|
Radio for Radio PeopleBroadcast.Net Begins Internet Radio Venture By Dave Biondi It's an internet streaming "radio station" FOR broadcasters. BNetRadio is a pop rock/oldies format with special programming and commercials directed at the professional broadcast industry. Special programming is being added over the next few weeks in the form of produced vignettes with news, information and interviews with broadcast industry authorities and folks "in the know" about what's happening in the television and radio biz. The commercials are for pro broadcast products and services. PSA avails are offered to broadcast related organizations. With the help of several broadcast industry equipment, software and services providers, we call 'partners', BNet radio eminates from a state of the art digital studio at the Broadcast Net offices in Houston, Texas. Here's how it is all put together. The station automation system is the new Starmax Studio software from BTSG Software. Over 2900 of the top rated oldies (50s - 90s) on hard disk are from Halland Broadcast Services and are scheduled with Music 1 scheduling software. The Image Jingles are the "Boss Radio" package originally done by PAMS and sung for BNetRadio by KenR, Inc. Traffic and billing is done with CBSI software. The computer audio card is a Digigram PCX440np which feeds to a Logitek digital engine/router controlled by their virtual console. The entire studio, digital and analog, is wired with CAT5. All ins and out are run to a Radio Systems Studio Hub patch panel. Processing is done by a Telos Omnia.net processor and fed to a Telos Audioactive real time MP3 Encoder/Server. The output is TCP/IP and is fed on the net through special interface software to a Microsoft Media encoder at Video2Net (a bandwidth provider) for distribution on the net from several locations worldwide. Their massive bandwidth can provide thousands of simultaneous streams to listeners worldwide. Other studio perifrials include RE-27 microphones feeding Symetrix 528A mike processors, Symetrix monitor amp driving JBL 4206 monitors and a Gentner hybred telephone interface. We use Cool Edit Pro for production. BNetRadio is licensed for music streaming by ASCAP and BMI. The stream is at 32kb stereo so you will nead a good 40K+ internet connection to get an solid stream. As the stream is MP3, a recent version of Microsoft Media Player is needed. If you don't have it, it is free on the Microsoft website. While the majority of the programming is fully automated, you can occasionally catch us doing live assist jocking. I was on the air as a rock jock for 23 years and our Broadcast Net "secretary" is Chuck Scott (WLS Newsman/ABC Contemporary News Anchor). You can bet that we will have to get in there and "have fun" like radio used to be every once and a while (it's still flowing in our veins). Oh, yea, In the next week or so we will be putting a studio cam in so you might get to see us on the air or doing production. Mostly, you'll see the equipment and software in action. I hope to present some important industry related 'events' on line in the next few weeks. I'm certainly open to suggestions for programming of industry value. Whatever we do, we want to make the communication interactive and welcome your input. We hope that BNetRadio will become a valuable industry information source and the next step in internet marketing of broadcast products and services. Give us a listen at http://www.bnetradio.com. Listen to the Net! |
|||