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Radio World

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SoundStack Aspires to Provide Audio as a Service

Posted: 27 May 2022 08:39 AM PDT https://www.radioworld.com/news-and-business/business-and-law/soundstack-aspires-to-provide-audio-as-a-service


Several familiar audio brands are now united in a company called SoundStack that seeks to deliver “audio as a service.”

SoundStack is the former Media Creek. It was at the spring NAB Show talking about its services. It offers audio creation, monetization and distribution
to creators, publishers and advertisers.

“SoundStack was created through the combination of companies Media Creek, EmpireStreaming, Live365, Abovecast and Audio Catapult, which have serviced 12,000+ global publishers and represent the highest quality in audio delivery,” it said in a press release this spring.

The company acquired AudioCatapult in 2021. According to MediaPost.com,
Media Creek was formed in 2017 through the combination of EmpireStreaming, Live365 and Abovecast.

Its new flagship product is SoundStack Engine, which integrates and
automates streaming, podcasting and monetization for audio. It provides a
user interface or an API that lets platforms and publishers create live
streams or deliver podcasts across a global network.

Jon Stephenson is CEO and founder. As part of the creation of SoundStack, Rockie Thomas, formerly with AdsWizz, is CRO, and Mike Reznick, formerly of Triton Digital, is COO.

“SoundStack was built in response to fragmented proprietary solutions
created over the last few years by major audio companies. Its time to give audio publishers and platforms a service that can work across boundaries, letting publishers truly optimize their technical and operational setup and maximize their ad revenue,” Stephenson said in the announcement.

He also was quoted on a Live365 blog: “To our Live365 community: We’re not going anywhere. You’ll still know us as Live365. Our pricing model is the same, our offering is the same, and the people are the same. With the
rebrand of SoundStack and the launch of our Engine product, we’ll be able
to offer more reliability to Live365 stations and get innovative features
first to our broadcasting community.”



The post SoundStack Aspires to Provide Audio as a Service appeared first on Radio World.


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Four Tips for Better Listener Engagement

Posted: 27 May 2022 02:00 AM PDT https://www.radioworld.com/news-and-business/programming-and-sales/four-tips-for-better-listener-engagement


The author of this story is former general manager of KGY(AM) in Olympia, Wash., now retired.

My name is Dick Pust. I spent 51 years at 1,000-watt KGY AM 1240 in
Olympia, Wash., starting as receptionist and rising to the position of
general manager. I also did the morning show for 43 of those years.


In response to Paul McLane’s recent “Station Hacks” column, I’d like to share four of my favorite tricks for surviving in the shadow of Seattle,
which was only 60 miles away. 

Instead of asking listeners to come to the station to pick up prizes such
as tee shirts and tickets, they would pick them up during a remote at a
sponsor location. This guaranteed people would show up during the remote
and provided potential customers for the sponsor.  
Contest winners and others were always identified by both first AND last
name, along with their approximate address. It was “names, names, names” that listeners loved to hear — especially if it was their own.
On one occasion, the station traded out an old VW “Bug” and drove it to different sponsor locations where people were given markers to write the
KGY call letters on the car. Once the car was completely covered, the “Bug” was again taken to sponsor locations where people guessed the number of “KGYs” on the car. The person coming the closest got the car.
Some contests had no prize at all, other than the satisfaction of “winning.” The station received hundreds of entries in its “Name the Seagull” contest where the winner named the bird that regularly perched on the railing just outside the control room window. The winning entry was “Jockette.” She became the talk of the town.  

Credit: Getty Images/Paul Mansfield photography

You’re invited to read my book “AM 1240 Life at a Small-Town Radio Station,” at Amazon.com. Its 321 pages include hundreds of pictures and countless stories. Or if you prefer a signed copy, drop a note to am1240book@comcast.net.

[Related: How to Survive in a Small Market]

What’s your hack? We’re looking for ideas that can help make life as a small-market broadcaster easier and more profitable. Email radioworld@futurenet.com.

The post Four Tips for Better Listener Engagement appeared first on Radio World.


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NPR Shakes Up Newsroom

Posted: 26 May 2022 12:58 PM PDT https://www.radioworld.com/news-and-business/people-news/npr-shakes-up-newsroom

Edith Chapin (Credit: Stephen Voss/NPR)
 NPRs Senior Vice President for News and Editorial Director Nancy Barnes
has announced that two members of her team are moving to new roles within
the newsroom.
Edith Chapin has been named vice president and executive editor at large.
She will focus on fundraising initiatives related to NPR’s news priorities while remaining rooted in the newsroom.

Chapin, who has led the network’s newsgathering teams for the past seven years, has a unique skill set as a top editorial leader with experience in philanthropy, both at NPR and elsewhere, said NPR.

[Visit Radio World’s People News Page]
Terence Samuel (Credit: Stephen Voss/NPR)
Terence Samuel will move permanently into the role of vice president and executive editor, leading NPR’s news gathering teams, effective immediately. He has been filling this role admirably for the last three months during a relentless pace of news including the war in Ukraine, the SCOTUS leak, the racist shootings in Buffalo and more.
Samuel joined NPR from the Washington Post as a deputy managing editor for
news in 2017. As a reporter and editor, he covered national politics for
two decades. He was promoted to managing editor in 2019.
“I want to thank Edith and Terry for their exemplary editorial leadership, especially through the pandemic and the most tumultuous news cycle some of
us have seen in our lifetimes,” said Barnes.

The post NPR Shakes Up Newsroom appeared first on Radio World.

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