This, the first of our regional blogs, is authored by the technology and financial journalist Dominic Basulto. Dominic is a New York native, has been a senior editor at Corante since day one and has written for a number of online and offline media companies. Send tips or story ideas to: basulto@gmail.com.
About this weblog
Here we'll report daily on the latest tech and business developments in New York City. Impossible we concede: comprehensive coverage of the city's every story. What we hope you'll find: tips, tidbits and perspectives you won't find elsewhere. As well as unique insights, original interviews and more that should be of interest to New York's vibrant community of technologists and those who track, invest in and report on them.
In addition to a set of blogging guidelines, IBM now has a set of podcasting guidelines. James Snell, a member of IBM's Software Standards Strategy Group focusing on the prototype development of pre-emerging software technologies and standards, lists the seven commandments of IBM podcasting:
Do not podcast IBM confidential material
Be mindful not only of what you say, but how you say it
Protect your privacy and the privacy of others
Set the bar as high as you can for audio production and content quality
There may be some invitations to participate in non-IBM podcasts that warrant IBM Communications' involvement
Identify your podcast as the voice of an individual or small group within the company, not the "official" voice of the company
Before you initiate a podcast, ask yourself if it is the most appropriate method to communicate with your audience
"The podcast --available at RunnersWorld.com and on Apple's iTunes-- is being sponsored by the sneaker company Asics and will consist of advice for those 35,000-plus participants set to run the marathon on Sunday, November 6. Runner's World staffers will contribute, including editor in chief David Willey, who will talk about what makes the New York Marathon special, and senior editor Jane Hahn, who will discuss pre- and mid-race nutrition. A total of eight segments are currently planned, with more content planned as the race approaches."
No word yet on whether financial services firm ING will be advertising on the podcasts for the, ahem, ING New York City Marathon.
Police Commissioner Ray Kelly - an iPod fan - is now pushing the NYPD to experiment with podcasts, according to Newsday:
"While iPods and similar devices are largely the domain of teens and 20-somethings, Kelly said the NYPD foray into podcasts - believed to be the first by a law enforcement agency - is another way for the department to reach the public."
The first NYPD podcast includes information on street closings during the UN General Assembly meeting, an interview with a police captain about identity theft, and another interview with a police chief sent to New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina.
Podcasting is really going mainstream, if this story from Joe Mandese of Media Post is any indication:
"In a development that may say as much about the future of radio broadcasting as it does about the future of media audience measurement, Arbitron announced that its new portable people meter (PPM) system could successfully track podcasts. While the ultimate potential of podcasts--listener-generated radio programs distributed over the Internet--may be debatable, the technology is one of a progression of digital media applications that are transforming how, when, and why people listen to the medium, and are requiring both radio broadcasters, and the company that measures their audiences, to become more resourceful."
Apparently, it's now possible to track how often podcasts are played using an MP3 player such as the iPod simply by hooking up a "portable people meter" to the headset. Big broadcast radio companies like Clear Channel and Infinity Broadcasting have already started podcasting, and quite obviously, want a way to track these podcasts once they've been downloaded to an iPod.
Computerworld has more on IBM's decision to podcast a number of thought leader interviews on a regular basis:
"Big Blue is getting hip. Just a few months after adopting a corporate blogging policy, IBM is latching onto another hot tech trend, podcasting. On Friday the company posted the first podcast in a new series aimed at sharing its researchers' views about the evolution of technology in various fields."
According to IBM, podcasting is a natural way for investors and researchers to stay informed about key developments: "Podcasting is extremely portable and accessible, and can convey information in a way that's easier to absorb than in a lengthy document." For anyone interested, the debut public podcast from IBM is called "IBM and the Future of Driving."
Venture Voice has posted another in a series of podcasts with entrepreneurs, this time a 30-minute interview with Scott Heiferman of Meetup. Heiferman covers a lot of ground, including the creation of Meetup (“Meetup’s a really stupid, simple idea that couldn’t have been done before 2002"), the launch of New York Tech Meetup several months ago, and the role of Oprah in introducing new ideas to the masses:
"There’s one holy grail for anyone who cares about getting anything… no disrespect to the blogosphere but Oprah is where anyone should want to be. We’ve never gotten there, but if you really want mass America to know something, don’t think it’s anything but Oprah that can do that in 2005."
Good stuff, and thanks for the extensive show notes, Greg.
Curbed points out that The Real Deal is now podcasting: "You're about to absorb a high-powered blast of information about the Manhattan real estate market via The Real Deal's first real estate podcast, with Jonathan Miller of appraisers Miller-Samuel... When you see us at the gym, you know what we'll be rocking out to on our iPod."
If you're into podcasting, this is definitely something to keep an eye on: Click&Buy, a Manhattan-based e-payment service for digital content, is putting the finishing touches on software that will allow podcasters to sell content online for a small fee:
"Consumers will be able to pay for podcasts via credit or debit card when using the Click&Buy service. The software also converts currencies, so consumers do not have to pay currency conversion fees if they are buying a foreign podcast."
Other companies -- including iVillage, ABC.com, Kiplinger and Dolphin’s Gym -- have already used the Click&Buy system to sell digital content such as music and games online.
Last week, CNET News.com reported that audio publisher Audible plans to offer New York Times podcasts via RSS. In addition, Audible plans to offer content from the Wall Street Journal, the "BBC News Hour," "The Charlie Rose Show" and National Public Radio's "This American Life" via syndicated feeds.
Maybe I missed something, but the New York Times has podcasts? I think the article is really referring to the "audio digests" of the New York Times, available at the Audible.com site. I guess it's just a definitional thing.
Virgin Atlantic is going after the hip, tech-savvy tourist with a series of podcasting guides to New York City that can be downloaded from the Virgin Atlantic site. The four guides include a look at the "10 coolest restaurants", a shopping guide, a guide to the city's unknown treasures, and a list of the 10 best things to do for the first-time visitor.
Gregory Galant of Venture Voice interviews the controversial Philip "Pud" Kaplan, founder of the now-infamous F***ed Company Web site, in a 25-minute podcast. Anyway, Kaplan recently raised $4 million in VC funding for a new start-up after moving from New York to the West Coast and is ready to test the entrepreneurial waters once again. There's an MP3 available for download as well as fairly extensive show notes (i.e. podcast highlights).
We'll definitely be checking out future content from Venture Voice, which is bringing podcasting technology to the world of venture capital and start-up ventures. Interesting tidbit: the site is produced by Long Island's Gregory Galant, who was already an Internet entrepreneur/business prodigy at the age of 14.
The beta invitations to use Odeo, the new audio content/podcasting service created by Evan Williams (of Blogger fame), are going out fast and furious to all corners of the globe... Corante New York received an invite yesterday. Until we have a chance to play around with Odeo, here's some initial feedback from podcasters in Canada, Guatemala and Japan.
Z100, a Top 40 radio station in New York, is experimenting with podcasts, making the station one of the few Top 40 stations to embrace podcasting as a way to attract and retain a mainstream audience. Micro Persuasion has more:
"To my knowledge, they're one of the few Top 40 stations that have done so. They may even be the first. What's unique is that they include interviews with big stars like Kelly Clarkson and J-Lo."
JupiterResearch recently launched a podcasting service, called JupiterResearch Conversations, that will feature regular podcasts from the company's technology analysts:
"JupiterResearch's podcasts feature conversations with JupiterResearch analysts about key topics relating to the Internet and emerging consumer technologies. The first podcast, moderated by David Schatsky, senior vice president of JupiterResearch, is a conversation between senior analyst Gary Stein and research director David Daniels, on direct marketing online, and explores the best practices of paid search and e-mail marketing."
Jupiter's podcasting experiment owes at least a small debt to the efforts at IT Conversations, which was one of the first sites to offer high-quality audio content from technology Big Thinkers.
Another sign that podcasting is entering the mainstream: both ABC News and NBC News are experimenting with podcasting initiatives. Paid Content compares and contrasts the two rival efforts, calling them "far too reminiscent of a round of Spy vs. Spy." Looks like both networks will offer a mix of short clips as well as hour-long podcast specials and news updates.
Podcast NYC has a wrap-up of Thursday night's NYC Podcasting Association meeting. If you want to know who's who in the New York podcasting world -- including the first podcaster from the NYC area to get a play on KYOU (the West Coast all-podcast station) -- here's a chance to find out.
Reacting to the news that Viacom's Infinity Broadcasting unit is experimenting with a podcast-only radio station in San Francisco, Frank Barnako of MarketWatch.com says that the podcasting phenomenon could tip either way:
For now, "the pod-o-sphere is excited about Viacom's decision to add podcasts to the failed programming of a one-lung San Francisco AM radio station." Some pundits are even hailing the move as a tipping point and a signal that podcasting could go mainstream.
However, as Barnako points out, "It could also go the other way. Like down the well. And that can happen if greed bears its fangs..." After working through a worst-case scenario of how podcasting is subverted by The Powers That Be, he concludes that "it is unreasonable to believe that innocence can survive in the Garden of Podcasting. We've got about 5,000 now. We may someday see the bloom of a million.
But this is America, and what's good for America is good for business. If the village begins to measure its success by MSM acceptance and support, popularity will kill the Podcast star."
Infinity Broadcasting, a division of media conglomerate Viacom, announced the creation of the world's first-ever podcasting radio station: KYOURADIO. The station will launch in the San Francisco area on May 16. For all you do-it-yourselfers out there, it's worth pointing out that all of KYOURADIO's content will be "created exclusively by its listeners." In fact, in its press release, the head of Infinity Broadcasting goes to great lengths to point out the importance of finding and nurturing the "creativity of undiscovered talent from all walks of life."
If this little podcasting experiment by the Bay works out, it's conceivable that New York City could also become the home to homegrown podcasting stations. Not just 1-2 individual podcasts mixed in for the fun of it -- but a 24/7 radio station comprised totally of user-generated content. That's kinda cool, especially since big media companies like Viacom usually don't do this kind of thing until they're forced to...
Newsday is the latest New York-area newspaper to jump on the podcasting bandwagon. Podcasting may not yet be a mainstream technology, but the promise is boundless, according to one academic at Columbia University interviewed for the story. Already, there are 4,500 podcasts and 6 million podcast listeners nationwide, plus a vast untapped international marketplace.
What's cool is that initial efforts to integrate podcasting into a broader overall business strategy have been successful. The New York Sharks women's professional football team, for example, has found that podcasting has been a relatively cheap way to extend their audience and brand to new markets. At WNYC/93.9 FM, which started podcasting earlier this year, the results have been especially impressive:
"On the Media, the first NPR podcast, doubled its online listeners in four weeks and each show now gets 11,000 downloads... That rivals a midsize media market, like Kansas City or St. Louis."
A bit of shameless promotion: the article also highlights Gregory Narain (a Corante contributor and podcasting pioneer) and his efforts to bring podcasting to the masses.
Hot off the presses: on April 20, the New York City Podcasting Association will hold its first-ever meeting at Kamen Entertainment Group's recording studios in Times Square.
"Podcasting sounds like something you'd do with a rod and a reel, but it's actually the latest iPod phenomenon. A sort of on-demand radio broadcast downloaded straight to your MP3 player, podcasts give you the freedom to roam around the city - even underground - listening to your favorite radio program."
In New York, WNYC is one of the first radio stations experimenting with podcasting, and the station's director of programming explains why podcasting's style of do-it-yourself radio is catching on: "The appeal of podcasts is that they are a way for people to be empowered with their media - they get to listen to the things they want to hear, when they want to hear it."
The new Corante podcasting blog points to Podcasting @ WNYC , a special web feature from New York public radio dedicated to helping listeners navigate the podcasting landscape. The site includes a summary of WNYC's podcasts (e.g. "On the Media"), links to podcasts worth checking out elsewhere on the Web, and a Podcasting 101 Help section.
Hot off the presses: the TopCast podcasting awards show is scheduled for New York City in November, another sign that the podcasting trend is starting to turn into something more -- like a full-fledged industry. According to the founder of the TopCast awards show, "A media market such as Podcasting deserves its own event to recognize industry pioneers, leaders and top program talent." Overall, there will be 30 award categories, ranging from "Best Podcast Host" to "Best Local Podcast."
Worth checking out is a new podcast from Denise Howell of the popular law-related blog Bag and Baggage. Denise coined the term "blawg" and helped pioneer podcasting for lawyers.
(Full disclosure: Denise is also a contributor at Corante's newest blog, Between Lawyers).
We've added a "podcasting" category here at Corante New York, but until now, we've been a bit slow on the uptake to cover New York City podcasters. We hope to increase our podcast coverage around here soon.
Anyway, fiddling around on Google turned up an interesting use of podcasting technology by Kamen Entertainment Group called Marina's Podcast -- "the first website offering a new free subscription service that automatically downloads new fitness programs by Nationally acclaimed fitness motivator and recording artist MARINA right into your MP3 player."
From the Marina's Podcast web site: "MARINA"s Podcast website premiers with 3 - 10 minute Cardio Aerobic workout Podcasts (enough for a 1/2 hour workout of walking, running and aerobics), a Body Sculpting Podcast workout (stretching, body sculpting and circuit training), and a "Confessions of a Food-A-Holic" Podcast... New workouts will be added every few days, so you can add to your library of MARINA"s High-nrg Fitness Podcasts, then mix and match them. Your workout routines will always be fresh and entertaining."
The NYC Beercasting Squad, which includes Gregory Narain, will be at One and One on January 18 at 7:30 recording a new podcast. During these beercasts, New Yorkers gather over beers at local watering holes to discuss a wide range of topics, ranging from "what's your favorite hangout?" to politics and technology.
