Ubiquitous, Customizable, Ingenious... Pandora Radio

When we talk about the radio we usually refer to the live broadcasts that play through our stereos in our rooms and cars. There are multiple stations to choose from with everything from talk radio, to lulling classical tunes, to hard core rock, Texas country, 60’s platinum music, and everything in-between. With all these options you would think we could find several stations that satisfy our ears. But with interruptions from advertisers, the DJ’s commentary, and the playing of songs we don’t care about listening to, we often opt for popping in a CD or hooking up our iPods. In today’s world, we seem to not settle for anything that’s less than what we want, when we want it. So if radio isn’t filling our musical craving, we demand a different source… maybe even a different radio.

One form of radio that might not initially come to mind is internet radio. Online streams through sites such as Yahoo and AOL attracted an increasingly significant amount of listeners between 2005 and 2006. National Public Radio and Clear Channel began to “simulcast” their programs around this time—a technique used to broadcast their exact stations over the internet in order to reach a worldwide audience. However, this mode of transmission did not become very popular among listeners. What has become popular however, are internet radio stations that were solely created for the internet, not simulcast. Pandora Radio is a great example of this, as well as a booming business. In fact, Pandora’s constantly growing audience (and mobile ability) makes me wonder if radio stations are going to see a steady drop in listeners.

Pandora Radio lets its users be both the listener and the DJ through its use of the Music Genome Project, founded in January of 2000 by Tim Westergren. The idea behind the Music Genome Project is that every single song has certain “genes” or attributes such as its specific harmony, melody, rhythm, instrumentation, lyrics, arrangement, etc., and each of these can be captured and placed into a collection that holds songs with these similar characteristics. So as a Pandora user you can begin by creating a station based on a single song, artist, or genre that you enjoy. After that, Pandora uses the magic of the Music Genome Project to play music that has similar attributes to that of which you first chose. And if for any reason Pandora plays something you don’t like, simply give it a “thumbs down” and you’ll never hear that song play on your station again. Another great aspect of this version of internet radio is that you can create dozens of stations, which is very appealing to the listener with eclectic taste.

Pandora Radio allows its users 40 free hours of listening per month upon creating their account and notifies them when they are about to reach that max. After reaching 40 hours, listeners can pay a small fee to continue listening for the rest of the month, or choose to pay an annual subscription of $36 for unlimited listening with no advertisements. As for me, I have found the 40 hours per month to be just the right amount, therefore my listening and DJ-ing experience has been completely cash free, but not completely ad free. Though it might seem like a turn-off to know that Pandora has ads, it’s really not as bad as it sounds. In fact, the ads are so few and far between—and so short—that they go virtually unnoticed. However, it is likely I would choose to subscribe if I owned a “Pandora-friendly” mobile device such as an iPhone, Blackberry, Palm Pre, myTouch, or the new HTC Hero from Sprint. Each of these mobile devices comes with a Pandora application, making it possible to listen to this internet radio site from other locations besides a computer. In fact, Pandora owes much of its recent success to the iPhone, which Tim Westergren says “single-handedly kicked off [the] phenomenon.” Last summer, when the iPhone released its Pandora app, the number of registered users grew by 2 million. In an interview, Westergren went on to say "It changed the way consumers think about what Internet radio is. You're no longer limited to thinking it's just a computer radio."

Because the iPhone has an adapter for your car stereo, it is now possible to play Pandora Radio tunes through a car’s sound system while driving. Mobile devices and their applications—and websites such as Pandora—are completely revolutionizing the way we think bout and listen to radio, as well as creating new definitions for what radio is. Radio no longer rests in a single category of its own now that we have found ways to merge different technologies and still consider it “radio.”

Also Pandora-compatible is the new Livio Radio, a stand-alone radio that plays Pandora through its own speakers. Livio Radio does not require access to a computer or mobile device, but can operate anywhere a Web connection and a power outlet are together. The Livio Radio searches for your home or office wireless network with its built-in Wi-Fi antenna, then syncs with your existing Pandora account. It has the same type of controls and functions that you’ll find on Pandora’s website, only they are actual buttons instead of images on a screen. Priced for about $200 on Amazon.com, and bids ending around $170 on Ebay.com, the Livio Radio seems like a great investment considering the rest is free.

Interesting Facts and Statistics:
· After a Streaming Rate Agreement, Pandora was able to raise $35 million in funding in July of 2009, saving them from possible failure due to the rising streaming rates which were likely to cause any internet radio company to fall.
· Pandora currently has around 31 million members and is adding up to 65,000 more each day.
· 30 percent of Pandora listening is already on mobile, and the company is adding more than half of its new users on some kind of mobile devices.
· More than 20 percent of the Internet population is aware of Pandora, and 40 percent of those who are aware use it.
· Pandora has played 4.7 billion songs.