Ten years after its launch, a service called radiko, which allows users to listen to the radio on smartphones and other such devices, has become a system that covers all commercial radio stations. It is an important service for the future of radio.
Distributing radio programs online, radiko Co. started the service in 2010 with the aim of serving urban areas where reception is poor, beginning with the Tokyo metropolitan area and the Kansai region. The number of participating stations has steadily increased. It is said that from September, programs of all 99 commercial stations in the nation can be heard through radiko. It also distributes some programs of the Open University of Japan and NHK.
Up to now, the growth of radiko users was mainly among those commuting to workplaces or schools. In the spring of this year, when people were asked to refrain from going out due to the novel coronavirus crisis, the number of users reached a record high of 9 million per month. Many people may have been soothed by hearing calm voices talking on radio programs.
The growth in the number of radiko users was largely because the service has ridden the wave of the spread of smartphones. New functions that are particular to online distribution have been effectively introduced. Users can not only listen to programs again already broadcast within a week, but also, for a fee, listen to nationwide programs beyond their reception area.
Radio's presence has been rather reconfirmed through radiko. It is significant that usage in accordance with the merits for both sides has been created.
For example, in the event of a disaster, a battery-powered radio can be listened to for a long time, but if there is no receiver at hand or when there is a need to obtain information about the disaster area from outside the reception area, radiko is useful. In the wake of the recent Hokkaido earthquake, it is said that the number of people using the service increased sharply.
There are smartphone apps that allow users to listen to both power-saving FM broadcasts and radiko, whose sound is not easily interrupted. Commercial radio stations themselves are urging manufacturers to introduce the apps.
In recent years, advertisements have shifted to television and the internet, so revenues in the radio industry, especially for AM stations, have been sluggish. Investments for the replacement of facilities have also become difficult to come by.
AM stations nationwide are facilitating Wide FM, which airs AM programs using FM frequencies with good sound quality, but they are being burdened with costs.
Primarily, radiko's business is based on the quality of programming content and production know-how.
If each radio station analyzes the data of new listeners who have been increasing through the internet and uses the results of the analysis to create attractive programs that fit the generations and needs, this would help them secure advertising.
Given that all commercial radio stations now participate in the service, the operator of the radiko service itself will need to make proposals to further deepen the 10 years of cooperation between the internet and radio.
Audio media through the internet are becoming diverse, such as the entry of music distribution and other such services in the market, but radio is still a lifeline. Commercial radio stations and radiko are urged to continue to make progressive efforts to achieve their coexistence and mutual prosperity.
-- The original Japanese article appeared in The Yomiuri Shimbun on Sept. 23, 2020.
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