NEWS: COMMERCIAL RADIO GROUPS UNDER FIRE FOR LACK OF INVESTMENT IN DAB DIGITAL RADIO STATIONS' CONTENT AND

MARKETING by GRANT GODDARD

www.grantgoddard.co.uk July 2006

Arguments have broken out within the media industry over the level of investment by the big commercial radio groups in the content of their DAB digital radio stations. The issue has been raising the temperatures of radio executives since June, when Channel Four Television Limited announced its bid for the second national DAB multiplex, but the heat intensified even further this week. Initially, comments by the stations director of radio, Nathalie Schwarz, fuelled media criticism that many digital-only stations are presenter-free and have playlists offering a limited number of songs generated from a computer. Schwarz said: Its all very well for the commercial sector to say they want to take on the BBC, but what we havent really heard is how. Where is the investment in quality, innovative programming? She also said: There needs to be some people willing to invest in quality content, great programming and strong marketing. At last months Radio Festival in Cambridge, Schwarz was invited to participate in two panel discussions during the three-day event, while Channel Four CEO Andy Duncan was invited to a third. Afterwards, comments from existing radio industry players were scathing. Phil Riley, chief executive of Chrysalis Radio, said: Channel Four was invited onto too many panels, given where it is in radio. Fru Hazlitt, chief executive of 'Virgin Radio' said: Perhaps, at the moment, the amount Channel Four was involved [in the Festival] could be a little premature. Both Riley and Hazlitt had been invited onstage only once. 'The Guardian' newspapers radio correspondent Julia Day commented about the Festival: In radio, we dont get a lot of people from outside [the industry] moving in. I think thats partly the problem. Its a very cosy industry, and people arent willing to step out of that comfort zone to confront the issues they really need to in the radio industry at the moment. Meanwhile, in the media trade press, Schwarzs comments ignited a debate about the lack of investment in DAB digital radio station content. 'Media Week' journalist Caitlin Fitzsimmons wrote: The [commercial radio] sector has been widely criticised for failing to invest in digital radio. Many of the stations on DAB are merely unmanned radio jukeboxes, with computer-generated playlists of music and news bulletins. The magazines deputy editor Colin Grimshaw added: The much lauded digital radio revolution has become something of a dead duck, and the blame for this lies squarely with radio companies. After rushing in to grab bandwidth on the digital multiplex, there has been a singular lack of imagination and investment in digital stations content and their marketing. Referring to Channel Four's radio plans, he concluded: This radio newcomer has shown more imagination in exploiting the digital medium in the last few weeks than established radio has over the last few years. While radio owners vacillate, TV and mobile companies are lining up to snatch their digital future.

News: Commercial Radio Groups Under Fire For Lack Of Investment In DAB Digital Radio Stations' Content And Marketing page 2 2006 Grant Goddard

This week, Ian Dickens, chief executive of the Digital Radio Development Bureau, issued a fulsome response to these criticisms: I would like to try to debunk the myth that all DAB-only stations are unmanned jukebox stations. In fact, the majority of DAB digital radio stations feature live presenters for most of the day. 'Life', 'Planet Rock', 'Oneword', 'Choice', 'Century London', 'Capital Disney', 'Fun Radio', 'Gaydar', 'Passion For The Planet' In fact, the only DAB station that is totally automated is 'Chill' and, by its nature, it works better without presenters. Some stations play out pre-recorded presenter programmes in off-peak hours, such as overnights, but thats not unusual for analogue stations either. I think, in the early days, live presenters were thin on the ground due to a lack of funding, but investment is growing and were starting to see some real innovation in DAB programming. There are 170 different brands broadcasting 415 services on DAB digital radio. Since the launch of DAB in the UK, weve seen nearly 40 new, unique radio formats emerge. Dickens continued: None of these formats would exist in the analogue world, and it is to the credit of the multiplex operators (ie: the major radio groups and the BBC) that they have developed new stations themselves and encouraged independent broadcasters onto their platforms. He concluded: Far from a landscape of automated jukebox stations, DAB digital radio will continue to deliver a rich, vibrant, unique radio listening experience. Both Schwarz and Media Week remain unequivocal in their criticisms of existing digital radio services. Schwarz said this week: If successful [in our DAB multiplex bid], we would make a serious investment in programme quality and talent. 'Media Week' maagzines Grimshaw noted that two stations, 'Century Digital' and 'Virgin Groove', had been heard to broadcast news bulletins recorded a week earlier and commented: These are the pitfalls of an unmanned station that is basically a radio jukebox, controlled by computers.

[First published in 'The Radio Magazine' as 'Bunfight At The DAB Corral', #747, 2 August 2006]

Grant Goddard is a media analyst / radio specialist / radio consultant with thirty years of experience in the broadcasting industry, having held senior management and consultancy roles within the commercial media sector in the United Kingdom, Europe and Asia. Details at http://www.grantgoddard.co.uk

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