ASIA

BBC News Arabic has announced an Emergency Radio Service for Gaza in response to the conflict in the region.The emergency service – Gaza Daily – will broadcast vital news daily to the people of Gaza during this time of urgent need.It will provide listeners in Gaza with the latest information and developments as well as safety advice on where to access shelter, food and water supplies.

Produced in Cairo and London and broadcast on medium wave, the service will initially run one programme a day at 1500 GMT from Friday 3 November. A second daily update will be broadcast at 0500 GMT from Friday 10 November.The BBC World Service has a history of responding to emergency situations globally. Most recently, in May 2023 during the conflict in Sudan BBC News Arabic began an emergency radio service. In February 2022, the BBC News Ukraine service began extended TV bulletins following the invasion of the country. BBC Media Action also previously launched a service for Gaza in 2014 following a summer of conflict.Liliane Landor, Director, BBC World Service, says: “BBC News Arabic are extremely well-placed to offer this vital service for the people of Gaza at a time of greatest need. Their expertise and specialist knowledge of the region alongside the BBC’s reputation as the most trusted news provider, means we can reach civilians in Gaza with the information they need.” […]

RØDE has launched a limited-edition range of white products featuring the RØDECaster Duo, PodMic, PSA1+ and NTH-100. The exclusive White Collection marks the first time these products have been released in custom colours, giving creators the opportunity to brighten up their setup.The centrepiece of the collection is the RØDECaster Duo, RØDE’s all-in-one audio production solution for creators. Released earlier this year to widespread acclaim, the RØDECaster Duo boasts all of the same groundbreaking features as the RØDECaster Pro II – RØDE’s flagship audio console – in a compact and portable form factor. It is perfect for smaller podcast productions, streamers, or any creator who wants to get big results from a console with a small desktop footprint. The new white finish perfectly complements the RØDECaster Duo’s bright interface and colourful RGB controls.Also available in the White Collection is the iconic PodMic dynamic broadcast microphone, which features a new black grille for a sleek yet classic look. The PSA1+ professional studio arm and NTH-100 headphones round out the collection, offering creators the chance to build a complete audio setup all in white.

These are available in two bundles, a solo creator bundle featuring the RØDECaster Duo and one mic, arm and headphones, and a podcaster bundle featuring two of each accessory alongside the console. Both bundles come with premium XLR cables to complete the setup. […]

More expert speakers have been added to WorldDAB Summit 2023, the event highlighting the global growth of DAB+, in Munich, Germany on November 8.We’ll hear from global keynote speakers including:Dr Thorsten Schmiege, President, Bayerischen Landeszentrale für neue Medien (BLM) on long term strategies for radio and audio

Hervé Godechot, Board Member of Arcom on their plan to increase DAB+ coverage in France to 60% by 2024WorldDAB President Patrick Hannon will reflect on ‘change and continuity’, reviewing his ten years in office, and passing the baton to the newly elected President.With one of the hottest topics right now, Luigi Troiano, Founder and CEO, Kebula with Yann Legarson, CEO, Radioplayer look at how radio broadcasters are strengthening their brand and leveraging opportunities with AI.And in “Android Automotive – continuing the conversation”, Joseph D’Angelo, Senior Vice President, Broadcast Radio, Xperi and Gregor Pötzsch, Product Owner, Radio, CARIAD, Volkswagen Group will discuss support for DAB radio in Android Automotive’s latest release.The event will also explore exciting new and emerging DAB+ markets in Africa, MENA and Asia, and hear about unique academic research on the development and implementation of “small-scale” DAB+ and how this innovative approach can help the adoption of DAB+ around the world.WorldDAB Summit 2023 will be hosted by award-winning Bavarian radio presenter, Larissa Schütz from HITRADIO RT1.It’s free to register online. […]

Content from BPRAnd that word is …………. Aircheck.In a competitive market, with each music format filled with multiple stations, often the only USP a station has is the talent.

Some program directors find working with talent daunting and overwhelming; talent can find the aircheck session threatening and disheartening. And the worst end-result is for talent to fear air-checking and for program directors to avoid it.

From the talent’s perspective, some of them may be gun shy of the aircheck due to a series of bad coaches in the past.  To gain the talent’s trust, the program director must be respected; the talent must value the program director’s advice.  Talent shouldn’t leave an aircheck session with the thought “well, that’s just your opinion…what would you know”.However, sometimes that is just what they think.So how do you, the program director, avoid that happening?Easy…. put the aircheck into the listeners’ hands!That is why BPR developed Talent Check.Talent Check graphically captures the listeners’ points of engagement and disengagement instantly and demonstrates the strengths and weaknesses of content using an online “worm”.Talent Check can be used to test the appeal (or lack of) shows, individual presenters and programming elements such as contesting, features and benchmarks.The graphic display means talent can see what content is working and what isn’t from the listeners’ perspective.While talent may disagree with the program director’s opinion, it’s hard for them to disagree with the opinions of a couple of hundred listeners!Here’s a link demonstrating how Talent Check works.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x2cUIclaH4cNow remember, Talent Check is the start of the process; it pinpoints what the audience likes and doesn’t like. It’s the program director’s job to then show the talent where improvements could be made. Coach, direct and nurture them.Main Photo: ShutterstockIf you have any questions…. please contact us.By David Kidd, BPR […]

According to local media reports, Indian FM Radio network Radio Mirchi, a part of Entertainment Network India Limited (ENIL), Radio Orange and Sapphire FM have each bid Rs 2.51 billion (US $30 million) to acquire Big FM Radio network, which is undergoing an insolvency process.Big FM, owned by Reliance Broadcast Network Ltd (RBNL), is the country’s largest radio network with 58 stations and reach of over 1,200 towns and 50,000 villages.In February this year, India’s bankruptcy court admitted RBNL under the Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process (CIRP) on the plea of IDBI Trusteeship Services Ltd., which had approached the tribunal after the company allegedly failed to repay its dues of over Rs 1.74 billion.

Of the total admitted claims of the lenders of Rs 5.78 billion, IndusInd Bank’s claim is Rs 1.72 billon, HSBC Asset Management Rs 2.38 billion, Franklin Templeton MF Rs 1.03 billion and Reliance Commercial Finance’s claim is Rs 640 million.After considering the cash at Big FM, the total recovery for lenders could be as high as 55 to 60 per cent against the total admitted claims.Sources close to the process said that the lenders are likely to ask both the bidders to revise their bids upward. […]

ENCO has joined forces with Benztown and Compass Media Networks to bring its SpecAI ad creation solution to an expansive customer base in the North American radio broadcast market. The three companies will work together on strategic business development initiatives that emphasize how the technology can help broadcasters create spec ads for sponsors on demand, alleviating the time, energy, and costs of traditional production methods while accelerating the sales process and time to market.SpecAI leverages generative AI models to create audio content and automate voice tracking for new spots. ENCO will demonstrate SpecAI at the NAB Show New York beginning tomorrow at Javits Center, where the company will exhibit at Booth 517. Representatives from Benztown and Compass Media Networks will also share insights into their contributions, which include sales, marketing and product design responsibilities.Compass Media Networks, who will lead the sales and marketing efforts,  is among the fastest growing radio networks in North America, offering a large portfolio of branded audio programs that reach tens of millions of listeners daily on broadcast and streaming platforms. Their Yamanair division has been the leader in providing spec commercials and creative  services to radio broadcasters over the past decade through their Specbyte and Cash by Creative product lines which currently serve thousands of radio stations. SpecAI will expand this portfolio  for local radio sales teams.

“AI adoption has swiftly moved forward over the last few months, and as the largest player in spec commercials for over 10 years we recognized it was time to offer an AI solution for our clients,” said Hiram Lazar, Chief Financial Officer, Compass Radio Networks. “Using Benztown’s libraries, we can now give our clients the option to produce ads with an AI voice or a live voice to customize prerecorded spec commercials.”Benztown, a longtime ENCO partner, is a global leader in radio imaging, production library, programming, podcasting, jingles, and voiceover services with more than 3,000 affiliations on six different continents. Benztown will supplement Compass Media Networks’ sales and marketing efforts with an emphasis on international clients.Benztown and Compass Media Networks have worked closely with ENCO’s engineering team on SpecAI’s development. Specifically, Benztown has added their sonic design expertise to the solution, including user-selectable music beds that run underneath the AI voice while Compass Media Networks added their user interface expertise from their Specbyte and Cash by Creative platforms.SpecAI’s workflow is simple. The user, typically an account executive within a media organization, first answers a few questions to determine spot length (30 or 60 seconds), writing style (casual, humorous, uplifting), and sponsor details (company name, address), using a web browser or mobile device. SpecAI generates three scripts to choose from, which users can manually be edited or re-generated through phonetics to perfect the copy. The user then selects their preferred sound of the AI voice and music bed underneath before downloading the final down-mixed audio file. The process can be completed in seconds.Dave “Chachi” Denes, President and Co-Founder of Benztown, adds that the music options will help set the tone for each spot. “The music in SpecAI is categorized by format,” he said. “For example, an account executive for an Adult Contemporary or Rock station has many options to add music that aligns with the client and station’s demographic. There will also be themed music available for holidays throughout the year.”NCO’s sales and business development team will also contribute to the collective go-to-market strategy, though ENCO President Ken Frommert believes that the existing relationships that Benztown and Compass Media Networks have with affiliates will ultimately create broader awareness for SpecAI. “SpecAI is a gamechanger because account executives can now walk onto a customer site and create a ready-to-air spec ad in seconds,” said Frommert. “Compass Media Networks brings exceptional value through their experience selling human spec ad services, and Benztown is a force in radio imaging and music libraries that we have enjoyed working with for years. We are excited to work together with these companies to bring our vision for AI to the broader radio community.” […]