The State Of Internet Radio

Music industry veteran and long tine internet broadcaster Val Starr writes about the current state of net broadcasting, the pitfalls and potential and the lack of major label awareness in a great guest column on Kurt Hansen’s Radio And Internet Newsletter site:

"…Since the launch of ChoiceRadio.com back in 1999, and having survived the dot-com crash, the DMCA, Napster backlash, and seemingly everything that the world could possibly throw at us to slow down and even stop our fledgling industry, I have received, along with my fellow Internet radio survivors, many battle scars. I wear them proudly and have learned much in the course of the last 5 years."

"…I’m not getting wealthy, at least not yet, but I have managed to build a good solid business that turns a yearly profit. I pay myself a modest salary, cover my bandwidth bills and overhead, and have employed several talented programmers and technicians."here.

"…I have definitely had worse jobs!"

"And as a matter of fact, my previous job, as an indie promotion rep for the major record labels, was one of the strongest deciding factors for me personally in creating an Internet radio station. I had experienced firsthand the pressure and competitive nature of trying to secure airplay in an ever-shrinking traditional radio market and felt there was a definite need for other promotional outlets for the record labels and their artists. "

"Ironically enough, it seems to me that even today, the record labels have yet to embrace our industry and recognize us for the enormous potential audience reach and promotional power that we have in our hands. I look forward to the day when the record labels finally look upon us as their allies and not their enemy."

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