AudioNET Delivers NEW FEATURES for the NEW YEAR

AudioNET's new SEND PAGE is more than just a pretty make-over. As well as being easier to find stations and select receivers, all your sending is now done on one page. 

Delivery details go at the top of the page, tick the stations in the middle and track details get filled in at the bottom of the page, with Key No. auto-fill available for files that are named the same as the key number.

We're pretty pleased with the result  - and hopefully you are too, since Vaughan's been working hard to make sure the re-design works the way you want it. 

Thanks to the following people who helped with ideas and testing:

In Adelaide, Phil at GAS and Clarky at Greg Clark Productions. In Melbourne, Ben at GAS, Emma and Chris at Rowlands, Brigid and Colin at Gusto, Caillin at One's Company and Simon at SMR. In Sydney, Jen & Paul at Frodi's and David at SMA.

BUT THAT'S not all - we're changing all receivers' e-mail alerts to sexy looking HTML including production studio logos on all alerts to traffic and production managers (and anyone in your personal receiver lists of course.)

And we now also have a new free-call phone number: 1800 003 155.

Sign Up For Multiple GASM

Good Audio Sense has almost run out of this print run for the second "summer" edition of GASM.  Click the cover if you haven't already subscribed and follow the links on the GAS site, so you won't miss out next time. Subscribers receive the glossy mag packed with stories about and from the people in the production industry at work and play.
Until now GASM has only been available to the production studios in Adelaide, Melbourne and Sydney, but the response and feedback on the first two issues has inspired GAS MD Rodney Lowe to throw subscriptions open to studios across the country and all AudioNET® radio stations. By the way subscriptions are free.

Gusto Thrives After Baptism By Fire 

Cameron Giles, Collin Simkins and Brigid Cotter all met in Singapore when the two men were working at Song Zu and Brigid was an agency producer. They started talking about setting up their own sound studio and several years later, after a brief stopover in Sydney for Cameron and Brigid, the three of them decided to open up business in Brigid's home town - Melbourne. And that's when life started to get really interesting.

Brigid says they initially intended to set up in South Melbourne, but opened up in Chapel Street instead.

"While we were looking in South Melbourne we heard that Planet X had space available so we moved in- and that was great for us at the time because it helped get us established and we also got some flow through work from Planet X," says Brigid.

But in September 2001 their Chapel Street studios were razed by fire and the hunt was on for a new home and new equipment.  Again, providence struck, with an empty studio temporarily available in Collins Street in the city.

"We'd already built Chapel Street from scratch, and then we did some heavy renovating in the city with help from Cameron's dad."

The great irony according to Brigid is,  "We've ended up in South Melbourne where we originally intended to set up in the first place."

So, in April 2002 they moved themselves again and renovated the Park Street premises and so far have had a relatively uneventful existence except for landing some great work. Campaigns so far include music for Toyota for the Corolla, Camry and Sportivo, the IDs for Channel Seven's recent Australian Open coverage, music for the Crown Casino Christmas show and for the Fosters 2002 Australian Grand Prix.

"Cameron also put a band together for the media launch at the Grand Prix. The music we designed had a jazzy feel, so Cameron formed a jazz band for the launch," Brigid says. In between the business mayhem, all three of them have moved house four  times, after initially living and working together during the first year of the business. "We're hoping 2003 will be smoother so we can catch our breath a bit," says Brigid. But they're still on the lookout for new projects.

Having created original music for different products, several TV networks and special occasions, the team at Gusto say they're keen to compose a score for a radio station or network.

And who knows - if it's  good enough for Microsoft and Intel to have musical logos, maybe even radio stations will soon realise the power of having a unique sound associated with their brand!

Clever Kiwis Capitalise on Classic Client Conundrum

The SOS for AudioNET came via a very circuitous route from The Radio Bureau  in New Zealand. TRB is a sales agency similar to the Regional Radio Bureau here in Australia. It represents about 190 radio stations in New Zealand, including most of the stations in The Radio Network Group. Tiffany Crombie, the hubs instructor (in charge of national distribution of material instructions) had instructed several networks that there was a certain spot due on air over the weekend.

"The client didn't want to e-mail the audio because they thought it would be a step-down in quality," Tiffany says. "I was really stuck. The client campaign was due to start the next day and I needed to get it here."

Part of the difficulty for Tiffany is that The Radio Network acts as a hub for many New Zealand stations and does a feed of spots at a set time each day. If the client's spots missed the outgoing Friday feed, then there was no way the ads  would get to air over the weekend. 

The Radio Network's national material manager Julie McPherson suggested to Tiffany that maybe AudioNET® could help. Tiffany contacted the client, who contacted the advertising agency in Australia, who e-mailed us.

To cut a long story short - we got in touch with TRB and TRN, worked out where the audio needed to go, added the appropriate contacts and sent the audio. 

But before we did ANY of that - we contacted the production studio FIRST. The production studio still gets the credit (and bills the client) for sending the audio and everyone is happy.

"It was so convenient - it was as simple as getting onto the website," Tiffany says.

Because of the time difference between Australia and New Zealand one of the stations even downloaded the audio two hours before it was sent!! Think about it.

"I know from my own experience in Albury, every weekend we'd come in and produce something worth putting into a demo and then when you come in on Monday you feel you've worked towards something.  Then you get to a Nova metro station.. and you feel great and start learning the art of production a bit more.

"It weeds out those producers who go through their radio career just bludging off because they know the right people and get the good gigs and in the past better producers were overlooked because other people knew the PD.

"Also the hubs put a better product to those stations. I know the southern hub has some really good producers there and markets like Young and the smaller markets are getting way better product than they've ever seen in the past, so I think it's boosted the overall quality for the product out there."

At the other end of the spectrum, DMG takes station imaging very seriously, with full-time image producers in Sydney, Melbourne and Perth. Ashley writes as well as produces, which he says is great fun.

                                                            "..I've definitely been spoilt..."

"Image producers in other metro stations have always been the guys that work the long hours and don't get much return and PDs really grind them into the ground changing things every day.

"From my experience with DMG the attitude is 'lets take a step back, we've got this new station...these are the systems that we're going to put in place to not give that massive workload to image producers in fact producers all round.'  So it's been good in the Nova station in the metro markets having one station to deal with and being able to build that up and set up those roles.

"If I ever take a step back into a regional market or whatever, or even go overseas, I think its going to be a big shock to the system having to go back to maybe a lesser studio or a different kind of brand that's not so irreverent ..that doesn't take the piss out of itself.

"I've definitely been spoilt being here with the Nova brand."

April Start for Sydney Digital Radio Trials

Commercial Radio Australia says there's already strong interest from advertisers for April's scheduled trials of digital radio in Sydney.

CRA chief executive officer, Joan Warner says advertisers understand there are key benefits to them from the new technology.

"Benefits of digital radio include CD sound quality, easy tuning, data display and the ability to download songs and rewind programs to hear a news item, weather update or traffic report.

"Radio is the only advertising medium that still has an opportunity to take a significant technological leap. The radio industry is working closely with the advertising industry and consumers to identify the potential and value-adds of digital radio which will be essential to any future move to an enhanced radio offering."

Joan says the April trials will be aimed at five specific markets including young people, personal computer users, horse racing followers, opinion makers and taxi drivers.

These trials are in addition to the technology tests underway since 1999 on a limited basis at several radio stations including 2DAY, 2KY, 2WS and the ABC.

"The Australian radio industry has allocated more than $1 million over the past twelve months establishing the appropriate infrastructure to properly test the viability of digital radio. Establishing a transmission system and gaining access to appropriate spectrum for digital radio is a complex process but once established will provide the foundation for a state of the art, upgradeable, world-class system for the future," Joan says.

PS. When the time comes to produce ads for digital radio broadcast, remember there's no point producing high quality ads and then delivering them to the radio stations via services that require digital to analogue conversions. AudioNET® is still the only service suitable for delivering spots for digital broadcast because AudioNET® keeps the audio digital all the way.    

                                                          
MADC Applies Itself Online