Blubrry.com a new podcasting social network aimed at the listener's user experience had it's big debut at Gnomedex. Blubrry is another product offered by RawVoice, Inc. who is also responsible for Podcasternews.com (where I am a podcaster hosting two shows). The new site offers the typical social networking features, podcast directory, and tagging podcasts by users.
Podcasters can join the network for free as long as they agree to promote the network on their podcasts. For this the podcasters get another presence for their podcast on the web, and the chance to be involved in network ad buys setup by the blubrry team. According to the CFO of RawVoice, Inc., Jeevan Padiyar, "We've taken the model that is already making money for podcasters on the PodcasterNews Network, and are using it on this site." He went on to mention that there is no lock in of content producers with RawVoice.
Rumors of this were running around recently, but it's now a confirmed deal. Loveable, pot-head bio-diesel salesman Willie Nelson is coming to XM Radio with a whole channel to himself.
The new channel will replace
"Hank's Place" (channel 13) and will be, quite predictably, called "Willie's Place" effective July 10.
Namesake, Willie Nelson, will play cretive director for the new offering. Possibly the coolest part of all this, XM is building new studios for "Willie's Place" at Nelson's BioDiesel Truck Stop in Carl's Corner, Texas. The channel will begin broadcasting live from Carl's Corner in 2007.
Willie is a hep cat, and this shoud bring a depth of alterna-county programing to XM that SIRIUS can't currently match. With Country being a popular segment amongst a large portion of the US population, bringing a heavyweight name like Nelson on board can only be good for XM.
Icon of American television, Barbara Walters, will be bringing her archived interviews to SIRIUS. Famous for her in-depth and sometimes teary interviews with top celebrities, Walters back-catalouge will get new life in the form of a weekly two-hour series starting early next year.
Also on the docket for SIRIUS subscribers will be a one-hour call in show produced four times a year and featuring Walters. The show, to be called "Ask Barbara Anything" appears to be a turn the tables concept, allowing the public to interview thier most beloved interviewer.
This is a really cool bit of content to add to the SIRIUS lineup. Some of Walter's older interviews, and some with now dead celebrities, should still hold up and remain as entertaining and engaging as they once were on ABC tv.
When John McHugh and Maggie Lee contacted SIRIUS' "Standard Time" channel to ask if they could play a few special requests during the couple's wedding reception, neither expected the 'reception' they've received.
"They e-mailed us back and asked us to send them a playlist, so we sent them our top 10 list," Lee said. "Tuesday they called and said, 'Hey, do you mind if we make this bigger?'"
Friday's wedding reception was attended by 50 people locally, and an unspecified number via satellite radio. DJ Lee Arnold of SIRIUS produced an entire broadcast focused on just this couple's wedding reception
"To my knowledge, that's the first time this has happened in the satellite radio industry," Brown said. "We just thought theirs was a neat little story."
To our knowledge, it's the largest nano-scale publicity stunt ever.
Will an appearance on SIRIUS' Howard Stern show help save Dustin Diamond's house? Who doesn't hope so?
The former child star from "Saved By The Bell" revealed on the Howard Stern show that he may lose his house, and is selling t-shirts online to make up for a $250,000 shortfall after the land owner called in a provision in his person-to-person mortgage.
He told Stern he needed to sell 30,000 t-shirts at his site, www.getdshirts.com to save his two-story suburban home.
It will be interesting to see how far a plea on Stern gets you since the switch to SIRIUS. I'm cheering for Dustin, I mean, he never got Lisa Turtle, he should at least keep his house.
Today SIRIUS announced that NFL Legend Jerry Rice will be hosting a show on the SIRIUS NFL Radio (channel 124). This follows last week's announcement that Andrew Wilkow will be hosting a Conservative talk show on SIRIUS Patriot channel.
Last week, on June 8, SIRIUS announced that Andre Wilkow, who is called "the next generation of talk radio" according the the press release, will be starting a new show on August 1 this year. Wilkow has been hosting a daily talk show on WGY- AM in Albany NY, as well as a weekend show on WABC-AM in New Your City. He will be hosting a weekday show from 12-3pm ET, airing on Channel 144 SIRIUS Patriot. Wilkow said of his move "Moving to SIRIUS lets me take that style and passion nationwide. I am honored to be given this opportunity."
But the wait for Jerry Rice is much shorter, as he will start June 13th co-hosting "The Afternoon Blitz" from 3-7pm ET with Adam Schein. He will be heard part time, being only on three times a week throughout the year. Rice joins quite a team of past players that are currently on NFL Radio on SIRIUS. Other past NFL players on NFL Radio include Cris Carter, Randy Cross, Gil Brandt, Tim Ryan, Pat Kirwan, Solomon Wilcots and Adam Schein.
We reported yesterday Wednesday that Howard Stern and CBS reached an agreement and all but finalized a deal that put an end to the feud between Stern and his former employer. Today brings us news that Howard not only settled but was able to regain control of his old recordings, according to Reuters, "As part of the deal, Stern will gain rights to his old CBS Radio broadcast material in return for unspecified payments to CBS, including $2 million from Sirius. Further details of the agreement were not disclosed."
This is a huge win for SIRIUS. The reported figure is a very reasonable number, and SIRIUS with the ability to run classic Stern content should be able to monetize that content in ways that help fund Howard's $500 Million dollar deal.
As had been widely expected, Howard Stern and CBS have settled the lawsuit that grew from Stern's departure to SIRUS Satellite Radio. CBS filed suit in February against Stern, his agent and Sirius, claiming he breached his contract by talking about his new satellite radio gig on the air, essentially giving SIRIUS free advertisement.
No details on the settlement have been published, and in fact, spokes-people for both sides are being tight lipped in the press, having stated publicly that no deal has actually been signed.
This is good news for all involved. SIRIUS and Howard need to get down to the business of selling more radios and paying off the enormous deal offered to Stern and his crew for their relocation to satellite. CBS needs to let bygones be bygones. No lawsuit will return Stern to the public airwaves, and this deal lets CBS end the crying over spilled milk.
Our friends at Cinematical let us know that your XM radio is about to be taken over by the X-Men. In conjunction with the release a third title to the X-Men series, XM (Oh yah, XM, X-Men... We get it) will feature an X-Men "takeover" on May 25 involving a full eight channels and almost a dozen cast members from The Last Stand. Some of them, like Halle Berry and Kelsey Grammer, will be taking on solo roles as radio hosts for the day, discussing whatever they want to about the film while spinning their favorite genre hits for whichever station they've claimed.
Expect to find X-Men cast members most anywhere you tune in on Thursday. A full schedule of the event is here.
More new SIRIUS programming announcements, with NASCAR driver joining the network in January. Tony Stewart Live will air exclusively on SIRIUS' upcoming 24/7 NASCAR channel, providing listeners with an insider's perspective on auto racing. The weekly, two-hour show will feature Stewart, who has never been shy, taking calls from listeners, talking with prominent guests and covering the spectrum of motorsports.
Matt Yocum, who is a pit reporter for the NASCAR broadcasts on FOX/FX and NBC/TNT, will be Stewart's co-host on Tony Stewart Live.
"It's an honor to be a part of SIRIUS and its commitment to NASCAR," said Stewart. "Our show will allow us to speak with the fans on our terms, where we're free to talk about anything and everything, from racing and rock-and- roll to our travels across America. It's a unique opportunity, and we plan to make the most of it."
Preview editions of Tony Stewart Live, hosted by Stewart, will begin airing exclusively on SIRIUS in October 2006. Stewart will also be featured in SIRIUS' NASCAR related marketing and advertising.
Beginning next year, SIRIUS will be the Official Satellite Radio Partner of NASCAR, broadcasting all NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series, NASCAR Busch Series and NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series races live on a specially created, 24/7 NASCAR channel.
Bloggers turn DJ at SIRIUS, as Left Of Center launches a new show. Blog Radio will be hosted by a blogger who will showcase his or her favorite music and provide views and insight into the indie rock music scene. A few of the music blogs which will contribute to Blog Radio include Gorilla Vs Bear, Brooklyn Vegan and Product Shop NYC.
Blog Radio, will debut May on Monday, May 29 on Left of Center SIRIUS channel 26, which typically plays college, indie and alternative rock music.
SIRIUS Satellite Radio Senior VP of Music Programming Steve Blatter said, "Blog Radio further solidifies SIRIUS' position as the leader in the discovery of new music and demonstrates our commitment to providing a vehicle for independent musicians and opinion makers to be heard."
Once you boil down all the hype of this new offering, it's really about actual people who really like music playing what they like for other actual people that really like music. It's an easy no-brainer crossover, and the kind of thing SIRIUS is known for.
I've not been to a Buffett concert in years, I'm told I've seen him 6 times (several of those are very hazy memories). For sure, Jimmy Buffett is a live experience you won't forget. Listening to Jimmy Buffett live on SIRIUS couldn't compare, but if your travel budget and your Buffett fan-club status are at odds with one another, take heed.
The "Party At the End of the World Tour" is on hiatus for the next few weeks, but will resume in grand style with 5 dates in 10 days starting with Atlanta on June 2nd.
Bob Dylan, who has become the very definition of terms
such as "reclusive," "enigmatic" and 'incomprehensible" for many today, is debuting a new show
on XM Satellite Radio. The show, which debuts this Wednesday, will highlight Dylan's favorite music, organized each
week by topic. For instance, since Mother's Day is fast approaching (time to buy a card, guys) his first week will
focus on music with a maternal theme. The New York Times has
a look at the structure and substance of his first show, including transcripts of some of Dylan's commentary. As the
story states, Dylan continues to be just as inscrutable in discussing music as he often is when creating it. The show is
being recorded from basically wherever he is, at home or on the road and will feature some pre-recorded cameos from
others.
I am a little late in reporting this, but SIRIUS announced on
Tuesday that Mark Cuban, the outspoken, sometimes too outspoken for the NBA league commissioner, owner of the
Dallas Mavericks has signed to do a weekly talk show. Mark Cuban was interviewed by Kevin C. Tofel
back last October for Weblogs Inc. sibling blog HDBeat.com. Cuban's show "Radio
Maverick" will be broadcast on SIRIUS Stars 102 Sundays from 12 pm - 2 pm ET starting this summer.
In the press release Cuban is quoted as saying that he is fired up about the show and that "I plan on
raising hell and covering any and all topics that I think are interesting and taking no prisoners along the way."
Having seen and heard some of his tirades toward the NBA officials during some of the Dallas Mavericks games, he
definitely has his own opinions and is not afraid to use them.SIRIUS' President of Entertainment and Sports, Scott
Greenstein said "Radio Maverick will be a forum without limits, where he can talk to SIRIUS listeners about
everything from the NBA to an MBA."
XM Satellite Radio
has announced
plans to add at least 16 new channels to their lineup of offerings. That mix will include ten new commercial-free music
stations that run the spectrum from classic rock of the 70's to Gospel and easy listening. The even bigger news is that
XM is adding seven local channels that will provide regional news and talk across the country. That provides direct
competition to local stations that deal in, you know, news and talk. That brings the total number of channels being
offered by XM to over 170.
Blubrry.com a new podcasting social network aimed at the listener's user experience had it's big debut at Gnomedex. Blubrry is another product offered by RawVoice, Inc. who is also responsible for Podcasternews.com (where I am a podcaster hosting two shows). The new site offers the typical social networking features, podcast directory, and tagging podcasts by users.
Rumors of this were running around recently, but it's now a confirmed deal. Loveable, pot-head bio-diesel salesman Willie Nelson is coming to XM Radio with a whole channel to himself. 
Icon of American television, Barbara Walters, will be bringing her archived interviews to SIRIUS. Famous for her in-depth and sometimes teary interviews with top celebrities, Walters back-catalouge will get new life in the form of a weekly two-hour series starting early next year. 
When John McHugh and Maggie Lee contacted SIRIUS' "Standard Time" channel to ask if they could play a few special requests during the couple's wedding reception, neither expected the 'reception' they've received. 
Will an appearance on SIRIUS' Howard Stern show help save Dustin Diamond's house? Who doesn't hope so? 
We reported 
As had been widely expected, Howard Stern and CBS have settled the lawsuit that grew from Stern's departure to SIRUS Satellite Radio. 
Our friends at 
More new SIRIUS programming announcements, with NASCAR driver joining the network in January. Tony Stewart Live will air exclusively on SIRIUS' upcoming 24/7 NASCAR channel, providing listeners with an insider's perspective on auto racing. The weekly, two-hour show will feature Stewart, who has never been shy, taking calls from listeners, talking with prominent guests and covering the spectrum of motorsports. 
Bloggers turn DJ at SIRIUS, as 
Break out the shark fins and bring the Coronas parrot-heads, 
Bob Dylan, who has become the very definition of terms
such as "reclusive," "enigmatic" and 'incomprehensible" for many today, is debuting a new show
on XM Satellite Radio. The show, which debuts this Wednesday, will highlight Dylan's favorite music, organized each
week by topic. For instance, since Mother's Day is fast approaching (time to buy a card, guys) his first week will
focus on music with a maternal theme. The New York Times 
XM Satellite Radio
has 
