Radioplayer Canada: Why?

Last Updated on: 19th June 2017, 11:47 am

I’m asking this as a serious question. It’s nice that broadcast radio wants to take what for them is a pretty big step into this century, but do they not realize that they’re taking it more than a half decade too late? Let’s forget for a second that Bell, who in case you haven’t noticed owns a lot of radio stations, is conspicuously absent from the participants list. That’s the least of our problems here. the bigger issue is, and I’m saying this as nicely as I can, that nobody fucking needs this.

In another era, having access to the majority of Canada’s radio stations in one place would have been cool as hell. I’d have been bouncing off the walls if I could have gotten hold of something like that. Unfortunately we live in this era, where not only do we have access to virtually every radio station in Canada in one place (Bell included), but we also have America’s radio, Europe’s radio, South America’s radio, Africa’s radio…you get what I’m driving at. And not only do we have that, but in that same place we also have access to every online only station that’s worth a damn and probably a few million more that aren’t. That figure may be off slightly because there’s too much streaming content available through TuneIn or OOTunes and surely others I’m not thinking of for me to have done an exact count, but you know what I mean. Apps exist for free and for very reasonable one time or monthly subscription fees if you’d like less ads and more features that do what Radioplayer does. They’ve been doing it for years and are very good at it.

So I ask again, why? Why should I download this? If I’m a serious radio listener, why would I want to limit myself to just Canada? For that matter, why should I download this if I’m not a serious radio listener? I just want to be able to stream my favourite local stations. They already have apps of their own in most cases, or maybe I already have one of those other radio apps. Why should I stop using that and use Radioplayer? Until somebody can actually answer these questions instead of just talking about what an amazing innovation this is, I’m taking a pass. Radioplayer Canada Launches Digital Radio App – A Partnership between Canada’s Premiere Private Radio Broadcasters, CBC/Radio-Canada, and Canada’s Campus and Community Stations

TORONTO, ON (March 1, 2017) The Radioplayer Canada streaming app launches today, putting more than 400 Canadian radio stations into the palm of your hand, including CBC and Radio-Canada. It was announced this morning that Canada’s public broadcasters would join a consortium of private broadcasters participating in Radioplayer, which showcases the vast majority of Canadian stations, with more joining every week.
“Radioplayer solidifies that radio in Canada remains vital and relevant,” said Troy Reeb, Senior Vice President, Corus Radio & Global News. “Corus Entertainment is proud to participate in this exciting initiative alongside nearly all Canadian broadcasters. We look forward to the impact this world class app will have on the radio listening experience.”
The free Radioplayer Canada app gives radio listeners access to nearly every style of music, news, talk, and entertainment content, in both official languages, on any connected device, at any time of day, from anywhere.
“The way Canadians listen to radio is changing, and we’re changing with them,” said Julie Adam, Senior Vice President, Rogers Radio speaking on behalf of the
consortium. “Radioplayer gives our listeners access to their favourite local stations and allows them to discover others across the country like never before. With access on mobile devices and desktop, tuning to your favourite station has never been easier.”
The free Radioplayer Canada app facilitates listener discovery of radio content through search and recommendations based on listening history, geographical location and crowd-sourced trending.
“Joining the Radioplayer family is a part of our commitment to ensure that CBC content is available to all audiences and on as many platforms as possible,” said Susan Marjetti, executive director, CBC Radio & Audio English Services. “CBC Radio and Audio is already setting new records in its reach for smart Talk, dominating in popular podcasting and developing new Canadian artists through CBC Music. We look forward to making CBC’s public service programming available in this new way, today, with the announcement of our partnership with Radioplayer Canada.”
Listeners are able to access live and catch-up radio broadcasts across the country through Radioplayer Canada’s browser-player, and on connected devices through the iOS or Android app, including integrations with Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, Chromecast, and smartwatches.
BBC Radio joined forces with UK’s private radio broadcasters to launch the first Radioplayer five years ago, which has become the top-rated digital radio app in Europe and is currently rolling out in countries around the world.
“Having CBC/Radio-Canada join the Canadian Radioplayer effort is another very proud moment for Radioplayer,” said Michael Hill, Founder and Managing Director, Radioplayer UK. “Radio faces amazing, yet technically challenging, opportunities in cars, smartphones, and among younger audiences. Joining the ever-growing Radioplayer family is a great way for broadcasters to address these together – whether their focus is public service delivery or growing commercial revenue.”
Radioplayer Canada brings CBC/Radio-Canada together with the stations of Bayshore Broadcasting, Blackburn Radio, Blackgold Radio, Byrnes Communications, CAB-K Broadcasting, Central Ontario Broadcasting, Clear Sky Radio, Cogeco Media, Corus Entertainment, Durham Radio, Fabmar Communications, Golden West Broadcasting, Harvard Broadcasting, Larche Communications, Newcap Radio, Jim Pattison Broadcast Group, Rogers Media, Rawlco Radio, RNC Media, Saskatoon Media Group, Vista Radio, and Westman
Communications Group, as well as the National Campus and Community Radio Association (NCRA/ANREC). For additional business opportunities, please visit www.radioplayer.ca.
About Radioplayer Canada
Radioplayer Canada is a highly collaborative partnership among many of Canada’s finest radio broadcasters to provide listeners with a world-class streaming experience across a variety of platforms and connected devices, on mobile, tablet, desktop and in-car. Radioplayer Canada unites broadcasters, fosters competition on content, and allows radio to compete with other digital forms of audio. For more, see www.radioplayer.ca follow @radioplayercanada on Twitter.
About Radioplayer Worldwide
Radioplayer Worldwide is a partnership between UK Radioplayer, 7digital, and the countries that have rolled out Radioplayer in their countries. Radioplayer
originated in the UK where BBC as well as commercial radio joined together to explore technical collaboration across the industry. Radioplayer UK now attracts an audience of 7 million unique users a month. Radioplayer is now operating in countries around the world. For more, see www.radioplayerworldwide.com or follow @rpworldwide on Twitter.
Media Contacts:
Shawn Smith, Momentum, 604.872.8900 ext. 300,
shawn@momentummediamarketing.com