Traffic & Weather In The Palm Of Your Hand
Posted by Tom Stark
Technology is rapidly finding its way into the radio industry’s backyard. Stations that rely on hooking listeners with traffic and weather reports are going to have to change their game plan in the near future. Every day new devices are hitting the streets with features that make turning on the radio simply unnecessary.
Not only is the technology getting more and more widespread, but it’s also getting smaller and more useful. I’m sure you’ve heard many times that smartphones are the greatest thing since sliced bread. Well since the launch of the iPhone, mobile technologies have been pushed to new limits.
Enter the iPhone 3G. It shares a lot of features with other smartphones but it’s going to up the ante again. Included with a multitude of updates to the iPhone is the addition of GPS. Along with giving you directions, the iPhone’s GPS can also give you up-to-the-minute traffic reports. Press the weather icon and you have an instant 5 day forecast. With this info on your dash, why listen to a news/talk station if you’re in the mood for your favorite music or a wacky morning show.
The scary thing is that the iPhone is ripe for new applications based on all its current technologies. Developers around the world are creating cutting edge applications as I write this. Eventually you will be able to control your TV, start your car, buy a coffee all with your mobile phone. It’s hard to imagine what thousands of developers will come up with. By the way, Apple cut the price of the iPhone in half to an affordable $199.
Radio stations shouldn’t panic yet. It takes years for products and technologies to reach a mass audience. Also, depending on your stations demo, this may not be a threat for some time. When these devices start coming standard in new cars and when you can’t buy a mobile phone without these features you better make sure your station has a plan.
Down the road the station’s personalities will have to carry more weight. Promos such as, “Listen to WXYZ in the morning, with more talk and less interruptions,” may become more common. No matter what, I think technology is going to make the future of radio very exciting.
Tags: 3G, future radio, iphone, mobile, radio, traffic, weather, wifi, wimax