AirSpun To Launch Music Industry's First Web-Based Radio Airtime Booking System
July 13, 2006
AirSpun, Inc., a Silicon Valley start-up with an e-commerce approach to marketing digital music through commercial radio promotion, announced plans today to launch www.airspun.com in an effort to democratize the music hitmaking process and provide independent artists with unprecedented power over their creative futures. AirSpun.com features a patent-pending online airtime booking system for affordable commercial radio exposure along with promotional opportunities that give independent recording artists a chance to sell their music directly to a global fan base. At launch, the company is offering commercial airtime in Nashville, San Jose/San Francisco, Seattle, and Austin on select Clear Channel Communications and Entercom network radio stations.
AirSpun proposes to rock the foundations of the music business by allowing every original recording artist—with or without a record deal—an affordable way to be heard on commercial radio.
"The internet has done a great job of leveling the distribution playing field for bands and artists, but so far, no one has used the power of the internet to democratize music marketing and promotion," explains AirSpun Founder Heidi Elgaard. "AirSpun is well-positioned to fill a void for a new generation of digitally-savvy independent recording artists, as well as radio stations seeking financially viable ways to support them."
AirSpun is currently working with its radio station affiliates to offer reasonably-priced 60-second spots for AirSpun's Artist Showcases. Each spot features a brief announcement of the song and band/artist name, followed by about 45 seconds of the showcased song, and a required AirSpun end-tag asking listeners to visit the airspun.com site to find the featured artist and vote or provide feedback on the music.
Bands and artists visiting the airspun.com website will be able to browse available 60-second airtime slots on radio stations by genre and city. After booking their slot (at prices ranging from $20 to $200 or so, depending on location), they will be able to download 60-second audio templates and upload completed Artist Showcase slots that will be previewed and downloaded by the radio stations for broadcast airplay. Artists that use the AirSpun booking system will also get an online referral page linking to wherever their music is sold online.
Later in 2006, AirSpun will be featuring the top-voted new artists in a series AirSpun Hit shows that it plans to syndicate back to its affiliate radio stations. Future plans also include expanding its proprietary online airtime booking concept to other kinds of content creators such as podcasters, authors, and videographers. For more information, visit their web site at www.airspun.com.
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