I was just reading the last pages of my day old copy of the New York Daily News and was intrigued by a piece, “Shock jock Howard Stern may leave Sirius and go the way of the iPhone app.”
Now, it’s nothing new that Howard Stern is threatening to walk during contract negotiations. He’s done that as long as I can remember.
But the tantalizing part of it all is what if he does leave Sirius at the end of the contact?
Stern has suggested starting a paid podcast after the contract ends this December, according to the article.
Some quick calculations from the article that aren’t really based on any reality…
“If Stern did three Internet shows a week, charged $5 a month (a bargain for fans) and got a million subscribers (a low estimate), he’d make $60 million a year.”
But I think he could create a market like that with his reach. I haven’t listened to him since he left terrestrial radio, but I’d be into paying for a podcast from him.
Currently, I subscribe mostly to free marketing and technology podcasts on GeekCast.fm and elsewhere, but I’m always looking for more content, and I love his stuff.
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Other than the east coast the rest of the country has been listening to Howard on tape so a Podcast is not out of the question. Live is great but Podcast will work. I hope he resigns with Sirius but will follow him in whatever media he chooses.
Congrats on catching the typo and pointing it out.
Podcasts can be live and available to listen after the fact. It’s not an either/or situation.
By the way, since it seems important to measure things, I started listening back when he was on DC 101 in the early 80s.
If by “option” you mean “opinion”, technically you’re right. However, I’ve been listening for 20 years and recently he has been giving the subject a lot of airplay …
He has stated he’s not interested in afternoons (never heard him deviate from this), nor is he interested in a pre-recorded show that listeners can’t call in on. Some of his best stuff is pulling live calls and reactions from the audience.
So yeah … it’s an opinion technically … but if you listen every day, you can tell what few lines in the sand he actually has.
I’d say your first statement is an option, too.
I don’t have the time to listen live, since I don’t commute anymore, but would love to listen at my leisure other times in the day – I usually consume podcasts while exercising.
There’s only one thing I know for sure as a die-hard fan. Recorded podcasts are out, it has to be live.
On the opinion side … I think he’d be WAY smart to go with a smartphone app, but he’d have to have a secondary consumption method for people without a smartphone. At this point that limits him to online streaming, thus limiting listeners to computers.
I say he re-signs with Sirius for ~2 years as he waits out the mobile internet situation. 2 years is a lifetime in terms of technology jumps.
Lisa has been on Affiliate Thing since it started in 2007, since we must have tipped on the first episode.
I remember when he used to be on the radio and on tv at night. That had to have been the height of his popularity cause I haven’t heard him since he left radio like you. And Lisa joining the Affiliate Thing was the tipping point.
What do you see as technical obstacles?
Is it the smartest move based on the obstacles with the technical aspect of things..maybe not, but could Howard Stern be a success at it, absolutely. He has marketed himself over the years, so well that no matter what he does with a following as strong as his, he’ll be fine.
It would be hard, but he’d get so much coverage for it that I think he could pull it off.
I could see this happening. He almost always threatens, but he also does walk away quite often. He could push thw tipping point a bit, but I think this media move would be harder for him to push the needle. Adam Corrolla (sp?) has done a lot better podcasting than he ever expected, but at the end of this month he’s bumping up to a video show.
I have been listening to Howard for a long time I have caught him on Sirius on occasion but I am like you I was an avid listener when he was on regular radio. It should be interesting to see how this plays out Howard is a smart business man he is probably just trying to scare Sirius so he gets a bigger cut of the pie. Only time will tell!
I agree on the limited access to smartphones, but if he makes it a download for each show, it could be played on a $10 MP3 player or people could download iTunes for free and download shows to their computer.
I’ve been following this since i’m a huge stern fan. I’m not sure what move he’s going to make here. Although some kind of app/podcast makes sense it may also be really bad for the fans.
1) Not everyone has a smartphone. The barrier to entry on getting a smartphone is way higher then getting sirius was. A sirius receiver = $100 + service = $12.95/month. A smartphone equals contract + a few hundred dollars + at least $30-$40 additional to your phone bill.
2) People want the show LIVE making a podcast ideal. A streaming app might work BUT
3) Let’s face it. Wireless internet BLOWS. If i’m driving into NYC, I can drop signal at least 10 times on the way. Some drops being 5-10 minutes long. That wouldn’t provide a great listening experience.
Maybe the move for Stern is to stay on Sirius and not do it exclusively. IE offer the option of getting his show through Sirius as people already do OR subscribing to an app/podcast.
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