The Jacobs Media Blog

I have hesitated to write a blog entry about the PPM debate until the dust settles.  But it appears that every day, new developments continue to occur.  So, to add to Mark Ramsey’s recently-posted great blog entry about PPM, here are a few thoughts… 1. PPM ratings will not  look like diary ratings.  And isn’t […]

As the holidays approach, I am very close to putting a Microsoft Zune on my wish list.  Yes, I have a very nice iPod with all my favorite songs that I frequently use while working out, and during long walks/runs.  But like many of you, I also like the option of listening to the radio […]

Perhaps you tuned in to one of the many NFL games on the radio this past weekend.  If you did, the odds are good that you also heard a Howard Stern-voiced Sirius commercial while listening to your favorite NFL team‘s broadcast.  (If you haven’t heard these spots, you can listen below.) Sirius has apparently bought […]

Bill Jacobs shares his thoughts on the passing of one of radio’s “good guys,” Jim Steel: That’s something you hear about most people when they pass away, but it’s 100% true when you’re talking about a guy like Jim Steel (real name:  Jim Lyle).  The word came down yesterday that, following a tough five-year battle […]

Bill Jacobs shares his thoughts on the passing of one of radio’s "good guys," Jim Steel: That’s something you hear about most people when they pass away, but it’s 100% true when you’re talking about a guy like Jim Steel (real name:  Jim Lyle).  The word came down yesterday that, following a tough five-year battle […]

Jacobs Media’s Dave Beasing pulls back the curtain on myths of “Black Friday” and “Cyber Monday.” The day after Thanksgiving is called “Black Friday” because – as the busiest shopping day of the year – that’s when retailers finally “get into the black,” show a profit.  Right?  Wrong.  Last year, Black Friday only ranked 9th […]

What’s the secret to Wal-Mart’s success?  Low prices, many locations, those friendly greeters? More and more, Wal-Mart is benefiting from a website that draws amazing traffic – and revenue.  The company estimates there will be 800 million visits before the year is out, as customers use the site to do product research, check out sales […]

What’s the secret to Wal-Mart’s success?  Low prices, many locations, those friendly greeters? More and more, Wal-Mart is benefiting from a website that draws amazing traffic – and revenue.  The company estimates there will be 800 million visits before the year is out, as customers use the site to do product research, check out sales […]

A recent blog entry about how Entercom’s KNRK has worked out a cool consumer generated promotion with Toyota’s Scion and Snow Patrol got me to thinking about the political race, and revenue potential in ’08. Radio is not in favor, as digital media are perceived to be cooler and more cutting edge, while television continues […]

Happy Thanksgiving to all.  JacoBlog will return on Monday, November 26th.

Jacobs Media’s Tim Davis considers whether it’s the medium or the message – or both: No matter where you land regarding the ongoing Writer’s strike, one thing that most agree with is that it has raised awareness of what’s at stake in terms of content development in the digital future. The essence of this strike […]

An open letter to Don Imus, from Jacobs Media’s Dave Beasing: Dear Mr. Imus, Welcome back to radio!  For your listeners, mornings just haven’t been the same.  Comedy isn’t easy, nor was the way your career at WFAN ended.  It’s difficult to consistently be funny without offending someone, and you didn’t deserve to be depicted […]

The video game buzz continues to intensify with the release of Guitar Hero III, and the great news if you’re in Rock Radio is that it’s all about you.  After all the "Rock Is Dead" articles you’ve had to explain away to your sales people and your jocks, the gaming industry continues to glorify the […]

The next time your CEO asks you why you’re spending money on streaming, text messaging applications, building that social networking component, creating a blog, and designing that new music discovery section on your website, remind him/her of this fact: The exodus of ad spending from traditional media to the Internet is accelerating. And to that […]

With thoughts on the Writer’s strike, we’ve got a guest post from Dave "Hollywood" Beasing: We don’t see the balance sheets at TV networks, but an LA Times headline from Day 1 of the Writers Guild strike was still a bit surprising:  "Networks Look For Possible Upsides" Fox Entertainment President Kevin Reilly was even quoted […]

In yesterday’s blog, we talked about how the Eagles have circumvented Rock radio, record labels, and traditional avenues that used to be mandatory for music discovery, exposure, and sales. Today, I want to show you an exciting new website that NPR recently launched – https://www.npr.org/nprmusic/ It’s a cooperative venture between NPR, and some key Public […]

The new Eagles album, Long Road Out Of Eden, vaults to the top of the album sales charts, trouncing Britney Spears’ new release.  All told, the Eagles’ new effort sold 711,000 copies, outdoing Britney by more than 400,000.   This event absolutely shatters more of the recording industry’s conventional wisdom. First, there’s no record label to […]

Kudos to Mark Hamilton and Entercom’s KNRK for putting together a great promotion with Snow Patrol and Toyota’s Scion.  Covered in Brandweek, the partnership is a textbook effort that links a cool band, a cool car, and a cool station.  It’s also great use of consumer-generated talent, in this case, a listener designing artwork for […]

Perhaps 2007 will be the year that will be remembered in radio history as the time when most radio broadcasters began to start thinking digitally.  Just about everyone you talk to is rethinking their Internet architecture, their content, and their revenue-producing strategies.  But as Internet guru Zephyr Teachout reminded us at the last L.A. Summit […]

One of the areas where stations often miss the boat is playing up great on-air content on their websites.  Too often, the site lags behind.  Or worse, underplays something buzzworthy the station or morning show pulled off.  Too often, web visitors have to hunt and peck in order to find great content they’ve heard about […]