ASIA

Radio Pakistan Peshawar, which was established on March 6, 1935, celebrated its 88th anniversary on Monday with a function.Radio Pakistan Peshawar  started broadcasting from a room at the secretariat after educationist Abdul Qayyum Khan requested radio’s inventor Guglielmo Marconi to establish a small radio transmitter at Peshawar. Marconi also donated a few radio sets for the station that were later distributed among people.The station has the distinction of announcing the independence of Pakistan at midnight on August 13-14, 1947 by eminent broadcasters Aftab Ahmad in Urdu and Abdullah Jan Magmom in Pashto languages.

The function to celebrate its anniversary was attended by Chief Minister’s special assistant for revenue, Syed Haroon Shah as the chief guest, Station Director of Radio Pakistan Peshawar, Syeda Iffat Jabbar, former chairman International Relations Department, University of Peshawar, Dr Adnan Sarwar Khan, senior broadcaster and academician Dr Abaseen Yousafzai, serving and retired officers, artists, musicians and poets.In her welcome address, Jabbar, who is the first female station director and controller of Radio Pakistan Peshawar said it’s a unique station from where eminent poets and writers including Ahmad Faraz, Ahmad Nadeem Qasmi, Khatir Ghaznavi, Abbasi Yousafzai, renowned Pashto singers and musicians, Khyal Muhammad, Mashooq Sultan, Ahmad Khan, Shakeela Naz, Hidyatullah, Sardar Ali Takkar, Rafiq Shinwari, drama, film and stage artists, Agha Talash, Firdaus Jamal and others have started their professional careers.Through its famous ‘Hindara’ program, it effectively highlighted Pakistan’s principled stand before the world after migration of millions of Afghan refugees following the USSR invasion of Afghanistan.Radio Pakistan Peshawar has recently signed a memorandum of understanding with Shaheed Benazir Bhutto University under which the former would provide technical support to the university for students’ education while the latter would use the platform of the national broadcaster for people and female education through its programmes.Program Manager Abdul Majeed Baloch read out the message of Radio Pakistan’s Director General Tahir Hassan,  saying that all the required facilities would be provided to this station to bring more improvement in programmes in the wake of the era of digitalization. […]

Selling Radio Direct with Pat BrysonUs: “What’s your budget?”Client: “I don’t really have one.”

OrUs: “What’s your budget?”Client: “I have $200 a month.”I bet you’ve had conversations with prospects that sounded like these. Clients often don’t want to tell us their budgets because they think we will take every last dollar they mention. Even more common than this are clients that don’t have a clue as to what they SHOULD invest in radio. They know what they HAVE spent in the past (do you run into clients who spent a whopping $99 a month?) and they have no idea that what they purchased was a waste of money. Worse yet, WE sold it to them. It’s hard to go back and change expectations without calling their baby ugly.IT’S NOT ABOUT THE BUDGET; IT’S ABOUT THE SCHEDULE.There are basically two types of advertising schedules: events and sales or branding (bonding) campaigns. The formula for creating schedules for these two types of objectives are constant across market size, format, country.Event or sale: One commercial an hour, starting at the event and working backwards 7-14 days as the budget allows. The goal is to reach as many listeners as possible in a short period of time with a message that has a “fuse” on it. The message must answer, “Why should I change my routine and attend this sale or event? What’s in it for me?” And, the message better be compelling!Branding or bonding: Enough commercials weekly to reach half your station’s audience a minimum of three times. You can figure the number of commercials it takes if you subscribe to ratings. But if not, a good rule of thumb is 3 commercials a day, 7 days a week, for at least 52 weeks. In today’s crowded advertising environment, I am now suggesting 4 or 5 a day. Many of my clients sell 2 and 3 year agreements instead of 1 year. There is a scientific reason for doing so. And remember, most businesspeople are used to multi-year leases on everything from their space to office equipment. Why not their advertising? How long people listen to your station (your TSL) is a determining factor to the number of commercials you need weekly.Although the formulas are constant across markets, formats and countries, the investment is not. The amount these schedules require as an investment will be different in Chicago, Calgary, CA, Brisbane, AU, Malta, Taylorville, Il. Figure for each of your stations what the investment should be using your rate card for each type of schedule. Now you know what budget your clients need to buy effective schedules with you.Instead of asking, “What’s your budget?”, you can use “Brackets” and 3rd party references to establish the dollars needed.“Mr. Prospect, other clients who have similar objectives to yours have found investing between $___________ and $___________ a week to be effective. In that range, where are you comfortable?You want to introduce a “high” and a “low” number that is slightly above what you need to fund the campaign. Then, you can adjust the numbers downward until they are comfortable.You have introduced the amount. This conversation is held later in the needs analysis meeting. You have determined their pains, goals and objectives. You have an idea of how much they need to invest to be effective. By using the 3rd party reference, you have legitimized your numbers.Believe it or not, we are more concerned about budgets than our clients are. We are afraid to ask for more. If the client feels we can help them to remove their pain, to help them to achieve their goals, they will find the money. Remember, they are spending it somewhere, just not always with us.As we move into selling digital products as well as radio commercials, it becomes even more important that we become comfortable asking for larger dollars. We KNOW what it takes to craft effective campaigns for our clients. We also know what probably won’t work. When using the brackets, if your client firmly states an amount you KNOW will not be enough to fund an effective schedule, you should tell them. This is where sales managers faint or try to cover my mouth with tape. Do we walk away or take an ineffective schedule? Guess which one I recommend? We do not want to create an environment in which we hear, “My advertising didn’t work.” And by standing your ground, many times the prospect will take our recommendation. After all, why type of salesperson walks away from money? Successful ones. Ones who have the courage of their convictions. Clients appreciate that. They appreciate it even more when the advertising makes them money!Concentrate on the needs and goals. Translate those needs and goals into effective schedules.Sell schedules not budgets! […]

WorldDAB – the global industry forum for DAB digital radio – is bringing together experts from around the world for a workshop at the Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union’s Digital Broadcasting Symposium (ABU DBS) in Malaysia.The Symposium is back as an in-person event after a break of two years and takes place from 6-9 March at The Royale Chulan Hotel in Kuala Lumpur’s downtown business district. It includes a conference, exhibition, masterclasses, and workshops, and attracts close to 1,500 participants annually, representing over 350 organisations across the region and beyond. WorldDAB is exhibiting throughout the event on stands 17 and 18, with members GatesAir and Paneda joining the pavilion.“We’re delighted to be back in person at ABU DBS,” said Bernie O’Neill, WorldDAB Project Director. “We know there’s growing interest in DAB digital radio from across the region, with popular services already well-established in Australia, and DAB+ trials in Thailand and Vietnam. Alongside this, DAB is also building momentum in the Middle East and Africa. We’re looking forward to sharing knowledge and experience at this significant event.”

On the afternoon of Monday, March 6, WorldDAB will be holding a workshop entitled “Economics, Environment, Emergency – driving the case for DAB+”. In the session, experts from around the world will explore how broadcast radio is free to air, universal and reliable in emergencies. DAB+ plays a key role in protecting those benefits, offering lower costs of distribution than FM, lower energy requirements, and greater resilience in emergencies, especially out of home.The session will be moderated by Dr Les Sabel, Chair of WorldDAB’s APAC Technical Group. The group gives guidance on the technical aspects of implementing DAB+ digital radio, with help and advice tailored specifically to the needs of the region. Dr Sabel has over 30 years of experience in communications systems.Monday’s workshop will open with a review of new deployments and opportunities for growth around the world from Bernie O’Neill. Bernie joined WorldDAB in 2011 and leads the WorldDAB project team in delivering information and advice on all aspects of deploying DAB digital radio.An update on the upgrades and advances to the DAB+ family of standards in line with recent technical developments within the radio industry will be provided by Lindsay Cornell, Principal Systems Architect at BBC Digital, and WorldDAB Technical Committee Chair. Lindsay has worked for the BBC in a variety of engineering, editorial and leadership roles spanning radio, TV, and spectrum regulation.Les Sabel will offer an overview of current deployments and activities within the APAC region and will also explore the fast-growing ‘small-scale’ DAB sector. Following this, Nick Piggott, Project Manager of Bristol Digital Radio, which operates small-scale multiplexes in the west of England, will discuss a not-for-profit model allowing community and student radio stations to broadcast on digital radio. Nick has spent most of his career working in the radio industry, initially in programming and then moving to digital radio and online innovation. He is one of the founders of RadioDNS Hybrid Radio, the open technology project that allows broadcast radio and IP to work together, combining the power of broadcasting to reach many people and the power of the internet to deliver enhanced or personalised content.Lars-Peder Lundgren, CEO of Paneda Sweden, will cover emergency warnings on DAB+. Lars-Peder has been involved in DAB from the beginning, with 25 years in the digital radio business. He joined Paneda as Sales Director in 2014 and has been CEO since 2020.Transmission solutions to manage cost will be explored by Oscar Hu, Regional Sales Manager, Southeast Asia, GatesAir. Hu’s background of almost 20 years in the over-the-air broadcast industry, where he has been active in most of the advanced DVB and ATSC digital transmission standards development.Finally, Hermann Zensen, Head of Sales and Marketing at Digidia, will discuss DAB+ multiplexing from local to national implementations. Hermann joined Digidia in 2008 as Sales Manager and has been Head of Sales and Marketing since Nautel purchased the company in 2021.As well as the Monday afternoon workshop, WorldDAB’s team of experts will be contributing to several sessions throughout the Symposium.ABU DBS will also see WorldDAB highlighting its new book: “Establishing DAB+ Digital Broadcast Radio“. The free ebook, available from the WorldDAB website, offers a unique, in-depth guide to the regulatory, technical, and commercial aspects of establishing a successful DAB digital radio service. The book provides guidance to new countries seeking to launch DAB services, as well as offering advice for markets which have already started the process, and those who are nearing permanent service status. […]

Futuri has launched RadioGPT™ — the world’s first AI-driven localized radio content solution. RadioGPT™ combines the power of GPT-3 technology with Futuri’s AI-driven targeted story discovery and social content system, TopicPulse, as well as AI voice tech to provide a localized radio experience for any market, any format.RadioGPT™ uses TopicPulse technology, which scans Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and 250k+ other sources of news and information, to identify which topics are trending in a local market. Then, using GPT-3 technology, RadioGPT™ creates a script for on-air use, and AI voices turn that script into compelling audio.Stations can select from a variety of AI voices for single-, duo-, or trio-hosted shows, or train the AI with their existing personalities’ voices. Programming is available for individual dayparts, or Futuri’s RadioGPT™ can power the entire station. RadioGPT™ is available for all formats in a white-labeled fashion.

RadioGPT™ also generates social posts, blogs, and other content for digital platforms related to the content on the air in real-time. A TopicPulse Instant Video add-on creates AI-driven short videos on hot topics for social use. By adding on Futuri’s POST AI-enabled podcasting system, stations can take broadcast audio and immediately publish it on-demand with POST’s auto-publishing feature.“As early AI innovators in the broadcast space, it’s only natural that we’re bringing the incredible power of GPT-3 technology, paired with groundbreaking technology like TopicPulse, to radio,” said Futuri CEO Daniel Anstandig. “The ability for broadcasters to use RadioGPT™ to localize their on-air content in a turnkey fashion opens up resources for them to deepen their important home-field advantages in new and unique ways. With RadioGPT™, the possibilities are endless. With RadioGPT™, there should never be a ‘liner card’ or ‘sweeper-only’ air shift again. Now everyone can be live and local.”Beta partners for Futuri’s RadioGPT™ include Alpha Media in the United States and Rogers Sports & Media in Canada.“At Alpha Media, we always seek innovative ways to engage our audiences. That’s why we’re a part of Futuri’s RadioGPT™ beta group,” said Alpha Media Executive Vice President of Content Phil Becker. “With RadioGPT™’s cutting-edge language and content technologies, we can deliver a real-time, hyper-localized, innovative audio experience. In fact, I have such faith in AI that I had it write this quote for me.”For more information on RadioGPT™, or to inquire about joining the beta launch, visit RadioGPT.ai. […]

Radiodays Europe 2023 has announced more speakers for their event in Prague this year.The latest roundup of speakers include:·       Bauer Media Group’s President of Audio, Richard Dawkins

·       Grace Zakka, Senior Project Manager at the European Broadcasting Union·       Daryl Battaglia, SVP, Measurement Products and Strategy, Triton Digital·       Steve Van Audenaerde, Director of Audio Business & On Demand at DPG Media’s sales house·       Barbora Šichanová, Editor In Chief of Czech Radio – Radio Wave·       Czech Radio’s Adam Javurek·       Renowned Music Programmer Lea Stonhill from the UK·       Marianne Bouchart, Founder and Director of HEI-DA·       Sean Ross·       Olle Zachrison, News Commissioner at Swedish Radio (SR)·       RadioAnalyzer CEO Mikkel B. Ottesen·       Kim Ohlsson, Development Producer at Swedish Radio’s new department for editorial developmentRadiodays Europe will be held on 26-28 March 2023, Prague, Czech Republic.The conference this year starts at 9.00am on Sunday 26th March with the Free Radidoays Europe Inclusive (formerly Radiodays Europe Women), event followed by three Summits on the Sunday afternoon: Youth, Podcast and Data Research (75EUR + VAT). […]

India’s Radio City network is all set to return with the seventh edition of Radio City Freedom Awards (RCFA) on February 28.The awards are an initiative to recognize and felicitate true independent artists and musicians, and an attempt to bring native talent under one roof. Dedicated to Indian independent artists and musicianship, its objective is to honor and applaud independent music created by musicians across all genres.Apart from awarding credible compositions, RCFA also applauds notable non-music contributions to the field of independent music.

The categories for the music genres are:
Best Hip-Hop/Rap Artist
Best Folk Fusion Artist
Best Pop Artist
Best Rock Artist
Best Metal Artist
Best Electronica Artist
Best Young Indie Artist/Band
Best Indie Collaboration of the Year
Besides the categories, there are also awards for Best Video ad Best Indie Collaborator.The channel is looking for nominations from talented artists across different genres. […]