ASIA

The Government of Nepal is planning to expand the integrated broadcasting service by merging Nepal Television and Radio Nepal, and establishing the Public Service Broadcaster within the next two fiscal years.This was announced in the policies and programs for the next fiscal year presented in the parliament by the government on Friday.The government wants to advance the communication industry as a knowledge-based service industry and it also plans to pay attention to policy, legal and structural reforms for the promotion of freedom of press and expression and decent journalism.The Press Council will be transformed into a Media Council with new legal arrangements to regulate the content published and broadcast by all media and an umbrella law related to mass media will be created.President Ram Chandra Paudel said: “The access of common citizens to the use of information and technology will be increased. The use of information technology will be expanded in areas such as education, health, development, construction and service delivery.” […]

Radiodays Asia, the leading radio and podcasting conference in the Asia-Pacific, has announced more speakers for this year’s event which will be held 5-6 September in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.Deb Hishon, Media Measurement Director, Triton Digital, Australia and New ZealandDeb has been working on Radio Audience Measurement (RAM) contracts for 20 years and in media research for almost 25. During this time, she has acquired a deep knowledge of the media and radio industries in both Australia and New Zealand. Part of Deb’s role is assisting clients with using the radio ratings and providing additional qualitative and quantitative data to guide them with their strategic direction; from programming to product management to aid revenue and audience growth.Guang Jin YEO, founder of Singapore-based podcast production house, 1 Up MediaGuang Jin YEO is the founder of Singapore-based podcast production house, 1 Up Media and works primarily with TV networks. Coming from an ex-P&G media analyst & strategist background he is able to provide the broader picture of local East/South-East Asian podcast media landscape.Andrea Ho, Australian Film, Television and Radio School’s Discipline LeadAndrea is an experienced media executive, leader, and on-air broadcaster and producer in radio and audio. She is currently the Discipline Lead, Radio and Podcasting at AFTRS. Andrea worked at the ABC as Head of Planning for the Regional and Local Division. More recently Andrea was the Director of Education for the Judith Neilson Institute for Journalism and Ideas.Radiodays Asia is a collaboration between Radiodays Europe, the world´s largest and leading conference for radio, audio and podcast, and broadcasting and podcast partners in Asia and Australia. The 2023 edition will run over two days in two tracks with 50 sessions. Top international speakers and industry leaders as well as successful producers and market experts will share their insights.Register for Radiodays Asia at Super Early Bird prices before June 1. […]

Content from BPRAs programmers, you all know the importance of ensuring that the content that your stations produce is “compelling”. Of course, you also know that many stations fall way short of mark. Of course your stations don’t….. right?!So what does compelling actually mean? Let’s start with the dictionary definition. Something is “compelling” when it “makes you pay attention because it is so interesting and exciting.”Compelling content is not just entertaining…..compelling content makes you think…it makes you feel…..it makes you tell your friends…it makes you keep listening in case you miss any more compelling content. Compelling content captures and maintains the attention of the audience.There are a number of key elements that contribute to making content compelling:Originality: Compelling content stands out from the crowd by offering a unique perspective or approach. It provides fresh insights or explores unconventional ideas, but it always offers something new and valuable. Of course, it can also be “saying what the audience is thinking but no one else is game enough to say it”!Emotional appeal: Compelling content elicits an emotional response from the audience. It may be humorous, heart-warming or inspirational, but it always connects with listeners on a deeper level.Relevance: Compelling content is relevant to the audience for which it is intended. It addresses their interests, needs and emotional trigger points. What may be compelling for the #1 Talk station in town is probably very different from what would be compelling for listeners of the #1 CHR station.Clarity: Compelling content is clear and easy to understand. It uses simple language and avoids technical jargon or complicated explanations that might confuse or alienate listeners. From a Talk radio perspective, compelling content makes complicated issues easier to understand….at least from the host’s perspective.Presentation: Content that is compelling involves great story telling techniques. Two radio shows could present exactly the same storyline but with great story telling skills one will always be better than the other. Work on the story…. the outline of events….. and then work out how to present it in an entertaining and compelling way so that the audience feels emotionally connected.By David Kidd, BPR […]

Content from BPRAs radio people, we often live in a dream world where we assume that our listeners are hanging on for every word we say. The photo below is comical because it expresses the erroneous belief that our listeners’ lives revolve around our station. We act as if our station is as important to them as it is to us. The sad truth is that their lives do not revolve around listening to the radio.Humans are quite adept at tuning out talk that they either do not want to hear it or that they have heard so many times that the words no longer make any impression at all. We have often been told that the best way to make someone remember something is to employ endless repetition. However, anyone who has raised children knows that endless repetition is not an effective way to affect behaviour.Consider the above photo caption “more great music coming up.” After hearing this phrase repeated hour after hour, it is highly unlikely that it makes any impression whatsoever on the listener. (If you have to tell someone that something is “great” then it probably is not so great after all.) Perhaps the best promotional phrases are the ones that are backed up by hard fact. For example, “Centre City’s only Classic Rock station”.Another typical message is “Coming up next hour, the latest hit from Miley Cyrus.” In other words, listeners will have to wait until the next hour to hear the promised song. In the age of instant gratification, few listeners have the patience to wait that long.Here are some basic marketing and promotional rules:
Make the message believable. Base the message on fact.
Vary the message. Each variation makes a unique impression on the brain.
Avoid hyperbole. Ex.: “We play the best music ever made.”
When possible, allow a live presenter to deliver the message. Pre-recorded messages lack credibility especially after they have been heard numerous times.
Do not call attention to negatives such as “playing fewer ads than the other station”. This is simply a reminder that we run ads too.
“We’ll be back right after the news”. This statement begs the question “Where are you going?” In this instance, you are reminding listeners that news bulletins have a higher priority than music. This may be fine for a news/talk station but not for a music station.
The lesson is simple. Learn to think like a listener.By Andy Beaubien, BPR […]

Benztown, a global leader in radio imaging, voiceover, programming, podcasting and jingles along with P1 Media Group, providing research, strategies and consulting to radio stations worldwide, and Global Radio Ideas Facebook Group will host a free webinar On Thursday, May 18, for radio professionals around the globe.Titled “How You Replace Scott Shannon, & Lessons From An Iconic New York City PD,” the webinar is 29th in the companies’ “Global Radio Ideas” webinar series from top radio experts from around the world.The 40-minute webinar will be hosted by Andreas Sannemann, CEO, Benztown, and Ken Benson, Partner, P1 Media Group, and will feature Jim Ryan, VP of Programming, Audacy New York’s WCBS-FM and NEW 102.7/WNEW-FM.Ryan will take attendees’ questions and cover topics including:
What it was like to work with Scott Shannon, and to be his boss.
How he replaced the Greatest of All Time in New York Morning Radio, Scott Shannon.
Lessons he learned from coaching heavyweights like Casey Kasem, Whoopi Goldberg, and WCBS-FM afternoon great, Broadway Bill Lee.
What’s different, and what challenges programmers face in a post-Covid world. 
What’s his take on whether to be bold or subtle in making programming changes and why. 
His thoughts on the current ratings struggles of contemporary and young music formats and the ratings successes of AC and Classic Hits. What can the younger targeted formats do about it?
Is it still possible for AC and Hot AC stations to make format-exclusive hits?
How he came to own a radio station with Van Halen, and more!
Register at: https://event.webinarjam.com/register/82/10zx2h37. […]

India’s HT Media has announced a 25% price hike for all its radio stations under the Fever FM brand.According to the network, the hike is needed as the industry volume is back to pre-Covid levels.The Fever Network operates Fever FM, Punjabi Fever, Radio Nasha and Radio One. While Fever FM and Radio Nasha are Hindi Contemporary Hit Radio (CHR) and Retro Bollywood stations respectively, Radio One is in the international format and Punjabi Fever is a Punjabi radio station in Delhi.Overall, the network has 22 stations across 15 cities, reaching 35 million listeners with a cumulative digital reach of 6 million.It has three stations each in Delhi and Mumbai and two stations each in Bengaluru, Chennai and Kolkata. It is also present in Hyderabad, Pune, Ahmedabad and in seven cities of UP.Ramesh Menon, CEO – radio and entertainment, HT Media and Next Mediaworks, said: “Advertiser’s confidence, on radio in general and Fever network in particular, is back and that has resulted in higher inventory demand in most of our markets. We are committed to providing the best advertising environment to our customers without compromising on the content experience of our audience. The ever-increasing demand for inventory has thus necessitated the need for price increase across our markets.” […]