Seminario Radio y Red
Posted on Friday, October 3rd, 2008 at 11:27am. #
To Zaragosa, a city in mid-Spain, for a conference entitled Radio and the Web; even though actually it is about radio and new platforms.
An impressive presentation from Lluís Cuevas Huget, who, apart from working at Cataluña Radio, also looks after a set of new-platform stations. He runs something called iCat fm which is a really interesting model – proper multiplatform radio, with a flash-heavy, heavily visualised radio website, a decent-looking mobile version, and a DTT offering which is tremendously advanced; way in front of anything we are doing in the UK. His figures are good; his websites look slick, and his view is to make his traditional broadcasts “iCatalised”; to add visualisation and other elements to their more, if you like, old-fashioned stations. In short, he’s using new platforms to innovate, and then take his learnings back to the existing brands. This is exactly the model that makes sense – and exactly why to play with new technologies. Very impressed at what they’re doing: all of us in the UK have much to learn from him. Their website is here if you habla español. I’ve asked for a copy of his presentation, and I hope we can get him to come to London one day.
Manuel Casal from Canal Sur talked about broadcasting in Andalucia, and in particular talks about a web-only station he has launched: Canal Flamenco Radio. Again, interesting use of the web to appeal to niche users.
Some interesting figures were presented by Rosa Pellicero, from Aragón Radio. Spain has 237 web-only channels, in addition to 622 which simulcast on the web. In terms of the UK, that’s interesting – we don’t have that many (legal, licensed) internet radio stations at all in comparison. I wonder why? Have we all gone for podcasting or something instead? Or are our internet music rights more onerous than the Spanish?
The Spanish have yet to choose a digital broadcast future. DAB broadcasts do exist here (three multiplexes in Madrid Airport, including M80 Digital, an eighties station), but DRM appears to make more financial sense to them – they’re charged heavily for DAB spectrum, while AM spectrum is virtually free. The only problem is the lack of DRM radio sets. (Clue: could it be that brand name?!)
IP delivery will clearly be part of the future, and it’s clear that the Spanish have bet on Internet radio; but I’m yet to be convinced that IP delivery matches the benefits of broadcast: free at the point of delivery, low-power receivers, scalable and portable.
A good day – a fascinating and interesting look at a place that is very different to the UK, not least the three-hour lunch break in the middle of the conference…
Photo by Jean Burgess. Used under licence.
An excellent summary – now I know what you were tapping away on your iPhone!