Radio Should Learn From Sony Walkman
It has been 30 years since the birth of a portable media icon - the Sony Walkman. In July 1st of 1979, the TPS-L2 model, popularly known as the blue-silver Walkman model, hit the stores in Japan, and the rest is history.
Walkman is an enduring brand, even with fierce competition with another digital media device, you don’t have to mention the name, but you can call it iPod. Yet, PC World calls it one of the 50 Greatest Gadgets of the last half century. Surprisingly, Walkman’s impact in sales and on pop culture, cannot be even be rivaled by that of iPod, even if the Apple product existed long before.
The Walkman is a promising device and those who grow up with it, including me, couldn’t imagine a daily trip on the subway without it. Yet, it has to withstand a number of competition. And mightily, it graced though quite a number of upgrades in the last 30 years, embracing new formats such as CD, mini-disc, and then the digital audio.
It’s most trying moment, was its shift to the digital format. When MP3 was just starting to change the way we listen to music, Sony already had the NetMD Or NetworkMD. It’s flagship model — MZ-N10 allows users to convert music files (including mp3) from PC to Walkman. But it still uses the mini-disc as a storage medium, therefore, didn’t really directly play mp3 files.
Come 2003, Sony released NW-MS70D, the same year Apple hit sales blockbluster with the iPod. The market gave less favor to the NW-MS70D due to its incompatability to play the MP3 format. Aside from that, it came with a hefty price tag and limited storage.
Learning from experience, Sony, later on, embraced a hard drive storage, improved software and allowed direct mp3 playback. And Walkman was back in the business.
What’s the moral lesson here for the radio industry, ADAPT! Radio needs to listen to what the listeners need.
Thirty years ago this week Sony kicked off a revolution in the consumer electronics market with the introduction of the Walkman. See how the portable audio market has changed since then.
Movin 93.9 Los Angeles, a format product of Alan Burns & Associate, has given up its brand in favor of the new logo, Exitos 93.9. KMVN also moves to a new set of call letters - KXOS, 
Radio Ink Magazine reports LA’s KLSX FM is now KAMP FM. Following a 20 plus years of usage, KLSX which was more attached the Classic Rock and FM Talk format, flipped to CHR in February this year, with the new “Amp Radio” brand. The KAMP call letters is all the more reflective of the Amp Radio logo. From Radio INK Magazine http://www.radioink.com/Article.asp?id=1395180&spid=30800
For many who grew up to his music, the news about his death came as a shock. Yet, the radio was as quick to jump into responding, with regular programming shifted and lifted, paving way for tribute programs for the late Michael Jackson.
As posted on 
Krash Creative Solutions, the leader in creative imaging and production, dishes out this cool promo intended for the queen of the house. Mother’s Day is coming this Sunday, and Mom’s Day won’t be complete without some mushy promos to throw out. Krash Creative and John Willyard pulled off a really heart-warming Mother’s Day imaging here, free to download.
They all say mother’s know best. But this Mother’s Day, producers know best that only the coolest and most heart-warming production elements are on Benztown Branding. 35 new elements for Mom’s Day are on Benztown including music beds, samples, SFX, sweepers and a whole lot more. Log on to Benztown now and go straight to Holidays/Specials category.
New this month on ONE CHR - 2 new themes: “Crazy LaLa”, a Lady Gaga Inspired Dancefloor Anthem, and “HighScore”, a house shaking techno thumper, customize with a VO tag at the ramp intro. As usual the workparts abd beatmixes are jumpacked with big names and hits.
We have come a long way in respect to broadcasting. A major part of the radio world, and the sole bread earner is advertising. Times were much simpler when radio began. Back in August of 1922 the first paid commercial made its way onto the air at WEAF. According to AT&T, the first sponsor was Queensboro Corporation of New York – advertising real estate. Commercials on the radio…this was strange and interesting to listeners.
