Online radio's borderless world—Practices and reviews of CRI and CRI Online
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By Ma Weigong
CRI Deputy Chief Director and CRI Online Chief Editor
Ladies and gentlemen, it’s a great pleasure to share with you some of my personal thoughts on the relationship between the Internet and radio broadcasting.
The rapid development and popularity of the Internet has opened up a new era for radio broadcasting. Our own experience demonstrates how the Internet has brought about a fundamental revolution in the development of radio. The globalization of online radio has the following advantages:
First, the whole world can be reached. The worldwide web makes online radio available all around the globe. There is no need for extra investment, broadcasting costs are significantly cut, and coverage becomes much wider.
Second, the ability to record programs gives listeners more options Traditional radio programs are transient, but online programs can be recorded, which means people can listen to what they like, when they like. This is a fundamental change from the traditional radio broadcasting mode.
Third, it attracts large numbers of younger listeners. Most Internet users are young or middle aged, have a higher education background and a relatively high income level. In other words, they are the media’s top target audience.
Fourth, digital radio can be listened to on all sorts of devices. Online radio programs are digital and can be broadcast to new terminal devices like the iPod, MP3 players and smart phones. This has expanded coverage enormously.
Fifth, multimedia broadcasting has become a reality. The principal content of online radio is audio files, but programs can also include text, photos or even video clips. Together, they make up a multimedia program. More information can be delivered to the audience, leaving a deeper impression.
China Radio International (CRI) started building a Website in 1998. This was our first step on the path of online radio broadcasting. Our work at this stage can be divided into three parts: Adapting wireless radio to the Internet, professionalizing online broadcasting, and integrating wireless and online broadcasting.
I. Adapting wireless radio to the Internet
From 1998 to 2003, CRI Online made a concentrated effort to adapt its business to the Internet. During this period, the online platform of CRI Online came into being and has continued to develop ever since. All our programs in all 43 languages were offered as live broadcasts and as on-demand broadcasts.
To accelerate the speed of uploading programs we developed a system called Anyspead that automatically cut and compressed files. The system obtained audio signals from the master control room and processed the data using audio cards. The only thing editors needed to do was to set the start and end time of a program, and Anyspread would automatically collect and compress the program data and send the files to the audio server. There, another software program would release the program online. The entire process was carried out automatically.
But of course, the system could only put files online. Editors still needed to check and edit the program. Sometimes, they would also upload photos with the program.
This initial period was of great significance to us. First, it was a breakthrough from the traditional transient broadcasting mode. Listeners could listen to what they liked when they liked, and listen to the same program more than once. Second, the programs were broadcast to the whole world, covering a much bigger audience. Third, signal quality was greatly improved, especially for shortwave broadcasts.
II. Professionalizing online broadcasting
From 2004 to 2008, CRI worked hard to develop its online radio programs and the professional skills of its staff.
The first exclusively online programs were put on CRI Online in Chinese. In 2004, the Chinese Website set up an online broadcasting department, hired new hosts and opened a special BBS section for listeners. Focusing on music, the programs were oriented towards mainstream web surfers such as college students and white collar workers. The programs soon became popular among young netizens. On July 13, 2005, CRI Online launched Inet Radio - the first multi-language online radio station (www.inetradio.cn) on the Chinese mainland. The name was a combination of the words “information,” “Internet” and “international.” Its slogan, a colorful life comes from the Internet, reflected our reliance on the web and our orientation towards netizens. The station reported in Chinese, English, German and Japanese. Its programs mainly targeted young netizens, broadcasting news, talk shows, music, and language education programs 11.5 hours a day. According to statistics from 2006, Inet Radio’s listeners came from more than 120 countries and regions around the world. Around 90 percent were between 18 and 35 years old; students, office workers and professionals accounted for 32 percent, 27 percent and 15 percent respectively of the total; 87 percent had a university degree or above.
On September 14, 2007, CRI launched 11 global online radio stations in Washington, London, Sydney, Moscow, Berlin, Seoul, Tokyo, Cairo, Ankara, Rio de Janeiro and Buenos Aires. Every day, the stations broadcast programs in nine languages: English, German, Russian, Japanese, Korean, Turkish, Arabic, Spanish and Portuguese. CRI also set up an online broadcasting studio in Finland, where staff from 13 countries collected and broadcast online programs in 10 major languages.
CRI Online also put forward a new concept of online radio development: visible radio, audible Website. To enrich the content of our Website, we actively experimented with new, visible radio programs and fully-fledged online video services.
Compared with wireless radio, online radio was young and naïve at that time. But after developing our skills and professionalism, CRI began to rapidly develop its online programs. Now, some of Inet Radio’s contents are used by traditional FM programs, a sign that the online radio business has matured considerably.
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