Simulcasting radio transmissions in air and on the net seemed like a great idea until ad performers’ fees forced a shut down in the US.
Topic: Selling on-line
Who: RealAudio and US advertising agencies
Where: USA
When: Spring 2001
What happened:
Back in 1994 Rob Glaser visualised the downloading of compressed files so that the front end could be played while the back end was still downloading. By 2001 this concept had become RealAudio and millions worldwide were listening to their favourite radio station on the net, latterly from simulcasting by radio stations who were streaming their programmes over the web at the same time as putting them out over the airwaves. Then suddenly all this came to a halt, in the USA at least. This was because advertisers had spotted that one of the terms of the settlement of the great 1999 strike by the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists gave voiceover artists a 300% bonus if their commercials were streamed over the web. In the face of demands that the relevant commercials be pulled, the broadcasters went for the easy option and stopped streaming altogether.
Why this matters:
rights licences in relation to every sphere of marketing production activity must be drawn up with the benefit of the best possible awareness of the potential offered by digital technology. Either that or they must be so widely drawn that any conceivable type of use is covered.
Acknowledgement: John Naughton of the Observer
