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Tuesday, September 1, 2009

Music Site TheRadio.Com Reveals Ad-Free Premium Service

Subscribers pay $2.95 per month, get additional services - no advertising

CHARLESTON, SC – (September 1, 2009): Online streaming station TheRadio.Com LLC today launched an ad-free Premium version of its popular music programming with a long list of new features. The monthly cost is $2.95.In addition to removal of advertising, new features include enhanced search functions and player, album cover graphics, exclusive premium offers and a Subscriber Rewards Program.

Carryover features from the standard service include outstanding audio quality, custom channel building, song skipping, on-demand interactive music delivery, and countdowns of the 40 top songs in 12 current genres (per weekly MediaBase charts).

“The premium service is the result of listener suggestions and our own research,” said Ed Seeger, CEO of TheRadio.Com. Chief Technology Officer Laramie Guest adds: “Our goal was to be the best listening experience available while being the easiest to use.”

“We wanted a simplified interface that would enhance the overall listener experience with more features and functionality,” commented Marty Quessenberry, Chief Marketing Officer. “With this new version of TheRadio.com, we’re delivering music the way listeners want it, simplified and ad free.”

TheRadio.Com offers 222 online channels (list at http://theradio.com/channels.cfm), each programmed by seasoned music professionals. “Just to give an idea of the depth of our variety,” said Program Director Scott Johnson, “we have 38 variations of Rock, 23 Country, and 22 Rhythm & Blues, plus current hits countdown channels in a dozen genres. Plus a ton of less mainstream stations like Blues, Jazz, Religion, Standards, Bluegrass, Beach Music, Folk, the Parrot Beach Bar, and various International flavors.

All channels can be heard at www.theradio.com.

About TheRadio.Com
Founded in 2006, TheRadio.Com is an affiliate of American Media Services Interactive, LLC, Charleston, SC. It provides 222 music channels in a wide variety of genres. Visit www.theradio.com. American Media Services Interactive, LLC also provides music and messaging services to retailers via its Storecasting℠ product (www.storecasting.net).


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Friday, June 5, 2009

American Media Services Announces Appointment of Todd Fowler as President of American Media Services - Interactive

(Charleston, SC) American Media Services (AMS) today announced the appointment of Todd Fowler as President of American Media Services-Interactive (AMSi). An affiliate company of AMS, AMSi is a digital media consulting company to retailers, broadcasters, print media, church organizations and corporate clients.

Mr. Fowler, who also currently holds the position of President of the company’s Brokerage Division, is an industry veteran with years of experience in the areas of radio, communication, and emerging media. “We have a depth of talent within our organization that we were able to tap for this position,” said Ed Seeger, Chairman of American Media Services. “Todd is a long time, trusted and proven member of the AMS management team.” Mr. Fowler is well known in the communication industry, having served prior to joining AMS as Senior Director of Affiliate Relations for ABC Radio Networks in Dallas and President/CEO of Quorum Radio Partners. In announcing Mr. Fowler’s appointment, Andrew Guest, Vice Chairman of American Media Services said “Todd is one of the most capable people I’ve ever known. This is a great opportunity for him and for our company.” Fowler’s responsibilities as President will include management of growth for the division as well as the operation and expansion of AMSi’s StorecastingSM services providing in-store audio to retailers and the streaming audio website, www.theRadio.com with over 200 channels of free ad supported music entertainment and social networking attributes. “This is a tremendous opportunity for me to carry my experience in terrestrial media to our emerging media division,” said Fowler.

American Media Services is a full-service radio brokerage, engineering, developmental engineering and internet technologies firm. The Internet division was established in December of 2006. “American Media Services Interactive has an ambitious mission to bring together a source for broadcasters and corporations to take advantage of the opportunities that abound today with emerging media vehicles,” said Seeger. “Todd will bring the same energy, enthusiasm and index of people in the industry to this new post that he has brought to the Brokerage Division. There is no doubt that he has the skills to lead the professional team at AMSi and grow the scope of services offered.”

For more information about the services of American Media Services Interactive, contact Todd Fowler, President at 888-697-6630.
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About AMSi
AMS Interactive , launched by the founders of American Media Services, LLC, is a digital media firm whose services include corporate/retail StorecastingTM and theRadio.Com. Through a proprietary internet receiver provided by the AMSi team, Storecasting TM provides a customizable audio content platform for retail or corporate environments with the ability to engage and deliver marketing messages to customers directly at point of sale. TheRadio.com is an on-demand, interactive music delivery site featuring unique capabilities including song skipping, favorites tracking, countdown channels, and a robust search feature. Visit amsinteractive.com.
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Thursday, June 4, 2009

American Media Services Interactive Expands TheRadio.com To Include Album Country and Civil War Channels

CHARLESTON, SC – American Media Services Interactive (AMSi) announces the expansion of TheRadio.com its free, online music streaming vehicle, with the addition of two channels, Album Country and Civil War Music. The channels join the over 200 on-demand channels currently available from TheRadio.com.“With the addition of the Album Country and Civil War channels, we are reinforcing TheRadio.com’s commitment to providing on-line listeners with a depth of listening not available on any other internet stream,” said Scott Johnson, Program Director, TheRadio.com. “This is a continuation of providing today’s music consumers with music selections of what they want when they want it.” Created by American Media Services Interactive, TheRadio.com provides a seemingly endless selection of free music of superior quality coupled with ease of use

The Album Country channel features expanded album selections for a more in depth listening experience of individual Country recording artists. From battle songs to civil war movie ballads, the Civil War channel is the musical answer for any Civil War buff. Selections of the period are recreated by music legends to contemporary artists. TheRadio.com boasts an ever-expanding channel list encompassing rock, country, R&B, jazz, oldies, Christmas, and religious listening.

Also exclusively available on TheRadio.com are a dozen weekly countdown channels. Each is devoted to the continuous presentation of the current top 40 songs in multiple genres, as determined by MediaBase, a music industry website containing charts and analysis based on data from 175 markets in the United States. “TheRadio.com, through its exclusive relationship with MediaBase, is the only online entity where listeners can find all these countdown channels including Adult Contemporary, Active Rock, Alternative, CHR, Country, Gospel, Hot AC, Rhythm, Triple A, Urban Contemporary and Urban,” said Johnson.

For more information about TheRadio.com or the services of American Media Services Interactive, contact Todd Fowler at 888-697-6630.
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About AMSi
AMS Interactive , launched by the founders of American Media Services, LLC, is a digital media firm whose services include corporate/retail StorecastingTM and theRadio.Com. Through a proprietary internet receiver provided by the AMSi team, Storecasting TM provides a customizable audio content platform for retail or corporate environments with the ability to engage and deliver marketing messages to customers directly at point of sale. TheRadio.com is an on-demand, interactive music delivery site featuring unique capabilities including song skipping, favorites tracking, countdown channels, and a robust search feature. Visit amsinteractive.com.

About TheRadio.com
TheRadio.com is a free, online music streaming vehicle with on-demand, interactive music delivery featuring unique capabilities including song skipping, favorites tracking, and a robust search feature. TheRadio.com boasts hundreds of listening channels.http://www.theradio.com/
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Wednesday, April 8, 2009

American Media Services Survey Shows Popularity of Internet Radio, Even As Regular Radio Continues Holding Its Audience


  • Nearly half of homes now have wireless internet service

  • Internet connections in vehicles may be the next frontier for wireless service

  • About half say in-store advertisements along with music would make shopping easier

CHARLESTON, S.C., April 9, 2009 – Internet-only radio is rapidly gaining acceptance as another way to listen to music, according to a national survey that American Media Services released today.

The latest AMS Radio Index shows that more than a quarter (27 percent) of Americans say they have listened to Internet-only radio on an Internet site. This includes nearly half (47 percent) of young adults 18-24 and about a third (34 percent) of those under the age of 50.

But even as new media, such as Internet-only radio, continue to gain in popularity, regular radio is maintaining its audience. In the latest AMS survey, 73 percent said they are listening to the radio about the same as or more than they did five years ago. Dating back to the initial AMS Radio Index in January 2006, the number saying they’re listening to the radio as much or more than five years earlier has remained remarkably steady.

“Our latest survey shows the continued vibrancy of radio,” said Edward F. Seeger, AMS chairman. “Online radio is an increasingly important medium. Regular radio is holding its own. The two media offer choices that are compatible and complementary of each other.”

The way of receiving online radio is also rapidly changing. Nearly half the homes in America now have WiFi, or wireless internet service, the AMS survey found. Home WiFi service increased from 37 percent in the September 2008 survey to 48 percent in the current survey.

And in the wireless world, vehicles could be the next frontier – for both Internet connections and audience growth for Internet-only radio.

  • There is an increasing desire among Americans to have Internet service in their vehicle. The number expressing interest in having this service in their vehicle has increased from 37 percent in the September 2008 AMS survey to 46 percent in the latest AMS Radio Index.

  • Among those who have listened to Internet-only radio, nearly half (46 percent) expect to listen to it in the future on an Internet connection in their vehicles, and nearly three-quarters (74 percent) say they would listen to Internet-only radio more if their vehicle had an Internet connection.

  • Even among those who have never listened to Internet-only radio, nearly half (48 percent) say they would be prompted to listen to it if they had an Internet connection in their vehicle.

Generally, they prefer to have access to Internet-only radio at no charge. However, nearly a quarter (23 percent) said they are willing to pay a monthly subscription charge of $8 or less to listen commercial-free.

Other key findings of the latest AMS Radio Index include the following:

  • Nearly six out of 10 (59 percent) say they notice music while shopping either always or most of the time.

  • About half (51 percent) say hearing brief advertisements for special offers in the store or ads for other area stores would make their shopping experience easier.

  • Men and women were equally disposed towards in-store ads. Age mattered more than gender: 72 percent of those 18-24 and 60 percent of those 25-34 said in-store ads would make their shopping experience easier.

About the survey

The national poll was conducted for AMS by OmniTel, the weekly omnibus survey of GfK Custom Research North America of Princeton, N.J. The telephone survey of 1,005 Americans adults was conducted during the weekend of March 27-29, 2009. The survey is considered accurate within plus or minus 3 percentage points. [Go to www.americanmediaservices.com to see survey results.]

About American Media Services

American Media Services is a full-service radio brokerage, engineering and developmental engineering firm, and its developmental division leads the country in successfully implementing station upgrades by moving them into larger markets, dramatically increasing their value. Since its founding in 1997, AMS has increased the value of 22 stations across the country by $212.6 million, with a corresponding increase in population served of some 25 million. More than $200 million in proposed rulemakings are currently pending before the FCC. In December 2006 AMS launched an affiliate company, American Media Services-Internet LLC, to assist radio station owners and operators on setting up and managing streaming radio sites. For additional information, please visit www.americanmediaservices.com.

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