Tony: Reviewing Randy Miller’s New Internet Radio Station

I’ll start this off by simply noting that I don’t like radio and I like Internet radio even less.

However, the growing segmentation of all media in the digital/Internet age has always drawn my interest. In the future, it’s important that we stop thinking about “radio” and think more about audio and the way different way that users want to utilize their listening experience.

The first thing that intrigues me about this is that, unlike blogs ANYBODY can start an Internet radio station but few people really put much serious effort into it.

Just a modicum of skill is required to start “broadcasting” audio from the web. Think I’m kidding? Take a look at the low barrier to entry for Randy Miller’s new project.

Yup, Live 365.com offers Internet radio broadcasters the ability to set up their “radio show” with very little technical skill.

But will anybody listen?

So far Miller’s operation is definitely a niche product. And because it appears backed by the P&L District from the start there’s not a lot of pressure as far as ratings/listeners goes.

Bottom Line: Randy Miller’s foray into online broadcasting is really about the years he has put into the Kansas City radio scene and nothing else.

Who cares if anybody is listening?

The ads are more “sponsorship” than advertising and I doubt anybody is really concerned about the obviously minuscule crowd he’s drawing. This is an “economy of old buddies” and name recognition, not the serious battle for real advertising revenue that exists in corporate radio.

What I would like is if Miller took some chances with the format and broke out of his safe comedy routine for just a second. But I doubt his sponsors want unnecessary complications. I liken the whole experiment to those TV broadcasting jobs that NFL Football coaches take in between their real gigs.

As for the content, I listened for about half an hour this morning and it’s exactly the same kind of shtick that Miller did when he was on “real” radio. Nothing to write home about and it was basically background noise while I was busy doing more important things.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not completely pessimistic on Internet radio despite the fact that I think that video and photos are far more interesting online. Experts agree that as the Internet becomes more mobile online radio will make significant gains. When people are tuning into their favorite online broadcast with their phone and then maybe plugging that phone into their car for the drive to work THEN I think we’ll see the true power of online radio. However, for the moment, Miller is a bit too far ahead of his time in terms of his distribution method and his conventional act really belongs on a more conventional format.

Tony Botello

http://www.mb-kc.com/
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6 Responses to Tony: Reviewing Randy Miller’s New Internet Radio Station

  1. Anonymous says:

    mike

  2. Anonymous says:

    David
    Kelley Urich has already done it. So Randy isn’t trying anything new in KC. In fact Randy has never had an original thought in his life.

  3. Anonymous says:

    david miller
    And, on a musical note, former KY102 and KSHE big guy Randy Raley has his own internet music station. It’s still in a “beta” form, but so far, I’ve liked what I’ve heard. It sounds like the old KY before the consultants screwed it up. A playlist of about 3,000 classic rock songs and he really mixes stuff up. Raley’s not “on the air” there yet, but he has voices in his stable like Roberta Soloman, so it IS very enjoyable to listen to. You can find it at http://www.planetradio.us. And yes, I am a fan of his from many years back. The cat knows his music.

  4. Anonymous says:

    Duke
    Randy Miller should just start a religious cult. He’s finished in this town in media. He’s a parody of himself now. Go away. Drink some Kool-Aid, you short jag-off.

  5. Anonymous says:

    Brian
    People like to bash KK for his show being old and stale. Well, Randy Miller has told the same jokes since 1976. None of them have been funny since then either.

    The guy has been givin so many chances to prove why he has stayed in KC for all these years. The man thinks he has New York, LA and Chicago talent when in reality it’s more like small town talent worse then KC.

    Go away Miller. Go away.

  6. Anonymous says:

    jojo
    randy is still a good guy. He’s like the rest of
    america trying to reinvent himself.
    He was very successful on the air in the past.
    On kbeq and other stations he did very well.
    Problem was station managers couldnt handle
    the heat when he did crazzy shit.
    He will come back. He will find his niche
    and he will find his place in kc.
    He did have some very funny shows in the past.

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