“Remember having to fumble around for a blank tape when a song you liked came on the radio? Those days — like the audiocassette itself — are over,” ” Meena Thiruvengadam reports for The San Antonio Express-News. “Soon, if you want a copy of a song you’re listening to on the radio, all you’ll have to do is push a button.”
“The nation’s largest broadcasters, including San Antonio-based Clear Channel Communications, have teamed with Apple and a pair of digital radio manufacturers to introduce tagging — a feature that lets listeners mark a song they hear for purchase from iTunes. The hope is that it will help traditional broadcasters better compete with MP3 players, the Internet and other new music technologies,” Thiruvengadam reports.
“Here’s how it works: Buy an HD radio, listen to it and push the tag button when you hear a song you like. The radio will store the information and transfer it when you place your iPod in its dock. Sync your iPod with your computer, get a list of up to 50 songs you tagged and decide which ones you want to buy,” Thiruvengadam reports. “Broadcasters would get a portion of Apple revenue generated from the sale of tagged songs.”
Thiruvengadam reports, “In an era when consumers have traded record stores, CDs and Walkmans for Web sites and iPods, HD radio is supposed to help companies such as Clear Channel, CBS Radio, Entercom Communications and Cumulus Radio compete. But it hasn’t caught on yet.”
Thiruvengadam reports, “But Apple, whose iPod has become a symbol of the digital music revolution, is optimistic. ‘This is going to ease discovery and promote ownership,’ said Greg Joswiak, Apple’s vice president of worldwide iPod product marketing. ‘How many times have you been listening to the radio, heard a song and thought to yourself, ‘Hey, I want this song’? Anytime we can map a natural behavior like that, we know it’s something that can be successful.'”
Full article here.
