The aim of this workshop is to explore:

Expectations for digital radio broadcasting, from both a legislative perspective and a community perspective

• We need to frame this new platform through the eyes of the legislators and the audience, not solely through our experience of analogue radio.

Digital radio developments as we prepare for digital radio transmission

• Get prepared to align digital radio content with end user products.



• Ride the rollout of digital devices to capture the community’s imagination

Ways to use existing online tools to road-test what you already broadcast, with want you want to broadcast in the digital radio age

• Digital radio is more closely aligned with existing online media platforms than analogue radio
  
  
• Wax on / Wax off principal, creating multiple outcomes with your digital Proto-types

Overcoming challenges to create simultaneous analogue and digital broadcasts

• Cross-platform Information management
  
  
• Smart use of content
  
  
• Justifying the effort to your managers/board

Creating Digital Proto-types

• Opportunities to activate radio makers and like minded stations to find their feet in the digital format

(A) There is an expectation from the government that digital radio should not directly 'copy' analogue broadcasts, but offer new types of media content and services.

• Gov legislation implies that digital radio is a ‘supplementary’ or ‘complimentary’ technology, not ‘replacement’ technology
  
  
• The transition from analogue to digital radio will be slower than the transition in the television sector

When the digital signal is switched on, straight simulcast of analogue radio is a wasted opportunity

• Instead of a straight simulcast, digital radio can be harnessed as an opportunity to create a ‘new channel’ of programming, combining the best of what you have on analogue broadcast with new program content and approaches

A motivator for existing analogue program makers.

• If we create digital Proto-types to trial the creation and output of digital content, we empower existing analogue program makers to rise to the governments challenge to create enhanced media services

Let’s forge new territories in the digital terrain

Emerging Online Media services and web 2.0 services have blurred and converged media platforms, our community will expect digital radio to provide converged services

• Our communities will expect more than straight simulcast of analogue services
  
  
• Yes digital radio delivers ‘clearer sound’ (even that is a speculation given bandwidth restrictions)
  
  
• Community has already demonstrated that improved audio and visual quality is not the motivator to engaging with new media platforms

People are more interested in dynamic, fresh, multi-layered content, than high quality AV.

People will still listen to Analogue broadcasts for sometime, and whilst digital broadcasts run parallel, we can expect that the community will expect if to be ‘different’.

An opportunity to engage new types of program makers and artists

• Audio/Visual content makers
  
• Web 2.0 contributors
  
• User Generated Content (UGC)

Case Study: www.outloud.tv

• Online media based in Netherlands
  
• Outloud TV takes video sharing one step further by adding a direct link between Internet and TV.
  
• Videos uploaded to Outloud are transferred to broadcast TV, street screens, festivals, schools, and cultural venues such as museums, galleries clubs and more.

Stations can empower contributors to submit work to your online space, for potential broadcast on your radio digital and/or analogue service.

Pioneer the digital terrain in partnership with the community

Community Radio pioneered the FM band

• Community radio stations were amongst the first services on the FM band in the 70’s
  
• We created fresh content to attract audiences. Our Radio sounded different!
  
• Just like then lets empower the community to set the agenda with this new media platform

Let’s rise to the challenge and create new content for the digital platform

(B) Digital radio developments as we prepare for digital radio transmission

• Services are evolving

What it looks like now

• current visual support on digital radio is text based

How will commercial radio use text streaming? How would you use text streaming? What it will look like in 24 months?

• The move to dynamic visual content is inevitable. Animated giffs, streaming video
  
• This development is likely to coincide with the extensive rollout of digital radio players in Australia

How will commercial radio use image streaming?

• There is speculation that commercial television is trying to restrict digital radio’s visual content so it doesn’t look too much like ‘television’.

How would you use image streaming?

The Timing is advantageous – The first major generation of Australian digital radio consumers are likely to purchase the most advanced visual players

• They’ll take image streaming over simple LCD text streams
  
• Commercial radio may be just ‘Ads with Pictures’ if commercial tv restricts their visual content, community radio can be more.
  

This represents a great opportunity for community radio to capture the imaginations of the digital radio audience with engaging visual content, not just ads

Community radio is best positioned to use the digital platform in engaging ways

(C) How do we get prepared? How to we see what works? How can we learn how to make digital radio?

Here and here

Wax On / Wax Off

Creating multiple outcomes with your digital Proto-types

• Three birds with 1 stone
  
• 1st bird = paint our online fence, making it more attractive to the online viewer
  
• 2nd bird = enhance your stations assessment and record keeping resources
  
• 3rd bird = whilst performing these tasks, we will be learning how to do digital radio karate

Digital radio is more closely aligned with existing online media platforms than analogue radio

• Use existing online tools to combine what you already broadcast, with want you want to broadcast in the digital radio age.

(D) The Resource Challenge

Overcoming challenges to create simultaneous analogue and digital broadcasts

• Program Managers will be expected to facilitate dynamic digital content
  
• Stations will be challenged to empower radio makers to generate content that’s transferable from traditional analogue radio to the new digital platform

It’s just bits and ‘stuff’

• Digital Radio is the same language as internet…. ZERO’s and ONES
  
• What you develop now for online will be usable in the digital age

Why not digitise your resources in preparation for digital broadcasting?

Convergence is the key, not a buzz word

• Smart use of content and record keeping
  
• Cross-platform Information management has multiple outcomes and benefits

Combine information that you want manage effectively, with what your audience wants to consume

Justifying the transition to your managers/board

• Opportunity to clean up our house, to digitize our resources whilst improving operations and transparency
  
• Build the capacity to provide digital content into your station operations, to benefit the station now
  
• you will be rewarded: In the U.S. Recreational use of the Internet is out-rating traditional TV
  
• you will be rewarded: the sooner you digitize, the sooner users will contribute and make your job easier

Improve operational functionality, to justify the new digital platforms

Case Study: Edge Digital Music Catalogue

• Challenge A: Improving Record keeping for our CD Catalogue
  
• Challenge B: Increasing access for volunteers to our music catalogue
  
• Challenge C: Decreasing labour involved in assessing and cataloguing music to our digital library
  
• Challenge D: Improving accuracy of information filed onto our music catalogue
  
• Challenge E: Increasing radio announcer knowledge of music on catalogue
  
• Challenge F: Demonstrating our music knowledge to our audience through online resources

Solution = 2 new digital resources

• 1. CD stocklisting database with online display capacity
  
• 2. Online music review forms that connect directly to our digital music catalogue

1. CD stocklisting database with online display capacity

Link here and here

Outcomes

Operational Function to justify to management = better record keeping for releases (Challenge A)

Digital Use Advantage = displaying stock online to meet increase access to volunteers to music catalogue (Challenge B)

2. Online music review forms that connect directly to our digital music catalogue

Link here and here

Outcomes

Operational function to justify to management = Outsourcing music database entry work to publicists and the ‘trusted’ public (Challenge C)

Digital Use advantage = highlights of digital music catalogue are available on new music page (Challenge F) (link)

Improving accuracy of our database (Challenge D)

Analogue Use Advantage = accurate information given to presenters to announce on-air (Challenge E)

Display edge radio’s online catalogue!

What’s this got to do with Digital Radio?

All this data is transferable to digital radio devices

• Album art collected through stock database can be displayed on digital radio image display
  
• Artist/Song Notes created through online review forms can be displayed as scrolling text on digital radio LCD displays

It can start online, and move out from there!

(E) Creating Digital Proto-types

• Opportunities to activate radio makers and like minded stations to find their feet in the digital format

Find your feet by working together

• With like minded stations
  
• Through resource sharing and development in partnership

Pilot streaming facilities

• stations partner to create syndicated online stations
  
• contribute content to a shared resource so you’re not responsible for generating all the content
  
• build relationships between like minded radio programs and staff between stations to trial practical ways to generate digital content to enhance analogue content

Imagine if the sector came together to pilot streaming facilities that have shared uploading facilities? Trialing the potential of multimedia content across like minded stations BEFORE digital is switched on?