Radio of the Future: Protect the Current Business Model while Evolving it for the Future

At the beginning of May, I attended Canadian Music Week's International Radio Interactive Summit, a two-day event supporting radio networking and education. I had the privelege of being on the "Radio of the Future" panel with a number of thought leaders in the industry. Moderated by Alan Cross, Broadcaster, Interviewer & Writer, Corus Radio & Brain Dead Dog Productions, the panelists included:

• Darren Davis, President, iHeartRadio & iHeartMedia Networks, USA
• Gavin McGarry, President, Jumpwire Media, USA
• James Cridland, Radio Futurologist/Managing Director, media.info, UK
• James Stirling, Head of BBC Music, BBC Radio, UK
• Jeffrey Smulyan,CEO/ Chairman of the Board, Emmis Communications Corp, USA

As the panel's name suggests, the future of radio was the central theme of our discussion. Almost all participants believed that the radio business is still a great business. Radio has access to incredible personalities, unique and compelling content, and is completely free, just to name a few of its top qualities.

As good as the radio business is, however, evolution is critical for the continued success of the industry. This includes exploring new distribution and monetization options for radio's unique and compelling content and personalities.

There's no one path to success in radio's future.

Below please find the full video recording of the "Radio of the Future" panel, provided by Canadian Music Week. In it, we discuss several initiatives and paths that radio can take to both withstand the test of time in its current form and evolve for the future.