Internet Broadcast Group’s Mark Lassoff has been invited to speak about streaming media at PodcampAZ Streaming Media Unconference.Mark’s session will be titled Streaming Ourselves to Death:  Online Radio.  Mark will discuss where online radio — a streaming technology– fits in to the larger social mediasphere.The conference will take place at the University of Advancing Technology on November 1st and 2nd. Visit PodcampAZ for more information. 

You may have heard the term, but may not be quite sure what they are… Widgets are becoming an important part of the web.  Internet Radio widgets, like the one below can be used to play your radio station and can be placed just abount anywhere.  A widget is, technically, a small bit of code, that can be placed on web pages, social networking sites, computer desktops and blogs that displays information or plays audio or video.  The radio widget below plays the AffordableSound.FM radio station and allows the user to adjust the volume of the stream.  The next release, coming later this week, will also display the name of the song playing and the artist. 

If you click the get and share option on the AffordableSound.FM widget above, you will see option to obtain code to place the widget in a number of different places online.  It’s one of the ways Internet Broadcasting Group makes radio stations spread virally through the web.Widget players are critical for strong marketing of internet radio stations.  IBG can help your station become ubiquitous on the web with the use of widgets. 

There has been much buzz in various news outlets and blogs regarding the possible end of Pandora.  For those of you unfamiliar, Pandora is one of the many music genome style websites that serves up music based on the users announced band affinites.  A user who tells Pandora they like Journey will hear music from REO Speedwagon, Styx, Heat and other related bands.

Pandora seems to be indicating if the end comes, it will be because of high music licensing costs- a common refrain among internet broadcasters.  While this is unfortunate, I’m not totally sure that music licensing is the only reason Pandora may go under.  It seems as though Pandora and other related sites were never built with a serious revenue or profit model in mind.  Sure, playing music people like is a great service, but without a related profit model, how is one to survive doing it? 

Some bloggers have tried to determine what Pandora’s possible demise means for internet radio… I would say the greater meaning is not as ominous as some would  like to believe.  Pandora had a bad business model– known expenses without known revenue streams.  What the demise of Pandora does tell online radio producers is that unlike Pandora, you need to have a plan to cover your expenses and hopefully profit from your online radio enterprise.

We submitted a panel for SXSW 2009.  I know it seems like a long time away–however– this is the premium multimedia (and film, and music) conference in the world.  It’s a facsinating combination of top-flight speakers, atendees and topics.  Check out the SXSW conference on their web site: SXSW.com

If you’d like more information about our panel– or to vote for it (please!):  http://panelpicker.sxsw.com/ideas/view/764.

 Thanks for your vote and your support of internet radio!  See you in austin!