Radio In The U.S. Is Morphing As We Listen 1. AM is dying. Have you noticed how many free public service commercials are on AM radio these days, even on top shows during prime drive time? That's because AM ratings are in toilet as a generation of listeners turns to other media to be entertained. In Europe, many countries have eliminated AM altogether.
2. FM's in trouble too. Station groups in the U.S. bit off more than they could chew back in the 90s when they went on station buying sprees and now the bill is coming due. For instance, iHeart Radio (which used to be Clear Channel) is being asked to pony up $6 billion by investors, and that's not easy for a company that's projected to lose $80 million this year.
3. Even National Public Radio has a problem. There's a huge battle between national NPR and its individual stations, who are afraid of streaming because they think they'll lose their local donors.
4. And college radio is failing fast. Terrestrial radio stations are costly to maintain and colleges strapped for money have been selling off their transmitters, yet keeping the callsigns for their media programs. The basic broadcast experience for students isn't that much different between a big terrestrial and online station, although its influence on the audience (which isn't as large) is.
5. Which means that the move for artists to get paid from radio airplay is just about dead. The United States is one of only four countries that doesn't pay the artist for radio play (songwriters get paid, but not the artist). North Korea, Iran and China are the othersI Every time there's a bill in congress to change this, the NAB (the lobbyist group for the broadcasters) cries that broadcasters would lose billions and stations would close. This time it may actually be true that they can't afford it.
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