Jump to content

Can Internet radio be a full time business?


dvirgo
 Share

Recommended Posts

Hi

 

I'm still new to the online radio game and I wondered whether its possible to make a living from my station.

I'm losing my Job at the end of the month and i'm at a crossroads. It would be great if i could but how realistic is it?

 

 

Dave

Link to comment
Share on other sites

We have been doing it for 15 years. One of the main attractions of our station is no ads. We have managed to claw back a bit of our annual operating costs with listener donations & Google AdSense, but I'm not going to go out and buy that motor home just yet.

Reverend Aquaman | Station Manager | andHow.FM

Where it's *ALL* about the music!

A world-class, always eclectic, commercial-free, alternative, modern, retro, indie rock radio station.

Jamming the free world, one person at a time since 1998. Got Indie?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

@dvirgo - Out of the hundreds of radio stations here on BCW, only a handful make enough money to use it as their primary source of income.

 

If someone tells you it is easy to do and most people do it, I can direct you to a bunch of infomercials you might be interested in.

 

If any station reads this and is supporting themselves, SOLELY by the income received by their station, can you please respond to this thread.

SCS - Dedicated Bandwidth Servers

Shoutcast / Icecast / Windows Media

Transcoding - Auto DJ - Mobile Radio - FLASH Players - Auto DJ

Broadcasting World's Stream Host of the Month

Link to comment
Share on other sites

@Jim- Thanks for the info and I look forward to your email

 

@ Pro member- You could be right! I'm sure being successful isn't a easy task but my inquiry was to hear peoples experiences. Even if only a few have managed to make a living from there stations it shows that it isn't impossible but may be improbable. But I won't know until I do my research and make an informed choice whether to invest my time and money into this project or just keep it as a creative outlet. I come from a background in radio and television broadcasting and the integration of the internet is still an exciting and developing medium. Personally I think we're at the beginning of something rather than the end.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I not looking for a fortune really, just enough to support my family. Its not sounding terribly optimistic. 15 years is a long time, Is it full time for you now?

 

No, it is not full-time. My full-time work helps to fund the station. We attempted a commercial version of the station back before 2000 with limited success. We have received numerous accolades for being a commercial-free radio station and our listener loyalty is dependent upon that status. We currently have approx. 45-50,000 TLH every month. I understand from the opinions of a few experts that I have read, that most corporate sponsors are looking for 700,000 TLH a month to peak their interest in investing in those broadcasts. Jim is a very clever gentleman and I don't discount his claims, as I don't have all of the information available to me to be able to make that judgement. So if you are interested in getting more info, I would see what he has to offer. I see some stations like SomaFM being able to turn those kinds of numbers, but they have multiple stations playing multiple formats. The capital expenditure & operating costs to be able to maintain, if not even to get started, would have to be a considerable amount. There have been a lot of really good commercial internet radio stations that have gone by the wayside over the years, one that particularly comes to mind is WOXY. They could not generate the revenue to keep their investors happy, so they shut it down. It was a fantastic radio station and apparently had quite a following.

 

We do it because we love the music and we love our listeners, our aim is to serve our audience, not deliver an audience to advertisers!

Reverend Aquaman | Station Manager | andHow.FM

Where it's *ALL* about the music!

A world-class, always eclectic, commercial-free, alternative, modern, retro, indie rock radio station.

Jamming the free world, one person at a time since 1998. Got Indie?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Amen, Reverend.

 

Go in peace.

 

Live long & prosper.

 

May the force be with you.

Reverend Aquaman | Station Manager | andHow.FM

Where it's *ALL* about the music!

A world-class, always eclectic, commercial-free, alternative, modern, retro, indie rock radio station.

Jamming the free world, one person at a time since 1998. Got Indie?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I tried writing to your email, but mt message came back undeliverable. So you can write me at jim@wohooo.net

 

Try it with one 'l' in Gmail, Jim.

Reverend Aquaman | Station Manager | andHow.FM

Where it's *ALL* about the music!

A world-class, always eclectic, commercial-free, alternative, modern, retro, indie rock radio station.

Jamming the free world, one person at a time since 1998. Got Indie?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

If you are serious bout getting a new career as a station owner , be prepared to invest ! Its not just a matter of setting up a online radio station , you have to think about marketing as well. Write your own business plan and try to get investors. My advice would be : make sure you have enough savings to last for about 6 months or so , as you should realize most stations do not get enough funds from their station within that period of time. Good luck anyway !
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...

Along the same subject and an interesting read...

 

"But, the question I'd pose is this: Are more stations making profit? Indications are that answer is no."

 

http://www.audiographics.com/agd/112113-1.htm

Reverend Aquaman | Station Manager | andHow.FM

Where it's *ALL* about the music!

A world-class, always eclectic, commercial-free, alternative, modern, retro, indie rock radio station.

Jamming the free world, one person at a time since 1998. Got Indie?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have been online, in the wonderful world of Internet radio with http://atlwebradio.com for over 12 years and I have made a pretty decent living developing the station full time. (Internet radio is all I do) We didn't make a dime from 2001-2007 but then when licensing became a reality via ascap, bmi, sesac, socan, and soundexchange the independent artist pkgs. began moving, later we started doing live remote broadcasts for businesses, events, etc. Next we began selling air time to on-air personalities to offset location overhead, and finally commercial advertisement has began to start coming our way. Its still building momentum. So in answer to your question again yes internet radio can quite profitable, but you must create or find your niche in the internet radio industry. Jamal Whited nworcsradio@gmail.com Edited by atlwebradio
left out a word
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 3 years later...
  • 5 years later...

Hello. Internet radio can definitely become a very successful business, because even after a year, radio is in quite high demand. To begin with, I recommend creating your own website where people can listen to your broadcasts, and you should also contact https://data40.com/competitor-research-survey/ to select a high-quality marketing strategy with which you will develop.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
 Share

×
×
  • Create New...