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Audio Intelligence with Raoul Wedel – – A monthly update on the state of all things  AI and AudioA technological revolution is unfolding, and according to Google CEO Sundar Pichai, AI is “more important than fire or electricity.”

Open AI CEO Sam Altman believes it has the potential to cure diseases, address climate change, and provide private education to everyone worldwide. At the core of this revolution is audio technology, which is set to transform the broadcast radio and podcasting industries and redefine the way professionals work in these fields.In the late 80s, the biggest innovation for broadcast radio in history was the introduction of the first radio automation systems, capable of running 32 kHz audio files stored on a 20 MB hard drive. Since then, tech giants like Google, Microsoft, and Facebook have dabbled in audio technology, but none have truly succeeded in dominating the space. Apple, however, has remained active in the music industry through the iPod, iTunes, and Apple Music. Meanwhile, other media and technology companies like Spotify, Sirius, and Pandora have flourished.The year 2023 has been a turning point, witnessing an unprecedented acceleration in audio technology innovations that will enhance the broadcast radio and podcasting experience. Industry giants like Facebook, Google, OpenAI, and Microsoft are investing heavily in the development of advanced audio technologies, driving rapid advancements in the field. The ultimate goal is to achieve multi-modality systems capable of processing text, video, and audio input and output, which will revolutionise content production and distribution for radio and podcasting.Last year, OpenAI unveiled Whisper, a groundbreaking speech-to-text system that can recognize speech despite background noise and support various accents. In 2023, Google introduced AI Soundstorm, a powerful technology capable of speech-to-text and text-to-speech conversions in 1.100 languages. These open-source technologies can be used to transcribe radio broadcasts and podcasts, making them more accessible and searchable for listeners. The foundation for AI voice technology was laid by (Google) Deepmind’s WaveNet, which has inspired many current AI voice technologies like Respeecher, Resemble.AI, and Elevenlabs. These advancements in AI voice technology could enhance the quality of radio broadcasts and podcasts, as well as introduce new synthesized voices for various applications.The impact of these technologies on professionals working in the broadcast radio and podcasting industries will be multifaceted. For content creators, the ability to clone voices and generate AI-driven sound effects will enable them to develop richer, more immersive audio experiences. Radio hosts and podcasters can create diverse, engaging content without needing to rely on costly equipment or a large team of collaborators.Journalists and reporters will be able to take advantage of speech-to-text technologies to rapidly transcribe interviews and other audio content, allowing for easier archiving, referencing, and sharing of information. In addition, AI-generated translations will enable content to reach new audiences, breaking language barriers and promoting cross-cultural exchange.For radio stations and podcast networks, AI-driven audio editing and source separation tools will streamline the production process and reduce the need for manual intervention. This will allow producers to focus on higher-level creative tasks, such as storytelling and audience engagement. Furthermore, AI-generated music and soundscapes will provide endless options for background scores, eliminating the need to license tracks from external sources and reducing production costs.Accessibility will also be greatly improved, as AI-powered transcription and translation services make radio broadcasts and podcasts available to a wider audience, including those with hearing impairments and non-native speakers. This will lead to more inclusive and diverse content, fostering a global community of listeners and content creators.However, the rapid acceleration of AI and audio technology in 2023 also raises concerns regarding job displacement and the potential loss of human touch in content creation. Radio and podcast professionals will need to adapt to these new technologies and focus on developing skills that complement AI-driven tools, such as storytelling, audience engagement, and creative problem-solving.          “Professionals in these fields must adapt and evolve…”Like it or not, the rapid acceleration of AI and audio technology in 2023 is reshaping the broadcast radio and podcasting industries, bringing forth innovative content and enhanced listening experiences for audiences worldwide. As the race for dominance in this new frontier intensifies, the potential for transformation and growth in these industries is immense. Professionals in these fields must adapt and evolve, harnessing the power of AI to create more engaging, immersive, and accessible content for listeners around the globe.Main Photo: Maurizio Pesce from Milan, ItalyAbout the AuthorWith a career in the radio industry spanning more than 30 years, Raoul Wedel is CEO of Wedel Software, a leading international provider of broadcast software solutions. In 2021 he launched the Adthos Ad Platform, bringing broadcast-quality AI and synthetic voice technology to the audio advertising industry for the first time. The platform continues to deliver more market firsts, including the option of creating 100% AI-generated audio ads. […]

India’s Union Minister for Information and Broadcasting, Anurag Thakur said that the Government planning the auction of 808 channels in 284 cities under the third batch of e-auction soon.He was speaking at the 8th and 9th National Community Radio Awards, during the Inaugural Session of the two-day Regional Community Radio Sammelan (North) in New Delhi.Commenting on the expansion of reach of radio in India, the Minister said that today 80 percent of geographical area of the country and over 90 percent of population is covered by radio.

India presently has 388 private FM radio stations in 284 cities across the country.On Community Radio Stations (CRS), Thakur said that that the Government has made earnest efforts to reduce the time taken to establish such stations. While earlier acquiring a license took around four years, today it can be acquired within six months.Presently, there are a total of 449 Community Radio Stations in the country, out of which 70 percent are in the rural areas. Around 100 odd organizations have been permitted for establishment of CRS.Thakur said the Community Radio stations provide their service despite several challenges including human resource shortage, financial strains and lack of external support and for this spirit of nation service they ought to be commended. While the awards encourage the stations, the Minister said, they also recognise the importance of Community Radio in education, awareness generation and problem solving in the remotest corners of India. […]

Content from BPRThis is the first installment in a series of articles about the classical music radio format designed to explore different ways in which classical stations, both public and private, can develop and expand their audiences.Although the classic music radio format is quite unique among the myriad of radio formats available today, it shares a common goal with its format brethren – the need to attract as wide an audience as possible. The term “broadcast” literally means to reach out to listeners throughout the listening area. Unlike some pop music formats, classical music radio does not necessarily appeal to the majority of listeners in a given coverage area. Nevertheless, many forward-thinking classical station operators consider it their mission to bring classical music to as wide an audience as possible.

In the early days of radio, classical music was most often available in the form of special programs of a limited duration and often at times of the day when listening was not at its peak. One of the earliest privately-owned classical stations was WQXR in New York City which signed on the air in 1936 and was owned by the New York Times. WQXR was unique in that it devoted its entire broadcast day to playing classical music. BBC Radio 3, a classical radio pioneer in the public sector, originally was known as the Third Programme and began broadcasting as a classical music and arts station in 1946.Classical music stations have often been considered to be “niche” stations that cater to an exclusive audience of people well-versed in the music, academics and musicians. Unfortunately, this mis-conception about the target audience has too often discouraged potential listeners who would otherwise enjoy classical music and would enjoy learning more about it.Classic FM in the UK is one of the stations that has, in its 31 year history, taken a different approach. It has sought to reach out to a wide range of radio listeners from people who have a budding interest to those who are highly familiar with and well-versed in classical music.In coming editions of this newsletter, we will explore the different ways in which a classical music station can best serve and expand its target audience.By Andy Beaubien, BPR […]

More speakers have joined this year’s Radiodays Asia, the leading radio and podcasting conference in the Asia-Pacific, to be held 5-6 September in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.Zhou, Podcaster, ChinaHeyang Zhou is the multi-award-winning host of Round Table, the premier radio talk show that discusses issues affecting China and the rest of the world. The live broadcast is made into podcasts which makes it the most popular English language podcast from China. The show was awarded Top Podcast and Classic Podcast on Apple Podcast in the region in 2019 and 2020, respectively.Nick Piggott, Project Director, RadioDNS, UKNick is an accomplished technologist in the field of broadcast radio and audio. Having worked for the UK’s largest radio group, establishing innovative digital radio stations and architecting many of the company’s systems and strategies, Nick now works with broadcasters and audio projects throughout the world. Nick is the Project Director (and one of the founders) of RadioDNS Hybrid Radio, which combines broadcast radio and IP together to deliver a richer and more valuable radio experience.

Raven Lim, Podcaster, SingaporeRaven Lim is a serial podcaster who co-founded Tomboy Tirade in 2013, Asia’s first comedy chat podcast, breaking barriers during its 4-year run as it featured an all-female panel with Asian women as producers and co-hosts. Now she helps subject matter experts, organisations, and companies launch podcasts and amplify their brand voices through her company, MeaVox Live, as a podcast producer and consultant. She is also the co-founder of the Asia’s first podcast inaugural event, the Asia Podcast Festival and Awards.Radiodays Asia is a collaboration between Radiodays Europe, the world´s largest and leading conference for radio, audio and podcast, and broadcasting and podcast partners in Asia and Australia. The 2023 edition will run over two days in two tracks with 50 sessions. Top international speakers and industry leaders as well as successful producers and market experts will share their insights.Register for Radiodays Asia 2023 here. […]

The MaxxKonnect Group has partnered with Angry Audio to create the world’s first broadcast grade USB MPX audio card.The MaxxKonnect Broadcast U.192 is the first purpose-built USB audio interface specifically designed for broadcast audio processing software, such as Stereo Tool.  The groundbreaking U.192 features stereo analog inputs and outputs on StudioHub+ RJ45 connectors and is capable of levels up to +24dBu.  It sports high performance ADCs and DACs which can deliver over 112dB of dynamic range.  Digital AES/EBU inputs and outputs are also on StudioHub+ RJ45 connectors.  Inputs and outputs are transformer isolated for RF immunity and isolation.  The digital input can accommodate sample rates from 32kHz-192kHz, while the output is fixed at 192kHz to deliver pristine analog composite MPX on BNC connectors, or digital MPX composite baseband over AES.MaxxKonnect Group President Josh Bohn states: “This is the most elegant and professional way to get audio, analog or digital, into and out of your favorite software FM processor – such as StereoTool.  Unlike the consumer grade 192k cards, input and output can be accomplished on the same device without Windows device errors or USB conflicts or confusion.  Also, with hardware-based sample rate conversion, U.192 will accommodate AES/EBU sample rates from 32kHz to 192kHz.  Plus, it’ll do analog composite or Digital MPX and has analog or digital inputs – which are switchable from the front panel.  We also added audio presence indicators to the front panel, which monitor the outputs, because it makes troubleshooting easier if you can see that audio is actually there.”

Bohn continued: “After working with Hans van Zutphen from our partners at Thimeo, we figured out that no one was making a broadcast quality USB card that would do MPX, I reached out to Angry Audio’s Michael “Catfish” Dosch and realized there was a significant need in the marketplace.”“There are a few other products out there that require extra adapters or are unable to use the same card for input and output. We have solved those problems building something customized specifically for the needs of broadcasters.”“When Josh called with his idea, I jumped at the chance to design this,” said Dosch, founder of Angry Audio. “About the only thing I didn’t like about it was that I didn’t think of it first!” Dosch added: “The U.192 will make Stereo Tool and other software processors easier to deploy and use in real radio stations.”MaxxKonnect Director of Brand Development Chris Roth adds: “The U.192 is truly what YOU need!  It is the perfect companion for Stereo Tool. Audio in, composite audio out.  It’s that simple.  Nothing extra to generate a stereo pilot or RDS.  Combining the U.192 with Stereo Tool gives you the loudest and cleanest audio for your station at a fraction of the cost.”The MaxxKonnect Broadcast U.192 is available in the US from The MaxxKonnect Group for a list price of $895.  Angry Audio will handle international distribution. It will be available for purchase from most broadcaster equipment dealers with shipping expected to begin by early September.  Pre-orders will be accepted beginning in August. […]

Pioneering streaming and podcast solutions provider StreamGuys is helping Sports Entertainment Network (SEN) regionalize and monetize its fast-growing global streaming radio footprint. The custom SaaS-based package includes StreamGuys’ SGcontrol solution for content regionalization within Australia, and access to premium content worldwide through SGcontrol’s tokenization feature. StreamGuys is also providing server-side dynamic ad insertions to monetize live streams through pre-rolls and mid-rolls, bolstered by StreamGuys’ programmatic ad marketplace service to fill out-of-region ad inventory.SEN is a multi-platform content and entertainment group that operates a radio broadcast network with 70 stations in Australia and New Zealand, along with several TV programs and a publishing business. As part of its radio business, SEN offers digital platforms accessible globally via the SEN App and the company’s official website. SEN’s digital platforms have experienced substantial growth in recent years, with SEN reporting 2.1 million monthly audio streams and 5.2 million monthly podcast listens in 2022.That growth inspired Simon Chapman, SEN’s Digital Director, to seek out a new partner that could help SEN better commercialize their live streaming platforms, which required a more effective geographical structure for content delivery and consumer access. StreamGuys’ in-country partner, Agile Broadcast, brought the two companies together to help the SEN team enact its vision.

“Localized sport is very important for the communities of the different cities and states we serve,” said Chapman. “As a rights holder to the AFL (Australian Football League), NRL (National Rugby League) and other professional sports leagues, we target specific matches to the appropriate communities. In addition, Australia has seven states, each of which has different regional wagering laws which makes geographical targeting a legal requirement. We are also careful about what we provide globally both in terms of content and advertising structures since audiences outside Australia can’t act on these wagerers.”A regional point of presence was also important to Chapman for stream reliability and redundancy, which StreamGuys provides to the ANZ region through their Oceania data centers. StreamGuys’ local CDN presence also provided a seamless and accelerated on-ramp for SEN, which were up and running with SGcontrol’s geo-targeting and geo-location services /throughout ANZ within weeks. StreamGuys later turned on SGcontrol’s tokenization feature for subscription-based access outside the ANZ region, and is now up and running with server-side dynamic ad insertions for all live streams.“We hadn’t gone down the dynamic ad insertion path before StreamGuys,” said Chapman. “We have a very large global audience of Australians that live in Hong Kong, North America, the UAE and the UK. While they want access to the games that are meaningful to their home communities, it doesn’t make sense to serve them ads for local Australian businesses. StreamGuys allows us to tap into their programmatic inventories so that we can fill slots with ads that are meaningful to where listeners live today. That goes hand in hand with how we personalize content for each individual that subscribes using the tokenization feature. We can create a set of preferences for each listener and provide a true market-facing commercial offering based on demographic, location and more.”SEN is now evaluating the same services for their audio podcasts. SEN is the largest producer of sports-related podcasts in ANZ, and Chapman says that Australia has experienced “70 to 80 percent year-on-year growth in sports-related podcast consumption” over the last several years.“StreamGuys has delivered as advertised on their live stream services, but what impresses us most is how fast they onboarded us along with the level of technical support they bring to our localized live streams,” said Chapman. “They put localized servers in their data centers as we requested, which improved stream redundancies and reduced our operational costs. They have gone above and beyond that from a customer service level, and we are anticipate doing more with them in the near future.” […]