Posted on 05/10/2010 12:47:22 PM PDT by a fool in paradise
...Internet music services like Pandora, Slacker and Last.fm, already popular with computer and smartphone owners, are being tailored by software developers, consumer electronics companies and even automakers to work more seamlessly with car stereo systems...
...These handsets all have free applications that play customized music channels streamed over the Internet using the phone’s 3G wireless data connection. The services are generally free, although smartphone owners typically pay about $30 a month on top of regular voice service for unlimited data usage.
The attraction is that rather than being shackled to the same old hits from local radio stations, listeners can customize the music channel to suit their tastes. Pandora has about 750,000 songs and 40 million listeners...
...During a test drive when I became irritated by a Beyonce song, I simply pushed a “voice” button on the side of the Pioneer display and told the system to “play the Doors.” Within a couple of seconds, the unit began to play songs from the “Soft Parade” album. The sound quality, while not equivalent to a CD, was as good as typical radio reception and better than some satellite radio stations. And when a call came in, the built-in Bluetooth hands-free system automatically muted the music.
I did discover some limitations, however. AT&T’s 3G wireless service is notoriously patchy in New York City, so there were occasional dead spots when the music dropped out as the cellphone searched for a signal...
However, such limitations may soon disappear as automakers integrate streaming Internet services directly into their cars...
Of course, traditional radio broadcasters have heard the drumbeat of mobile apps. They have responded with their own apps, streaming live broadcasts from thousands of stations to handsets and through them, to cars...
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
Guess the RIAA and lack of wi-fi bandwidth delayed it a bit...
Internet radio requires an Internet connection. Those generally aren't free.
Whats killing them is that the music has become bad. My son who is in college is now listening to these bands that sound exactly like the music that was popular in the 70s?
Why do you think that is?
I can’t even turn on the country station in town many times during the day because the music they play is not country in any form or fashion. I’ve had to tell my daughters that they can listen to Taylor Swift if they want but I sure as hell won’t.
I’d welcome a system where I could have the music I wanted in the car without having to get it all on an Ipod or burn all those infernal CDs which wear out quickly.
Traditional Car Radio died of self-inflicted wounds long ago.
I know this is a contrasting-technologies article but if terrestrial radio had anything compelling to offer then maybe ‘narrowcasting’ wouldn’t have as many clear advantages.
Music radio stations adopted a very odd business model....a playlist of 20-30 songs that was expected to serve as an effective advertising vehicle.
And AM works in metal buildings and storm shelters
It will hurt Satellite radio more. If it wasn’t for a couple talk shows I can only get on XM, I would cancel today. I can always pick a song or singer I like instantly on Pandora via my phone.
There are tons of dead spots everywhere. Not such a problem in the northeast but get out central west and it’s a big problem.
I love my XM and we use it and the Ipod when we travel. Free radio is just commercials with a few songs tossed in.
Actually that may be a good thing.
Really, who needs inbreeding and illiteracy?
As it is, I use radiotime.com to find talk radio host broadcasts at the hour(s) I can listen in.
The loss here isn't “corporate control”, the big loss is LOCAL RADIO. Local television and local newspapers went away decades ago. I can do without the traffic report (they've never done me a lick of good when there is a major accident backing things up for hours, the electronic signs on the highway do a better job) but I don't watch tv or read our sole (liberal) daily newspaper.
It'd be good to find some discussion of local issues (campaigns, crime, city council) other than “sports and weather”. And there is some on local talk radio but too much syndicated content.
And without local radio, local musicians don't get airtime and local events (concerts etc) don't get announced.
But I'd rather pull in a knowledgeably staffed “freeform” station where each host has a musical area of expertise (and occasional live in the studio performances or interviews and no commercials) rather than living my life on “random” shuffle of 750,000 songs.
Same here. I've found with Pandora that I have discovered artists that I have heard the names of before but never heard their music until I started using Pandora.
Barry Obama would be perfectly happy to see car radio die. All part of getting Americans over their love affair with their cars and driving.
Until everyone goes to fluorescent lighting...
I think MP3 car stereos is a bigger threat than the internet. Internet services still have the same basic problem as the radio, somebody else is picking your music. Sure some of them do a really good job, I’ve never managed to stump Pandora on a band name, but it’s still somebody else’s picks. My MP3, my picks, and I don’t have to worry about my connection getting sketchy.
I shouldn’t even give this a response but I will. I implore you to listen to all of the greats: George Jones, Hank Williams, Hank Williams Jr, Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson, Jerry Jeff Walker, Garth Brooks, Bobby Bare, Jimmy Buffett and all of the other people who made good country music.
It has nothing to do with inbreeding and illiteracy. It has everything to do with art.
fluorescent does generate a lot of noise.
I thought satellite radio was already taking care of that.
The new Jeep I got earlier this year came with a 1 year subscription to Sirius satellite radio.
What with the Grateful Dead channel, the Bluegrass channel, BB King’s blues station and the “Deep Tracks” station, I haven’t listend to a commercial radio station for more than 30 seconds at a time since mid-February.
No. I won’t pay for anything that may be transmitted to my auto.
Agreed, and Sirius-XM helped the demise. XM radio is such a great product. I couldn’t have a car without it now.
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