“Local.” That’s a buzzword for approximately 50% of the radio stations on the air. Ask a radio man, “What separates you from Pandora?” and the answer is, “We do local.”
Spindio says it does “local” too. Spindio? It’s another one of those digital app things that most anyone hasn’t heard of, yet … But could it have some use for a radio station or even a network? Could it provide a desperately needed leg up for a station in a competitive market?
Dan Linnaeus, co-founder and CEO of Spindio was happy to tell us why radio stations should know the name of Spindio.
What is Spindio?
Dan Linnaeus: Spindio is the first online and mobile local live music discovery platform of its kind. It is, essentially, an open radio platform that enables local listeners, bands, venues, and businesses to curate music and commentary around the artists that make up a local scene.
Is Spindio relevant to the radio broadcast industry?
Linnaeus: Yes. The Spindio platform can easily be customized, for example, by a radio station, or station group, for local music delivery. The radio player is an elegant dashboard for listeners to pinpoint where music that they like is being played, and learn more about that music. Hyperlocal music delivery, and content curation, is the lifeblood of any radio station, and Spindio brings this concept into the 21st century for commercial, and noncommercial, stations alike.
Spindio is working with the CMJ Music Marathon on next month’s festival in New York, this would seem a natural vehicle to work with local radio stations in sponsorship opportunities, promotion and app branding. Is Spindio looking for partnerships with radio stations, groups or networks?
Linnaeus: Yes, Spindio seeks to create partnerships with networks, syndicators, advertisers, and all elements of the radio industry. We believe that the radio industry — even more than the music industry — understands that local music and particularly live local music is critical to capturing audiences and maintaining persistent, and relevant, connections with audiences. Spindio aims to do for the radio industry what the transistor radio did for the radio industry in the 1960s: enable listeners to go anywhere to hear what they want, in the context of live local music.
So what does Spindio offer a radio station, group or network?
Linnaeus: Simply put, Spindio provides a single interface location station for live local acts, and being customizable and embeddable, it provides stations with a cutting-edge “mix tape” that enables radio stations to highlight the acts that they air in a powerfully, socially active delivery platform. Spindio offers radio stations, station groups and networks a live radio experience in an elegant interface that can map where bands and musical artists are playing, and tailor music to listener’s preferences. Music can be played and shared simultaneously so that listeners know where bands are playing and when, and also know what local music their friends are listening to. Spindio can be customized for social media and mobile experiences, or embedded as a widget in blogs and social media sites. Spindio offers the radio industry a way to move beyond static app or streaming experiences, and deliver a branded experience on all devices, offering listeners and advertisers multiple touchpoints for engagement.
