Media Beat: November 19, 2018

By David Farrell

Forget video – radio is killing radio stars

Local broadcasters need to invest in the creation of local content, the ratings agency needs to figure out how to capture a growing number of people who are exclusively listening using earbuds, and sales departments need to rethink how they sell the medium and create programs that can pitch audience numbers that capture multiple platforms. That’s just part of the thread that CARTT.ca writer John Bugailiskis reports on from the recent OAB convention.

Feds expected to splash some cash for Canada’s news media

In last winter’s federal budget, Ottawa promised to take a closer look at potential models to enable private donations and philanthropic support for "trusted, professional, non-profit journalism and local news." 

The government said future steps could include new ways for Canadian newspapers to innovate and receive charitable status for "not-for-profit" journalism. This week it’s expected Ottawa will lay out fresh plans to support Canada’s struggling news industry. – Andy Blatchford and Ian Bickis, The Canadian Press

Liberty Media eyes stake in Universal Music Group

Liberty Media could build a true ‘full-stack’ music company – more officially tying together its ownership, or part ownership, of Live Nation, SiriusXM and Pandora with a potential stake in UMG – MBW

How Alibaba turned Singles Day into a $25B shopping bonanza

Patreon’s $400M promise: to shift from donations to services

The membership platform wants to offer creators services, potentially business loans down the line, as it grows beyond a donation site for fans, into a place that helps them build larger media businesses.

Patreon now lists more than 100,000 creators, who between them will earn $300 million from the site this year, the company estimates. – Tom Dotan, The Information

Pandora launches podcast genome

Pandora says it has developed more than 1,500 attributes to apply to podcasts, including production style, MPAA ratings, timely vs. evergreen topics, as well as data such as skips, replays and thumbs up-thumbs down from listeners.

A number of top producers are on board for the beta, including Gimlet, NPR, PRX+PRI, Slate, The New York Times, WNYC Studios, and Wondery. – Alex Weprin, MediaPost

John Lewis brightens the world with Elton and Bernie Taupin’s classic

For over a decade now at Christmas, the British retailer, John Lewis, creates a spot and they have become a tradition that the public, those in the advertising world and fellow competitors have religiously come to watch, talk about and even celebrate.

 This year the department store took a very different approach in its TV spot by choosing to make the focus a tribute to Elton John.

Ad Week puts the making of in perspective and includes some earlier spots the Brit retailer launched in the holiday season. In the first several days, more than 8M views were registered by YouTube. Meantime, if you haven’t already seen the spot, we provide for your viewing pleasure below. The review of Elton’s career over five stages portrayed by five separate actors.

Incidentally, Taupin wrote the lyrics when he was 17 and Elton wrote the music in about 20 minutes. It was written in 1967 and released in 1970. – Source: Songfacts