Technology, hardware, and gadgets. WiFi speakers, digital dashboards, and more.
France-based RadioKing, a streaming internet radio platform, has announced its launch of an Alexa skill development program. the idea is to offer stations (broadcast and pureplay internet) a turnkey entrance to voice control on the Amazon Alexa ecosystem of devices. Continue Reading
Veritone announced that it has entered an agreement to provide advertising insights to Univision Communications’ nationwide Spanish-language radio network. Univision stations will be able to leverage Veritone’s aiWARE artificial intelligence service to access near real-time insights and advertising performance intelligence. Continue Reading
Sony Music Entertainment and Rhapsody International have partnered to launch a streaming service in Japan. The platform, called mora qualitas, will offer high-resolution lossless FLAC audio at CD quality. It is built on Rhapsody’s Powered By Napster platform. Continue Reading
Google is reinventing a standard feature in smart speakers: the news update. Made famous by Amazon Echo’s “Flash Briefing,” Google’s version is invoked by “Play the news.” The initiative would bring the vast news collection capability of Google News into the voice activation realm. Continue Reading
The acquisition of Triton Digital by E.W. Scripps has closed, the parent company announced this morning. First announced six weeks ago, the merger settles what has been an uneven path for Triton in 2018, as it adds an important piece to Scripps’ digital acquisition strategy. Continue Reading
The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) has announced the launch of an upgraded Video Ad Service Template (VAST) standard that includes attributes of the IAB’s digital audio set of ad standards called DAAST (Digital Audio Ad Serving Template). The purpose of DAAST has been to promote a technical ecosystem in which advertisers, publishers, agencies, and consumer playback devices are aligned to coherently deliver and track streamed audio advertising. Continue Reading
Streaming radio host Live365 has announced licensing agreements which open its internet radio streams to audiences in the U.K. This opens a new market of listeners for the recently revived iconic internet radio brand, and also UK broadcasters and pureplay webcasters. Continue Reading
Spotify announced some minor updates to its Premium experience on mobile. Navigation is simplified, and finding content is more personalized. The updates begin rolling out globally across iOS and Android apps today. Continue Reading
E.W. Scripps announced this morning that it has acquired Triton Digital, the leading ratings service for streaming audio and a global infrastructure service for digital audio delivery. The acquisition carries a price tag of $150-million, cash. Continue Reading
Futuri Media has unveiled new features for its system of converting broadcast radio content into podcasts and other on-demand audio. POST now has logger capabilities, allowing programmers with regional or format-specific responsibilities to access all of their stations with a single login. Continue Reading
Less than a week after the IAB Podcast Upfront, at which Panoply was a presenter, that organization has dramatically changed strategy and structure. Panoply, which creates podcasts and hosts them (both its own shows and those produced by others), is severing its content operation, and becomes a podcast advertising/technology company. Continue Reading
The Interactive Advertising Bureau has released a whitepaper authored by its Digital Audio Committee, chaired by Les Hollander of Spotify, who forwarded the publication to RAIN News. The document is an examination of brand safety issues in digital advertising, and an advocacy paper for digital audio’s unique advantages. Click for summary and download link. Continue Reading