Predictions on 2009

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With the economic tailspin showing no real end in sight, the next year may be a particularly challenging one for advertisers and the radio industry. However,  there are several bright spots to look for in the 2009:


Mobile Devices Continues its March to Dominance:
Mobile devices are clearly the big wave in electronics, and we can look forward to seeing manufacturers continue to work to improve their products to keep grabbing market shares. I think 2009 will see Apple add pre-installed internet radio applications to all iPhones and connected iPods. The iPods and iPhones will now fully mimic and improve on in everyway the first great mobile device – the walkman.

On the same front, audio ad unit will be the growth area for mobile advertising. So far, the focus has been on visual displays, but as more and more consumers begin using the radio functionality of their mobile devices, we will see ad sales grow.

Music:
With labels hurting, bands and brands accelerate their alignment. I believe we will see a lot more experimental and out of the box ideas from advertisers. In music, we can expect more top brands spending advertising dollars to align with individual musicians and bands. The Dr. Pepper’s Chinese Democracy gambit, however unofficial, took advantage of the natural connection by offering to give out a free soda if the Guns and Roses album came out this year. It shows that whatever problems the music industry is facing, a well-matched brand partnership can build real buzz.

Similarly, with labels cutting back on spending, emerging bands are going to take a more forceful approach to their own destiny and begin to gravitate to their own do-it-yourself advertising. At TargetSpot, we have already seen bands starting to take advantage of the geographic targeting and easy-to-use ad creation technology to begin their own campaigns for listeners…In order to tap into this new market, I think new companies will launch applications for bands to manage their internet marketing efforts in a self-serve capacity.

Satellite Radio comes back to Earth:
Satellite Radio is facing a real challenge. Even with the merger of Sirius and XM Radio, the combined company is facing huge problems. I predicate that Sirius/XM will begin distributing their programs free online – but with ads paying for the cost.

–Doug Perlson, TargetSpot CEO
Readers—send your own predictions to [email protected] and we’ll run ’em!