Wednesday, June 9, 2010

Hey Steve - Where's The Radio???

Steve Jobs doesn't strike me as an oversight guy, so did he leave out a radio chip in his new iPhone by design? With all the bells and whistles he included in his smartphone, why would he leave out a radio? It can't be that iPhone users don't stream radio because they do. Nielsen tells us that iPhone users stream online music or mobile radio as a monthly data feature over 40% of the time. They listen to radio more than they download ringtones, watch video or mobile TV, download wallpaper or screen savers, download full music tracks, use video messaging or play online games. So why wouldn't you include a radio app in your new iPhone, Steve Jobs? Will Jobs now abdicate streaming online music and/or mobile radio to Android???

Nielsen now has Android barely taking the lead over iPhone in streaming, both have more than 40% data feature usage over the last 30 days. All smart phones are just short of 30% usage. If Apple doesn't reconsider adding a radio app in its new iPhone, Android's lead will widen. At the top of the list of data feature usage is text messaging. Is it time to rename the device from smartphone to smartdevice? It gets my vote...

Taking the leap from a simple mobile phone to a more sophisticated device has become commonplace. As of Q1 '10, Nielsen data shows that 23% of mobile consumers now have a smartphone, up from just 16% in Q2 '09. Looking at the last 4 quarters can give you vertigo: 16%, 18%, 21%, 23%. Looking at the demos, Android and iPhone users both skew male with Adroid users tending to be slightly younger with the majority being under 34 while iPhone users have a minority of under 34 users...

While it's a two-horse race between iPhone and Android, look for Android to circle the field should iPhone be setting a trend by not including a radio app as they've done with their new device...

10 Timeline Memories:
1.1934] Debuted on this date: Donald Duck makes his debut in the “Silly Symphonies” cartoon "The Wise Little Hen"…1963] "Cleopatra" starring Liz Taylor opens in Manhattan…
2.1946] Teddy Tape Measure: Ted Williams hits the longest home run ever at Fenway. The ball lands 502 feet away in the bleachers. To this day, there’s a red seat to commemorate the spot in row 37, section 42..
3.1948] TV debut: Boston gets a new TV station, WBZ-TV (channel 4) which starts broadcasting. WPIX (11) New York is celebrating their 62nd anniversary next weekend…
4.1973] Triple Crown Champ: The greatest horse of our generation and perhaps all-time, Secretariat, wins the Belmont Stakes by 31 lengths, the largest victory ever and in the fastest time ever in Stakes history...
5.1977] “D-I-V-O-R-C-E": George Harrison and Patti Boyd Harrison call it quits. They married in 1966…
6.1980] En fuego: Richard Pryor suffers near-fatal burns at his home when a mixture of “free-base” cocaine explodes…
7.1985] Kidnapped: American educator Thomas Sutherland is kidnapped in Lebanon...
8.1992] A walk on the wild side: Ben Vereen is nearly killed when struck by a car driven by record producer David Foster. This was an accident and Foster is not charged…
9.2004] FCC slaps Clear Channel: The FCC agrees to a record $1.75 million settlement with Clear Channel to resolve indecency complaints against Howard Stern and other radio personalities...

10.2008] The Kid becomes a man: Ken Griffey Jr. of the Cincinnati Reds becomes the sixth player in baseball history to hit 600 home runs. Griffey recently announced his retirement from baseball...

Music Memories:
1958] #1 on this date: "Johnny Mathis' Greatest Hits" LP. It will stay in the top 100 for 10 years...1958] "Purple People Eater" - Sheb Wooley...1990] "Hold On" - Wilson Phillips (Carnie and Wendy Wilson's trio). The daughters of Brian Wilson are #1, 25 years to the date that "Help Me Rhonda" topped the charts for Brian's Beach Boys...

Commentary:
On Tuesday, June 15th, the New York AES Section presents 'The Dawn of Commercial Digital Recording' presented by Tom Fine and hosted by Robert (Auldworks) Auld. The session will start at 6:30pm and end at 9pm at the Dolby Screening Room, 1350 Avenue of the Americas (6th Avenue) in Manhattan. The event is open to the public...

"Happy Birthday...happy birthday":
Natalie Portman (29), Tedy Bruschi (37), Johnny Depp (47), Michael J. Fox (49), Dick Vitale (71) and Jackie Mason (74)...

Timeline Countdown: 11 days until Father's Day, 12 days until summer and 25 days until July 4th...