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Apple to Bolster iTunes Radio With Localized Ads, Content

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MacRumors

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Original poster
Apr 12, 2001
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Apple has plans to add both targeted local advertisements and broadcast radio stations to its iTunes Radio music service in the coming months, according to a report from The Information. The move will boost its advertising efforts and introduce new content on iTunes Radio, better positioning it to compete with market leader Pandora. Apple is also expected to begin advertising its own iTunes content through the iAd network.
In a move that strikes at the heart of Pandora's advertising business, iTunes Radio is expected to enable locally targeted advertising later this year, according to ad buyers who have spoken to Apple. Apple may begin promoting iTunes with "house ads" on its iAd mobile advertising network, an unusual move for the company.
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Apple has reportedly contacted broadcasters like Cumulus Media, the second largest operator of radio stations in America. Cumulus serves approximately 150 million listeners in 110 metropolitan areas and could potentially bring multiple local stations to iTunes Radio. Apple made its first moves towards introducing local content on iTunes Radio earlier this year with the launch of the National Public Radio (NPR) channel, which will eventually include local stations offering a mix of live and taped news.

itunes_radio_hero2-800x449.jpg
Since the launch of iTunes Radio, Apple has had a renewed focus on advertising, redirecting its iAd team to monetize iTunes Radio through advertising sales. While the company has signed deals on a national level with several high profile companies like McDonald's, Nissan, Pepsi, and Procter & Gamble, local ads are new territory.

The addition of local ads could significantly boost the revenue iTunes Radio pulls in, which is a major threat to Pandora. Pandora currently focuses heavily on local ads with sales teams located in more than 35 markets around the United States.

In April, Apple moved towards expanding into Pandora's local advertising territory by making it easier to create and buy iAds on its network. While a developer account was previously required to create an ad campaign, that restriction has now been removed, making it simpler for advertisers large and small to create ads for the platform.

Apple's efforts to bolster its iTunes Radio revenue through local content come as the company works to acquire Beats Music, a paid streaming music service that delivers content on demand. With both iTunes Radio and Beats Music, Apple is hoping to boost its overall music sales, which have waned in recent years.

Article Link: Apple to Bolster iTunes Radio With Localized Ads, Content
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/2014/05/30/apple-itunes-radio-localized-content/
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Tiger8

macrumors 68020
May 23, 2011
2,479
649
I switched back to Pandora

I like Pandora's personlization better, I use iTunes Radio when I want to listen to an unrelated playlist, like the Top 40, Dance mix, etc... But when it comes to **my** stations, it's Pandora
 
M

mrfrosty

macrumors 6502a
Oct 1, 2005
500
21
Yeeehaaawww now why not localise it outside of the US and get other countries using it too. If they can't get licences to do that what can they get.
 
M

madwalker

macrumors newbie
May 30, 2014
6
0
I'd be interested to see iTunes Radio in the UK and elsewhere first. Maybe apple should concentrate on that before thinking of making changes. We can't enjoy the capability without being given it first!
 
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JHankwitz

macrumors 68000
Oct 31, 2005
1,911
58
Wisconsin
Screw the ads. How much do I have to pay to not get advertising? I've been on advertising overload for years, and can't take it anymore!
 
PatriotInvasion

PatriotInvasion

macrumors 68000
Jul 18, 2010
1,643
1,048
Boston, MA
Yuck. The constant Nissan ads are one of the biggest annoyances about iTunes Radio. I would have just given them the $25/year to get rid of them if it also included unlimited skips (like AOL Radio allows on it's paid tier). Without unlimited skips, I couldn't stomach paying Apple. In comes Beats Music which I'm loving thus far.
 
rentalanimal

rentalanimal

macrumors member
Jan 2, 2013
45
88
Seattle
So mo lo, bro

So not only is apple making the world a better place, but they are also going to be LO MO SO! Or is it MO LO SO?
 
B

BigHonkingDeal

macrumors 6502a
Feb 8, 2009
832
1,027
Fort Pierce
johnnyturbouk said:
sounds interesting? i'm quite liking itunes radio
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So far it's not doing it for me..... I can stand listen to it every couple weeks for half an hour tops.

After half an hour it just repeats the same songs over and over. It also seems to ignore my wishes and keeps playing songs that I flagged for "Do not play again"

If I want more local ads I turn on FM radio..... for me Pandora is currently better.
 
M

MacMikePro

macrumors regular
Oct 8, 2009
148
187
Orlando, FL
JHankwitz said:
Screw the ads. How much do I have to pay to not get advertising? I've been on advertising overload for years, and can't take it anymore!
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Um $25 a year, it comes ad free with iTunes Match, which will let you stream your personal iTunes music from the cloud as well as being like a back up of your entire library. So basically you get ad free iTunes Radio, all the benefits of iTunes Match, AND it's cheaper than Pandora.
 
perealb

perealb

macrumors 6502
Oct 30, 2009
256
10
At this moment, the best music service is Spotify. I'm a subscriber and I love it. I know it's not like Pandora or iTunes radio but you can create a radio based on a playlist or song. I will try Beats again but when I used it before, I didn't like its inflexibility. I like the idea of curated playlists that the people from Beats are talking about. Spotify already has that, though. It's more or less like a curated radio statio that both Pandora and Slacker have, except that in Spotify you are able to see all its songs and play any particular one at any time you want. I've had iTunes Match for few years now but it seems something very outdated now that I have access to over 20 million songs. I will not be renovating iTunes Match when it expires. One thing that I miss from iTunes Match (or using iTunes) is the smart playlists that I relied on the past, but this concept doesn't fit well with Spotify. They need to come up with something similar.
 
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Parasprite

Parasprite

macrumors 68000
Mar 5, 2013
1,698
144
Tiger8 said:
I like Pandora's personlization better, I use iTunes Radio when I want to listen to an unrelated playlist, like the Top 40, Dance mix, etc... But when it comes to **my** stations, it's Pandora
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My stations freezing and permanently refusing to play after 5-10 plays is ironically what got me into trying Pandora (granted that was months ago). I tried Last.fm but at the time it couldn't find much music I was interested in, I may have to try it again now that my tastes have changed up a bit.
 
mazz0

mazz0

macrumors 68040
Mar 23, 2011
3,130
3,576
Leeds, UK
I know how they could make a little more money out of iTunes Radio...

That's a point, maybe they'll announce iTunes Radio rolling out to a bunch of other countries at WWDC?
 
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