Radionomy Stream Update; Re-starting GoFundMe Campaign, Considering Other Options

For the last two weeks, we’ve experienced a change with our Radionomy stream. The company has implemented a “Geo-Block” on strategically targeted countries. Listeners are unable to listen to our stream and are either given a notice or re-routed to a station that plays “lounge music”. All stations on the network are affected by this change.

Countries Affected by Radionomy’s Geo-Block

Russia	Japan
Canada	The Philippines
South Africa	Brazil
Venezuela	Peru
Chile	Taiwan
Colombia	Bolivia
Countries formerly in Yugoslavia (e.g. Serbia, Croatia)	Turkey
Romania	India
Ukraine

If you live in these countries, we’ve come up with solutions so you can listen.

• Purchase a Virtual Private Network (VPN) – By obtaining a VPN, you can bypass the Geo-Block by logging into a IP address in another country not affected. We recommend VPN Express, which has affordable plans and is available on iTunes and Google Play.
• Download Opera Web Browser – This web browser has a free VPN feature that can mask the user’s computer. Choose the country you wish to listen. You can also get the Opera app on iOS operating systems.
• BREAKING: As of February 2017, the YourMuze.FM stream is no longer available, as the website no longer is functional.

Listeners in the United States are not affected by this issue, yet. There has been no official notice or explanation given by Radionomy executives regarding why this change was necessary. Producers were outraged by this change and many have decided to leave for other providers. We are looking at the current litigation between Radionomy and Sony Music, which may affect listeners down the road.

In the meantime, we are taking steps to insure our future by looking for other companies who can service us. Many of these costs were originally covered by Live365 under a blanket fee. But because of their demise, we will have to absorb the cost ourselves. The costs of broadcasting for small radio stations have skyrocketed, specifically in music licencing.

In May 2015, we started a GoFundMe campaign to help fund our internet radio station. We initially set a goal of $2,500 dollars last November to help keep us on Live365. With the help of generous donors, we were able to raise $600 dollars.

The new goal we’ve decided to set is $5,000 dollars for the year. Here is a rough estimate of our yearly costs:

Internet Radio Provider (Either Voscast or another provider)	$480
Music Licensing (Mandatory for the United States and Canada)	$1920.20
Website (Hosting)	$75
Domain Names (smoothjazzandmore.com & smoothjazzandmore.net)	$25
Carbonite (For back-up file storage)	$125
Yearly Total:	$2625.20

Our Internet radio station is maintained with the financial help of our listeners. You can also contribute by purchasing an an item in our gift shop at CafePress. Smooth Jazz and More gets a portion of your purchase, and in return, helps us maintain our administrative costs.

Please give what ever you can, and for those who’ve contributed, thanks so much for your generous support.

IDOBI Network Discusses Results of Lobying Effort on Behalf of Small Webcasters

Alternative Rock Internet radio station idobi.com sent out an email regarding their lobbying efforts in Washington on the Webcaster Settlement Act:

Hello everyone,

There is a lot to share. We’ve had several meetings on the Hill, with both the House and Senate sides, to discuss reintroducing the Small Webcasters Settlement Act. We’re still waiting on additional follow-up from the Senate side, however we have received a plan of action from key staffers in the House.

Update

Before we share that recommendation, here’s the update. Because this is an election year and copyright reform is a hot topic, we’ve been warned that the Small Webcasters bill would likely get bogged down by a variety of interest groups jumping in to piggyback onto it. That could take a year or more to work out. As you know, that is time we don’t have.

The Representatives also cautioned they did not want to force rates onto SoundExchange because in a few years that would land us back in the same place we are now. Therefore, they suggested a plan that could be enacted quickly and would produce a longterm solution.

Plan of Action

The plan of action is a simple one. We, as small webcasters, need to reach out to the members of Congress who represent our individual states and districts with a clear and concise message:

“Dear Mr/Mrs Member of Congress, Please urge SoundExchange to negotiate a designated rate for small webcasters.”

In doing so we will also be asking members of Congress to save the future of this vital, young American industry and the many jobs and businesses within it.

As constituents of these states and districts our requests will carry a great deal more weight. In addition, it would be far more difficult for SoundExchange to decline a request coming from multiple members of Congress.

This course of action works well because it will give us what we were denied in the initial CRB ruling: the opportunity to provide testimony and to negotiate rates our businesses can viably sustain, while allowing for growth.

NOTE: If you decide to act please let us know which members you reached out to and when, so we can let you know the next steps.

Deployment

Again, both our lobbyist and the staffers urged us to keep our message simple in this round. We only need to act in at least one of three ways (listed in order of most impact):

Make appointments to speak with the copyright/internet person in the local offices of your Senators and Representatives, and present a letter outlining the request.

Call those national offices, ask to speak with the copyright/internet person, and make the requests over the phone.

Email the national offices of your Senators and Representatives with the letter enclosed.

a. suggested subject lines:
i. Create Copyright Convo w/ SoundExchange, Small Webcasters
ii. Negotiate Copyright–SoundExchange & Small Webcasters

Along with these actions there are some important talking points to present, and also a few things to be avoided:

Talking Points:

Start with the ask: “Please urge SoundExchange to create a designated rate for small webcasters.”

Make sure they know you are their constituent.

Let them know internet radio providers are happy to work cooperatively.

i.e. We want to continue to PAY fair and equitable royalties and PLAY artists who aren’t being played in the mainstream, while making sure Americans can LISTEN to their choice of music.

But we have to be in business for artists to receive those royalties.

Make it clear that SoundExchange is going to lose millions of dollars’ worth of royalties for their artists when internet radio stations/small webcasters either go out of business or are forced to block American audiences.

Once you’ve done all of the above, tell your story.
Avoid:

Avoid diluting the message. One thing and one thing alone must ring out: Negotiating an internet radio provider/small webcaster rate with SoundExchange in order to save this industry.

Don’t make SoundExchange the villain or show any anger towards them. Willingness to cooperate is key. We need the support from our representatives in order to get SoundExchange to welcome us to the table.

— idobi

Radionomy Implements Geo-Block in Certain Countries With No Explanation

A moderator on Radionomy’s Tech Support forum posted the following message,

“(They) decided to geo-block radio stations broadcasting in some countries. These countries represent only a limited part of the audience. In these countries, a specific message will be broadcast to the listeners connecting to the station.”

These countries are NOT GEO-BLOCKED:

• United States of America
• Canada (Removed July, 2016)
• Switzerland
• Most Central American and Caribbean countries (e.g. Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico)
• Argentina
• Peru
• European Union (28 states – includes the Baltic states, but excludes Switzerland and countries that were formerly part of Yugoslavia)
• Norway
• Australia
• New Zealand
• Africa (most countries)
• China (including. Hong Kong)
• Malaysia
• Thailand
• Singapore
• Vietnam
• Indonesia

These countries ARE GEO-BLOCKED:

• Japan
• Mexico
• Taiwan
• Philippines
• Brazil
• Chile
• Colombia
• Russia (except a few areas)

As of this blog post, listeners in Radionomy’s affected Geo-Block country list are greeted with the sounds of “Lounge Music”.  Listeners in affected countries have other options.

• Purchase a VPN, which will give listeners a US feed of our Radionomy stream. We recommend VPN Express, which has a convenient app with affordable options.

• Listeners can also download Opera web browser.  The browser has a built in VPN service and listeners can choose what country to use.

BREAKING: as of February 2017, the YourMuze.FM stream is no longer available, as the website no longer is functional.

Listeners in the U.S. are NOT affected by Geo-Block, yet.  The list may change, pending the outcome of Sony Music’s lawsuit against Radionomy for alleged unpaid royalties.

Technical Issues Cause a Re-direct on our Radionomy Stream

It’s gone from bad to worse for Internet radio broadcast provider, Radionomy.  Producers have now been forced to deal with a re-direct on Internet radio stations from certain countries.  This has caused a major headache for producers, who have seen a number of issues rise over the last week.

Just last weekend, Radionomy voluntarily turned off their stations on TuneIn within the United States.  This resulted in Nobex Partners to follow suit and block Radionomy stations from their radio app in the US.  As a result, our app launch with Nobex was delayed.

Right now, listeners in Canada, Russia, Japan, The Philippines, South Africa,The Netherlands, Australia, Brazil and New Zealand are experiencing problems with the stream.  Listeners in the United States hasn’t been affected by the re-direct. This is especially troublesome with some producers who program Gospel music and are shocked by the sounds of Lounge music.

Because of a 4 day holiday in Belgium, where servers are located, the issue won’t be resolved until Monday at the earliest. Not a good way to run a business.  But then again, Radionomy streams are provided to producers for free.

You get what you pay for, or in this case, what you don’t pay for.

Smooth Jazz and More has temporarily added a link from YourMuze.FM listeners outside the United States on its website.  The link will open up a special webplayer where listeners can hear the station.

Listeners within the US: http://listen.radionomy.com/smoothjazzandmore

———————————————

UPDATE: 5-9-2016

It’s almost Tuesday and producers at Radionomy are pissed.  There has been NO guidance whatsoever from Radionomy’s upper management or tech support.  Many have thrown in the towel.  Some continue to hold out hope that a solution or a resolution will be done.

We’ve adjusted our website to where listeners in countries affected by the re-direct can listen to Smooth Jazz and More.  Click the link to YourMuze.FM at our website as an alternate radio player.  In the meantime, we’re going to be re-starting our GoFundMe campaign in order to look for a new broadcast provider and to pay for broadcast licencing.  We’ll have an official list of items we’ll need in order to proceed.

Stay tuned!

Smooth Jazz and More now available on Orange Radio.

Two days after being taken off TuneIn’s radio directories, Smooth Jazz and More is now available on Orange Radio.  Orange is one of the main telecom providers in France.  The company entered into a strategic partnership with Radionomy in March to help distribute through its iOS and Android apps, and extend the company’s reach to more than 100 countries.

Listeners can download the Orange radio app for their Apple and Android devices and find Smooth Jazz and More on a search.  On Friday, all Radionomy radio streams were subsequently taken off TuneIn’s online directories.  Originally, stations were given individual take-down notices on behalf of Sony Music, who filed suit in US District Court in March, alleging Radionomy had not been paying music royalties.

Smooth Jazz and More is currently working with its Nobex Partners to develop its own app for listeners.

TuneIn Removes Radionomy Radio Stations on its Network; New Radio App Currently in Development

 

Internet radio listeners were given another black eye by the music industry.

At approx. 9:30pm eastern daylight time (-4 GMT) on Friday night, Internet radio network TuneIn dropped all stations from Belgium-based, Radionomy.  This was a direct result of the lawsuit between Radionomy and Sony Music.   In March, Sony had filed suit against Radionomy in US District Court in San Francisco for alledged non-payment of music royalties.  For the last couple of weeks, TuneIn had been sending take down notices on behalf of Sony to individual radio stations along Radionomy’s network.  Sony’s strong armed tactics on TuneIn was enough for them to act on today’s actions.

Listeners can still access Radionomy stations on TuneIn manually, by adding the custom URL of the radio station on their accounts.  However, they won’t be able to access the stream on a search, as they will be forwarded to a similar station in TuneIn’s catalog. It is uncertain whether all stations will be restored on TuneIn’s directories.

To access our radio station stream on TuneIn or any other listening device, simply copy and paste the following address into the Custom URL section.  http://listen.radionomy.com/smoothjazzandmore

In the meantime, a new radio app is currently in development for Smooth Jazz and More listeners.  Nobex Partners is developing one for iOS, Android and Blackberry users and the station hopes to have one ready sometime next month.

Smooth’s Podium Picks – 2016 KOSÉ Team Challenge Cup

The final stage has been set in Spokane, Washington; where fans get to make their picks for who they want to skate this weekend.  The ISU-sanctioned competition takes over for the World Team competition, splitting the teams into regions and putting some countries on the same side.  The teams are captained by Olympic Gold Medallists.   Kristi Yamaguchi (1992, Albertville) captains Team North America, Christopher Dean (1984, Sarajevo) is Team Europe’s captain, while Shizuka Arakawa (2006, Turin) captains Team Asia.

Canada’s Nam Nguyen skates for Team North America this weekend. 

Mens

Analysis – Team Asia has a strong entry list.  China’s Jin Boyang won the fan vote, sealing his entry in this weekend tournament.  He also had a great free skate at worlds, grabbing bronze.   After a 4^th place placing in the short, Japan’s Shoma Uno struggled in the free skate, dropping to 6^th and finishing 7^th  .He picked up bronze with a strong free skate a Worlds.  Kazahkstan’s Denis Ten had an inconsistent season, struggling with an 11^th place finish at Worlds last month.

Team Europe’s only solid competitor is Michal Březina of the Czech Republic, who had a 9^th place finish at Worlds.  Russia’s Mikhail Kolyada takes over for team-mate Maxim Kovtun, who was a last minute scratch due to an ear infection.  Kovtun also won the fan’s vote.  Russia’s Sergei Voronov had an injury plagued season and will make his return to the ice this weekend.

Team North America is led by US and Four Continents champ, Adam Rippon.  He’s riding on his past success and could take him to the top spot this weekend.  The rest of the team is a question mark.  Jason Brown makes his return to the ice after sitting out the season due to injury.  Canada’s Nam Nguyen had a disappointing Worlds finishing 27^th in the short, missing the cut.

Smooth’s Pick:

1. Jin Boyang (Team Asia)
2. Adam Rippon (Team North America)
3. Shoma Uno (Team Asia)

 

Japan’s Sakoto Miyahara leads a strong Team Asia contingent.

Ladies

Analysis – This is probably the most competitive of the division this weekend.  Team Asia is betting on three strong skaters to win. Japan’s Satoko Miyahara has either finished 1^st, 2^nd or 3^rd in competitions this season.  Last month’s 5^th place finish at Worlds ended the streak.  Team-mate Rika Hongo has been solid, but still fell short of her goals this season (4^th, Japan; 8^th, Worlds).  Kazakhstan’s Elizabet Tursynbayeva has continued to improve her standing on the ISU World Standings, climbing to the top 20 and finishing 12^th at Worlds.

Team Europe also has a strong group of skaters.  World Champion Evgenia Medvedeva of Russia is the class of the field, having won every competition, except for Rostelecom Cup, which she finished 2^nd to her team-mate, Elena Radionova.  Radionova won the fan’s vote.  Medvedeva replaced Lisa Tuktamysheva due to injury. Italy’s Roberta Rodeghiero is a surprise entry, given her success in Grand Prix competition.

Team North America is led by World silver medallist, Ashley Wagner (fan poll winner), who has a ton of experience and is expected to medal this weekend.  Team-mate Gracie Gold lost her chance to medal at Worlds after a disastrous Free Skate.  Canadian Gabrielle Daleman finished strong after coming up short at Nationals and a 9^th place finish at Worlds.

Smooth’s Pick:

1. Evgenia Medvedeva (Team Europe)
2. Elena Radionova (Team Europe)
3. Ashley Wagner (Team North America)

 

Americans Alexa Scimeca & Chris Knierim are favorites to medal for Team North America

Pairs

Analysis – Team Asia’s entries are “battle tested” if not accomplished.  China’s Wang Xuehan & Wang Lei have a 4^th place finish at Cup of China and were ranked 15^th at Worlds.  Japan’s Sumire Suto & Francis Boudreau-Audet won Nationals after being a team for only a year and finished 22^nd at Worlds last month.

Team Europe will be led by Russia’s Ksenia Stolbova & Fedor Klimov, whose return to the ice has been at best, challenging, missing Europeans, but finishing 4^th at Worlds.  Still, they’re a favorite to medal this weekend.  Italian’s Nicole Della Monica & Matteo Guarise their National champions and are looking to improve their international standing.  This competition with give them that valuable experience.

Team North America are the clear-cut favorites to take two of three spots this weekend.  Canadians Meagan Duhamel & Eric Radford successfully defended their title at Worlds with a spectacular free skate.  Americans Alexa Scimeca & Chris Knierim continue to climb the ladder of success, winning 2^nd at Four Continents and grabbing a top 10 finish at Worlds (9^th).

Smooth’s Pick:

1. Meagan Duhamel & Eric Radford (Team North America)
2. Ksenia Stolbova & Fedor Klimov (Team Europe)
3. Alexa Scimeca & Chris Knierim (Team North America)

 

Anna Cappellini and Luca Lanotte look to grab the top of the podium for Team Europe this weekend.

Ice Dance

Analysis – Team North America should walk away with this division with the strong pairings of Americans Madison Chock & Evan Bates and Canadians Kaitlyn Weaver & Andrew Poje.  Both teams had disappointing finishes at Worlds last month.

Team Asia have tested Ice Dancers for this weekend. Korea’s Rebeka Kim & Kirill Minov finished 26^th at World and will need the international experience to improve their World standing.  China’s Wang Shiyue & Liu Xinyu, last minute substitutes for team-mates Sui Wenjing & Han Cong also struggled, finishing 22^nd at Worlds.

Team Europe will contend for the podium, with Italy’s Anna Cappellini & Luca Lanotte leading the field.  They missed the podium at Worlds, finishing 6^th.  Great Britain’s Penny Coomes & Nicholas Buckland are last minute substitutes for reigning world champions, Gabriella Papadakis & Guillaume Cizeron, due to injury.  They put in a 10^th place finish at Worlds.

Smooth’s Pick:

1. Kaitlyn Weaver & Andrew Poje (Team North America)
2. Madison Chock & Evan Bates (Team North America)
3. Anna Cappellini & Luca Lanotte (Team Europe)

 

Final

1. Team North America
2. Team Europe
3. Team Asia

 

Smooth’s Podium Picks – World Championships 2016

The individual season comes to a close, as the world converges on Boston, where the best of the best will skate for supremacy this weekend. This will be the first time for the city to host a World Championship, which has been home to many skating champions, including 1994 Olympic silver medallist, Nancy Kerrigan.  In all, 24 of the top individual skaters in each category (men & ladies), 16 pairs teams and 20 ice dance teams will be competing this weekend.

Will it be another record breaking weekend for Japan’s Yuzuru Hanyu?

Men

Analysis: This has been the year of Yuzuru Hanyu. The Japanese firebird has lit up the ice world on record pace, first at NHK Trophy becoming the first skater to reach 300 points (322.40), then going further, in the grand prix final with a record 330.43.  Current world champion Javier Fernandez knows he’ll need the best marks of his career if he wants to keep the title in Spain.  He’s had a flawless season up to now, having only a second place finish at the grand Prix final as his blemish.  The return of Canadian Patrick Chan puts the competition on firm ground. He’s returned in grand fashion, winning Skate Canada, Four Continents and taking his 8^th national title.  Other contenders are Japan’s Shoma Uno, who has lifted his game with a 3^rd place Grand Prix Final and China’s Boyang Jin, whose two 2^nd place finishes at Cup of China and NHK Trophy puts him in contention. If he hits his quadruple Lutz-triple toeloop combination this weekend, he will make the podium.

Skaters to Watch: Kazakhstan’s Denis Ten has had a disappointing season.  Expected to contend, he stumbled out of the gate, finishing 9^th at Skate America missed out on the Grand Prix final.  He’s still considered a solid contender this weekend.  China’s Han Yan was a 3^rd place finisher at Four Continents last month.  The USA’s Max Aaron and Adam Rippon are two skaters looking to take advantage of home ice.

Smooth’s Pick –

1. Yuzuru Hanyu (JPN)
2. Javier Fernandez (ESP)
3. Boyang Jin (CHN)

Russia could make it another clean sweep, led by Evgenia Medvedeva.

Ladies

Analysis: Could it be the beginning of a possible Russian sweep?  The ladies have dominated all season long.  What makes it even more amazing is that, quite possibly, their best skaters isn’t even in Boston this weekend.  Evgenia Medvedeva has been flawless, only losing at Rostelecom Cup to teammate, Elena Radionova, who also had a strong season.  Anna Pogorilaya could be considered the weakest of the Russian ladies, be she had a strong 3^rd place finish at Europeans.  The only skaters with a program strong enough to break the juggernaut are from Japan and the United States.  Satoko Miyahara is currently ranked #1 by the ISU and has strong victories at NHK Trophy and Four Continents.  Rika Hongo and three-time world champion Mao Asada round out the other two skaters who could challenge for the podium.  Of the Americans, their best hope is three-time US champ Ashley Wagner and current US Champion Gracie Gold.

Skaters to Watch: The loss of American Polina Edmunds gives Mirai Nagasu a chance to prove her doubters wrong (me included).  What was supposed to be a last hurrah has turned into a chance for redemption, having placed 3^rd at Four Continents last month.  She has plenty of international experience, so she is a dark horse this weekend. Look also for a big weekend from Canadians Alaine Chartrand and Gabby Daleman, who both had strong programs at Nationals.

Smooth’s Pick –

1. Evgenia Medvedeva (RUS)
2. Satoko Miyahara (JPN)
3. Elena Radionova (RUS)

Current World Champions Megan Duhamel and Eric Radford could find it hard to keep their title this weekend.

Pairs

Analysis: Current world champions Megan Duhamel and Eric Radford had a bit of a stumble this season, losing the Grand Prix Final and withdrawing from Four Continents.  But the Canadians are expected to finish strong this weekend.  Their main rivals, Tatiana Volosozhar & Maxim Trankov of Russia are back to regain the title they lost last year due to injury.  They’re considered a slight favorites over their teammates, Ksenia Stolbova & Fedor Klimov, who won the Grand Prix Final.  China has three teams ready to compete, two of which are ready for the podium.  Wenjing Sui & Cong Han won Four Continents Championships, while Xiaoyu Yu & Yang Jin had a strong Grand Prix season, qualifying for the final, where they finished in fifth.

Skaters to Watch: Aliona Savchenko & Bruno Massot will be competing at Worlds with the goal of making the podium.  This being their first year together, they don’t skate like it, winning German Nationals and silver at Europeans.  Americans Alexa Scimeca & Chris Knierim recovered from a disappointing 2^nd place finish at nationals to take silver at Four Continents.   European bronze medalists Evgenia Tarasova & Vladimir Morozov  of Russia and ISU Grand Prix Finalists Cheng Peng & Hao Zhang of China round out possible contenders.

Smooth’s Pick –

1. Tatiana Volosozhar & Maxim Trankov (RUS)
2. Megan Duhamel and Eric Radford (CAN)
3. Ksenia Stolbova & Fedor Klimov (RUS)

Can Maia and Alex Shibutani continue their hot streak this weekend? 

Ice Dance

Analysis: The table is stacked filled with teams that can make the podium.  Reigning world champions Gabriella Papadakis & Guillaume Cizeron of France had limited duty this season due to injuiry.  But they look good at Europeans, winning their second straight and putting them into contention.  Canadians Kaitlyn Weaver & Andrew Poje had a good stretch, going undefeated until Four Continents, where they were surprised by Americans Maia & Alex Shibutani.   The brother/sister team have been on a trajectory and may be the team to beat this weekend.  Their teammates, Madison Chock & Evan Bates are still very formidable and could make a comeback.  The same is said for Italians Anna Cappellini & Luca Lanotte, who have tasted victory before.

Skaters to Watch: The division is still reeling from the suspension of Ice Dancer Ekaterina Bobrova.  The loss of Bobrova and her partner, Dimitri Soloviev puts Russia at a disadvantage.   They were replaced by Alexandra Stepanova & Ivan Bukin, who finished 3^rd at Europeans.  Teammates Victoria Sinitsina & Nikita Katsalapov finished 4^th at Europeans.  Americans Madison Hubbell & Zachary Donohue had a strong Graind Prix season, qualifying for their first Grand Prix final this season.

Smooth’s Pick –

1. Gabriella Papadakis & Guillaume Cizeron (FRA)
2. Maia & Alex Shibutani (USA)
3. Kaitlyn Weaver & Andrew Poje (CAN)

More Ways to Listen Means More Listeners!

We’re almost at the three month mark at our new radio home at Radionomy.  We’ve steadily increased our listenership, approaching the required 130 hours a day required by the company.

In order for us to do that, we’ve added our radio station to almost two dozen directories on the internet.  Among the many sources, they include Nobex, Streema, MusicGoal, StreamFinder and RadioForest.

By adding our stream address, you can listen to Smooth Jazz and More on any device on your computer.  They include iTunes, Windows Media Player, Real Player or VideoLAN VLC player.  You can also listen on the TuneIn Radio app or any Sonos or Roku radio device.

Stream Address: http://listen.radionomy.com/smoothjazzandmore
mp3 Address: http://listen.radionomy.com/smoothjazzandmore.m3u

Adding listeners is hard.

Promotion is not a given, either. Essentially, we’re trying to find the easiest way to grab listeners.  We’ve found that social media is the best bet.  Tweeting a song we’re currently playing really helps.

We’re very hesitant on giving any promotional company any money. Some had offered $200 dollars for a package.  We’ll continue doing what we’re doing to get the listenership we need.

In the meantime, keep listening and help us get to the magic number of 130!

 

Growing Pains with our new Broadcast Home

It’s been nearly two months since our abrupt exit from Live365.   We’ve finally gotten accustomed to our new home at Radionomy.  I must say that the inner-phase is different and took me a few days to get use to.  I’ve grown accustomed to it enough to begin new morning drive programming.

If you haven’t heard lately, Smooth Jazz and More has been playing news and weather provided by Radionomy every half hour beginning at 5am and running to 10am.  In addition, I’ve added a 2 minute sports report at :15 and :45 minutes past every hour during the morning.  The hope is that more listeners will be able to be informed, as well as entertained.

The last few weeks have had challenges.  Radionomy has been besieged with technical issues that resulted in the loss of our stream at times.  Last month, the network had periodic spots of “dead air”, many up to 5 minutes.  Last week, the network experienced repeated tracks and jingles.  Some Radionomy producers have speculated this was a result of a lawsuit filed against the company by Sony, which has accused Radionomy of not paying royalties.

One of the things that led me to Radionomy is that the stream is free to use.  In the aftermath of Live365’s demise, some companies were offering streaming for $50 dollars a month without licensing.  Music licensing would have been an extra $39 dollars a month.  While the lawsuit is legit, the resulting technical problems are just what they are, speculation.  Through all the technical issues and the move, our listener number have been a challenge.

As of this blog entry, we’ve been hovering around 50 listener hours per day, more than 2/3rds  the requirement for three months on Radionomy.  However, the problem we’ve encountered is listeners who have accessed our stream, but haven stayed on long enough to register streaming hours.  I’m not sure how we’re going to address that, but we’ve gotten a number of new listeners from around the world through former Live365 broadcasters on various Facebook groups.

The next few months will be crucial.  We need to maintain our numbers and gather new listeners.  I’ll be doing more promotions to help make that happen, so if you listen to us regularly, stay tuned for something new.

In the meantime, I’ll be keeping a watchful eye on the litigation between Sony and Radionomy.  We’re not sure what we will do, should Sony be successful in their lawsuit.

We’re also asking our supporters to continue pressing Congress to give small broadcaster relief from the new royalty rates.

Go Petition on Saving Internet Radio

Call or Write Your Senators or Representatives

Keep the Pressure on Washington