Pureplay Internet radio revenues account for less than half the radio station online totals, with Pandora the largest of the group after more than doubling its listener base through the success of its mobile apps and with partnerships with over-the-top TV box and Internet-connected TV device manufacturers. Total reach is powering the radio station online totals. CBS Interactive and Clear Channel total over 1,000 stations. Whatever revenue generated by CBS, Clear Channel and others is attributed to reach and little else...
To be fair, there's not much terrestrial radio can do besides stream their product and that will never compete with Internet-only which has the freedom to go outside the format box to provide entertainment. It makes you wonder why radio continues to push HD Radio instead of putting a variety of formats under their banner on the Internet...
10 Timeline Memories:
- 1862] Cinco de Mayo: The Mexican militia defeats the French army in the Battle of Puebla, in Mexico. Sounds like a good reason to celebrate Cinco de Mayo to me…
- 1891] Practice man, practice: The Music Hall opens in Manhattan. It will later be renamed Carnegie Hall…
- 1900] Bullets to follow: ‘The Billboard’ which will later be changed to Billboard Magazine starts publishing weekly after debuting as a monthly in 1894…
- 1904] That’s why the award was named for him: Pitching for the Boston Pilgrims, 37-year old pitcher Cy Young completes the first perfect game in the modern era (when the pitching rubber was moved to 60′, 6″). Young beats the Philadelphia A’s…
- 1925] What’s the Scope?: Dayton, Tennessee biology teacher John T. Scopes is arrested for teaching Darwin’s theory of evolution. 85 years later it’s still being debated…
- 1955] Rolling 5’s: On 5/5/55, Boston and Detroit combine for 5 runs with the Tigers winning 3-2. It is the only game scheduled in the American League…
- 1961] Reporting from the back window: Alan Shepard makes a 15-minute sub-orbital flight from Cape Canaveral which I reported on when I worked at WKKO in Brevard County, Florida. I did the report looking out of the studio window, a few miles from the launch for News Associates in Washington, D.C., which I probably helped put out of business with my report…
- 1973] The greatest horse of our generation: The great Secretariat wins the Kentucky Derby in record time (1:59:02). The record still exists. Of course Big Red would go on to win the Triple Crown in ‘73...
- 1978] Joining the 3,000 hit club: Pete Rose picks up his 3,000th hit as a member of the Reds…
- 1986] R&RHOF approved: The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum is approved for Cleveland. Although he doesn’t get any credit for it, the world of music can thank Norm N. Nite for that approval. No one worked harder to get the Hall built in Cleveland than Norm…
Music Memories:
- 1968] Released on this date: "Bad Moon Rising" - Creedence Clearwater Revival...
- 1968] The final curtain: The Buffalo Springfield bow out with a concert in Long Beach (CA). Here's the Springfield at a happier time...
- 1962] #1 on this date: "Soldier Boy" - Shirelles...1970] "American Woman" - Guess Who...1982] "Chariots of Fire" - Vangelis...
Commentary:
In 2005, author and historian Curt Smith ranked Ernie Harwell as the third-greatest baseball announcer ever, behind Vin Scully and Mel Allen. Smith had 10 criteria for his rankings, ranging from longevity and acclaim to voice and personality. Ernie was a fallback to a time when the great ones underplayed their importance. The great ones knew their place as being the second most important reason to listen to a game. Name anyone not named Vin Scully that knows that today. Ernie made it to the big show with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1948 but after one year, he crossed the East River to join the New York Giants before moving on to the Baltimore Orioles. In 1959 he made Detroit his home, broadcasting Tigers baseball before unceremoniously fired for one season (1992) before returning the following year. Ernie totalled 42 seasons in Detroit, retiring in 2002. Ernie was a gem, a one-of-a-kind play-by-play master. Ernie passed away yesterday from cancer at 92 with Lulu, his wife of 68 years, at his side. Ernie's only wish was to be remembered, a wish he richly deserved, a wish fulfilled...
"Happy Birthday...happy birthday":
NBC Nightly News anchor Brian Williams (51), Former New York news reporter John Miller (52), Monty Python's Michael Palin (67), Ace Cannon (76), Pat Carroll (83) and Ann B. Davis (Brady Bunch) (84)...
Timeline Countdown: Esta Cinco de Mayo, 4 days until Mother's Day, 26 days until Memorial Day, 46 until Father's Day and 47 days until summer...
