AFJC via a messaging app.AFJC said: “We welcome the release of journalist Mirza Hasani, but we stress that he should never have been detained in the first place. If authorities had any grievances or found the reports biased, they could pursue the issue via the Media Complaints Commission, not by illegally detaining the reporters.”AFJC also called upon authorities to “release Journalist Khalid Qadiri who was sentenced to one year in prison in May for allegedly spreading anti-Islamic Emirate propaganda and committing espionage for foreign media outlets, and urge them to ensure journalists can do their work without interference, fear, or reprisal.”Based on the AFJC’s finding there have been a total of 245 cases of violations against media freedom in Afghanistan, including 130 cases of short-term detention of journalists during one year of Taliban rule.These detentions, which lasted from one hour to several hours and even some months often included physical violence, insults, and even torture of journalists.Photo: AFJC […]

Korean startup Spoon Radio Inc has shared its business results for the first three quarters of the year, registering a profit for nine consecutive months from January to September.The company earned 34 billion KRW ($23 million) in gross revenue and had an increase in operating profit of more than 23 billion won ($16 million) compared to 2021.Spoon is a social digital audio live streaming service which allows users to listen to streamers and even start their own live streams using their smartphones and web, without any other equipment. It provides services in four languages, including South Korea, the United States, Japan, and Middle Eastern and North African regions. It has an average of 1 million monthly users as of September 2022.Its growth has been helped by a steady increase in monthly in-app purchases and a rise in the number of high-income DJs in Japan.The company recently shifted its strategy from that of aggressive marketing until last year to strengthening profitability this year.The main driver of its earnings growth this time is securing high-income DJs. Compared to last year, the number of high-income DJs increased by more than 20 percent, from 840 to 1,030.In addition, it has focused on countries with high potential through selection and concentration in the global market. As a result, about half of the current total users are Japanese users. The payment amount in Japan is also increasing steadily enough to account for more than 50% of the total payment amount.Choi Hyuk-jae, CEO of Spoon Radio, said: “This achievement is meaningful in that it proved that it could break away from the so-called deficit growth strategy of the past, which prioritized aggressive marketing costs and created operating profit. We plan to focus on growing together, improving the quality of content, and growing sales.” […]

Benztown and P1 Media Group will host a free webinar on Thursday, October 13, 2022, for radio professionals around the globe, entitled Join the Conversation: The Incredible NOW! Radio Success Story – Part II. The webinar will be hosted by Andreas Sannemann, CEO, Benztown, and Ken Benson, Partner, P1 Media Group, and features Mark Hunter, VP of Programming, NOW! Radio, and Ross Winters (pictured), Director of Programming, Pattison Media, Canada’s largest western-based media company. This is the 25th in the webinar series from top radio experts from around the world.Mark Hunter started his radio career in 1985, when he was hired on his 19th birthday to work with Rawlco in Saskatchewan, in Saskatoon, Prince Albert and Regina.He was on-air, producer, creative director, and News/Talk producer before he got his dream job as Program Director in 2000.In 2009, Hunter was named Program Director of a new license in Edmonton, CKNO-FM, and eight months later, NOW! Radio was born. He programmed 102.3 NOW! Radio Edmonton for 10 years, driving huge ratings and billings success which continues today.Hunter is currently a Senior Programmer for Pattison Media, working mostly in Metro markets including Calgary, Winnipeg, and British Columbia.Ross Winters began his radio career as a DJ at a Top 40 radio station in Victoria, British Columbia. He quickly moved into programming and worked as Program Director at legendary Canadian Rock stations in Winnipeg, Vancouver, and Toronto.While programming Rock 101 in Vancouver, Winters also served as National PD for Corus Entertainment, one of the largest groups in Canada. He spent time as a researcher and consultant before joining Pattison Media as Director of Programming in 2015.In the 30-minute webinar, Hunter and Winters will continue the conversation with their unique take on programming successful radio stations today, and the power of doing things differently, including:
How a truly different type of radio station became a runaway success and what do they do differently than other radio stations?
NOW! Radio’s slogan is “Join the Conversation.” Are there any topics or conversations that are off-limits?
As a result of NOW! Radio’s long-term success, more Canadian music stations have increased the personality quotient. Is this a good thing for radio and what should Music Radio programmers know before increasing the personality quotient on their stations?
How has creative outdoor advertising worked to drive the success of NOW! Radio and what are some of their most successful campaigns?
Does this format only work in a Hot AC format, or could it be put in a completely different format?
The webinar will take place this Thursday, October 13, 2022, at 10:00am PST/1:00pm EST/7:00pm CET. […]

Content from BPRUS auto makers are ceasing production of car audio systems that include the AM medium-wave band. European car makers have been doing so for years.So why are US auto makers deleting AM medium-wave band from car audio systems? The reason may not be so obvious.In the US, almost all AM stations have reverted to news/talk programs as car listeners have come to realize that the audio quality of AM medium-wave is clearly inferior to that of FM and digital audio. However, an additional reason for the abandonment of AM stems from the fact that electric vehicles (EV’s) produce electromagnetic waves at around the same frequency as AM medium-wave signals. The result is significant interference between the AM receiver and the EV’s engine.It is ironic that the advent of electric vehicles will be the final straw that breaks the back of AM radio listening in the US.Electric vehicles are here to stay. EU member nations have agreed to stop sales of internal combustion autos by 2035. The large US auto makers will probably not be far behind as internal combustion engines go the way of tyrannosaurus rex.The Jacobs Media Tech Survey 2022 that was conducted in the US shows that Bluetooth has now overtaken FM as the preferred audio source in automobiles. The reason is fairly obvious. An increasing number of car listeners use their mobile phones as a primary audio source and Bluetooth is currently one of the most common methods of connecting a smart phone to a car audio system. We can safely conclude that the smart phone is for many users the primary source of audio content in the car.As this trend progresses, radio stations are finding themselves directly competing with virtually every other digital audio source available on a smart phone.Even FM radio has become harder to find in modern car audio systems. FM is just one of a number of listening choices on the car touch screen.Once again, we are reminded that radio companies are essentially audio content providers. Our job is to ensure that our program content is appealing and unique. In the age of digital audio, all players are equal. It is only the content that distinguishes the winners from the losers.By Andy Beaubien, BPR […]

Selling Radio Direct with Pat BrysonThe looming new year sometimes means we have client agreements coming up for renewals. This can be a bit scary as we wonder if they will renew, will they try to cut back expenditures? Will they NOT renew?Renewals often require increasing rates. Most salespeople will not want to rock the boat. Have you ever tried to sneak a new agreement past your manager using last year’s rates?Renewal time should be a time to find ways to better serve our clients. Business is evolving rapidly tossed about by external factors beyond our control. These shifting sands require businesses to constantly change how they do business. The marketing plan they used last year, last quarter or even last week may need to be changed. It’s almost a certainty that their message will need to be changed.Before we ask for a renewal, we need to sit with our clients and do a needs analysis. We need to benchmark the business. We need to know what has changed. We need to know what they anticipate the next year to be like.Here are some questions we need to ask:How has your business changed in 2022? Up, down, flat?What are the major challenges you are facing now?How have these changed this year?What concerns you most about 2023?If it’s supply chain, ask what they can get, what they can’t get. When do they expect it to loosen up?If it’s staff, how has this affected the business specifically? Shorter hours? Days?Is revenue back to 2019 levels? Exceeding 2019 levels?Has your store traffic returned?Any lingering effects of 2020?Where do you want to be by the end of 2023?What needs to happen to get you there?How have your profit centers shifted?What will it be important for your customers to know about you in the next few months and 2023?Are you seeing smaller orders? Less people? A combination of both?How important to you is being involved with community events?You probe for changes in the business. You ascertain goals and objectives for 2023. You understand your client’s perceptions of his world. These new challenges can trigger changes in how they have been advertising. If clients have not been using effective schedules, you may now find ways to introduce them to doing so.If clients believe our campaigns can help them to solve problems, they will give us money. Renewals start with understanding where the client’s business is NOW and where they want to be at the end of 2023.Take the time to understand. It’s not about us: it’s about them. Easier renewals await! […]

Indian government has approved three long pending amendments in the FM Radio Phase-III policy guidelines.These include:
Simplification of financial eligibility norms to allow companies with net worth of Rs 10 million, instead of Rs 15 million earlier, to participate in the bidding process for category ‘C’ and ‘D’ cities.
Removal of the three-year lock-in for restructuring management, during the 15-year license period.
Removal of 15% national cap on channel holding.
The government is of the view that the three amendments together “will help the private FM radio industry to fully leverage the economies of scale and pave the way for further expansion of FM radio and entertainment to Tier-III cities in the country.”“This will not only create new employment opportunities but also ensure that music and entertainment over the FTA (free-to-air) radio media is available to the common man in the remotest corners of the country,” it said in a statement. […]