Photo uploaded today by Niek R. Used under licence.

Executive Producer Mobile, Audio & Music Interactive, BBC
A good-looking job within the BBC if you do mobile and you do radio. You do? Excellent. You’ve got just ten days to get your application in.

Digg: We’re Fixing The Annoying Ads
Digg removes auto-playing audio ads from their website. Another example why I think jackfm.co.uk shouldn’t auto-play on visiting their website… (though I guess it’s a little different)

Twitter killed the Status Star
The excellent Mike Butcher posts about Twitter. I think he won’t like my status updates then. Oh dear…

Twitter / jamescridland
It’s me, on Twitter. Suddenly really got into Twitter, since it’s updating my Facebook status automatically now, and also is full of surprisingly interesting people. If you’re on, please FOLLOW JAMESCRIDLAND, I’d like that

Why DAB Stations Closing Down is Good News
Core closing… Life closing… and OneWord closing. Anyone would think this is… good news? A cogent and quite splendid piece by Matt Deegan.

New Capital 95.8 Website
Another post from Matt Deegan, including the gem: “GCap have done a good job with the latest roll-out of sites … I think they they clearly lead radio’s online presence”. I think you’re talking bollocks there, Matt.

Listening to internet radio while on the move
“I’ve been taking advantage of my spiffy new EV-DO net connection.” Man (or woman) listens to radio via the internet in the car. Likes it.

BBC Radio 1 beat my former employer Virgin Radio to a recent Webby Award - and I wasn’t very pleased about it, if I might be honest. I genuinely thought that the Virgin Radio site had undergone a seismic change, reinventing itself as a music destination and innovative social network, all with a very small team. The listening public agreed; and Virgin got just 0.1% less votes than NPR (which has around ten times as many listeners). The judges disagreed with the voting audience, and voted BBC Radio 1’s site as better. I was cranky for a number of weeks after the award, and even now, recognising my current colleagues in BBC Radio 1’s interactive team as a bunch of geniuses, I still can’t quite tell myself to be pleased that BBC Radio 1 got the Webby.

Not that I’m saying it’s not well deserved. It is. The BBC Radio 1 website is great, and particularly when compared with the embarrassment of many commercial stations’ websites (here and overseas) the difference of quality is tremendous. The current Interactive Editor, Dan Heaf, is a hugely clever man who doesn’t apparently understand the meaning of the word “no” in the phrase “no, we can’t do that”, and amazingly gets it done anyway.

I say ‘the current editor’, because he’s moving on. Which is great news for Dan, but less great news for the rest of us.

The BBC Radio 1 (and 1Xtra) Interactive Editor gig is a great one, and probably the biggest gig in interactive music radio. I know that there are loads of people who read this blog who’d do a great job at it. Which is why I reckon you ought to take a peek at the job specification and if you think it’s you (yes, you), then apply.

And if you get the gig, hopefully we’ll retain the Webby next year. Yay! (Listen to me, what a turncoat.)

Vacancy - brandon pajamas @ flickr, cc licenced

You might be wondering “come on, James, spill the beans, what’s it like working in the BBC then?”

If you’re into DAB Digital Radio, then why not find out for yourself?

Alternatively, if you buy me a bottle of The Famous Taddy Porter that’s an alternative method of finding out. Form an orderly queue, now.

Today’s edition of ‘Broadcast’ appears to have pipped me to my own blog exclusive; I’m leaving Virgin Radio after six splendid years, and going to work for the BBC, as Head of Future Media & Technology, Audio & Music, for FM&T. It’s a massive change for me, and a thrill to work with such a great team.

And any company corporation that has blogging guidelines for staff is okay by me.

—update @ 4.55pm—

In case you’re looking for an official statement:

This is the official BBC press release with some embarrassing details of my early career

This is my real quote (I wrote this for Radio Today who were kind enough to ask):

“I’ve had a great time at Virgin Radio, and am hugely proud of what my team has achieved. We’ve pioneered the online radio environment with a bunch of new innovations. It’s a tremendous brand with a great future, and I’m gutted about leaving so many good friends.

“However, I’m thrilled about moving to the BBC: there are some tremendously clever people there, and it will be great to continue working for an organisation recognised as a world-leader.”

This is what my nice current boss is saying:

Paul Jackson, Chief Executive of Virgin Radio, said of James’ departure: “It’s testament to the achievements of Virgin Radio and the strength of the station’s rapid digital media development over the last few years that James Cridland has secured such a prestigious new role at the BBC. We thank him for all his work over the past six years and wish him all the best for the future. We are now looking for an energetic, innovative, new digital radio pioneer to replace him.”