Audacy and iHeartMedia announced an interesting partnership on Monday morning: more than 240 of Audacy’s stations are going to be heard on the iHeartRadio app.
From my seat, this is a monumental move. Audacy has put a ton of resources and promotion into its podcasts and apps. It’s safe to say that it hasn’t exactly panned out, and that’s ok. I have written this before, and I’ll write it every time it comes up: I give anyone who can admit something isn’t working and cuts bait a ton of credit. It is a quality we should reinforce, not chastise.
The iHeartRadio app is a behemoth. It’s on millions of phones and tablets around the country. It dwarfs every other radio app. And for Audacy to recognize that it needs to stop swimming upstream and get its content — and advertisers, presumably — on that giant platform is a win.
“We believe in the power of being everywhere, and this partnership is a meaningful step in our strategy to ensure our iconic stations, talent, and programming are available wherever and however audio is consumed,” Audacy Chief Business Officer Chris Oliviero said in the announcement.
And he’s right. If you’re going to predicate your success on being wherever the listener is, you can’t have unbridled loyalty to your company’s app. I don’t think individual apps for each company and brand are going to be the key to success in the future, either. Do I love the idea of iHeartMedia being the thoroughbred that is expected to carry the entire radio industry? Not at all, but it sure beats extinction, doesn’t it?
In the announcement, iHeartMedia President of Business Development and Strategic Partnerships Michael Biondo called the partnership with Audacy “an exciting day for our industry.” And I agree.
Last year, I wrote a column stating that the radio industry as a whole needed to embrace the spirit of collaboration after cable news channels were able to share the Presidential debates to millions of viewers.
At the time, I wrote: “Doesn’t it benefit all of us to get on the same page and pull in the same direction? … If a rising tide lifts all boats, wouldn’t it make sense for all of the boats to do everything in their power to lift the tide? Doesn’t that make logical sense?”
And I still feel that way. AM/FM radio has an uphill climb in so many different avenues on the pathway to success. The industry can’t compound those challenges by being fractured and having several different individual companies operating with competing ideologies.
The radio industry is at its best when everyone can get on board with an idea, pull in the same direction, and work toward a common goal. That’s what I think this collaboration between Audacy and iHeartMedia showcases.
Check your ego at the door. Are you willing to do what’s best for radio as a whole? Because what’s best for the radio industry at a 30,000-foot view is likely going to be what’s best for each individual company too, no?
As I wrote last year, “If news television networks — who have been in ratings battles on a national scale for decades, and just as long as heritage radio brands in major markets — can put aside their differences to recognize the importance of providing high-profile content to as many viewers as possible, can’t the radio world band together to help benefit the industry for years to come?”
I’d love to think the answer to that question is yes. Does working alongside what you view as your competition feel counterintuitive? Absolutely, it does. When you view it from the prism that everyone — from podcasters, to YouTubers, to television and anyone in between — is now your competition, doesn’t it change your stance, though?
The radio industry needs to work in conjunction with each other at a much more frequent rate than it has in the past. Gone are the days when the pie was so big everyone could gobble up their piece. The mouths to feed have only increased and are only going to increase.
Kudos to the broadcast braintrust involved in this partnership. They deserve praise.
I hope this deal between Audacy and iHeartMedia is one of the first of many steps of major players in the industry coming together to work for the collective good of the radio industry. Because, from where I sit, only good things can come of it.
Barrett Media produces daily content on the music, news, and sports media industries. To stay updated, sign up for our newsletters and get the latest information delivered straight to your inbox.
Garrett Searight is Barrett Media’s News Editor, which includes writing bi-weekly industry features and a weekly column. He has previously served as Program Director and Afternoon Co-Host on 93.1 The Fan in Lima, OH, and is the radio play-by-play voice of Northern Michigan University hockey. Reach out to him at Garrett@BarrettMedia.com.
