Radio broadcast .. (1922-30)

OF RADIO Let's Kill Putrid Announcements A Few Pointers from the Auto Industry An influence wliich has prevented consummation of the large number of mergers rumored is the personal pride at- tached to names of leaders in the industry. A man who has built up a business around his name is not likely to surrender it to form an unidentified unit of a group. But the inevitable must be faced sooner or later because the present situation of excessive number of brands leaves the field wide open to ambitious and progressive newcomers who obtain leadership by the adoption of modern business methods successful in other lines of industry. No more obvious course lies open than a novel approach to the distribution situatftn. The agency plan of distribution, similar to that adopted by the automotive industry, may ultimately become the method employed by the radio industry. This will be possible when the number of out- standing names in the industry is reduced to a handful and when the unit of sale in radio becomes larger. While there has been a decidedly marked tendency toward lower average list prices, the radio receiver may sooner than we expect be a part of a combination of devices now sold as separate units or almost wholly un- developed from the commercial standpoint. We have described previously in these columns what, in our opinion, will be the ultimate occupation of the radio industry, the production of a home-entertain- ment machine which combines ra- dio program reception, phonograph reproduction, television, home motion picture reproduc- tion, and recording devices for preserving visual and tonal programs for later reproduction. For example, the hour se- lected for broadcasting of stock market or weather reports may not necessarily suit the convenience of the listener but, if he could arrange to have these reports recorded at what- ever hour they are broadcast, he may later listen to the recording at his convenience. If engineering development is able to make a practical com- bination of the numerous functions to which radio- and audio-frequency amplifiers can be put in the home, the out- come will be a relatively ex- pensive device suited to agency distribution. Hence we need look not only to the radio industry itself for logical mergers, but to its absorption by or of units in asso- ciated industries such as motion picture cameras and projectors, phonograph recording devices, television, and still picture recording. Roasting Will Do It THE FULL BLOOM of the domestic market for radio receiv- ers awaits the zenith of progress in the development of radio programs. Although motor cars cost ten times as much as radio receivers, six times as many are sold! What are the obstacles in the way of tenfolding the sales of radio sets? Prejudice! Ancient prejudices must be removed! Radio advertising irritants, so harmful to digestion and disposition, must give way to American progress! Broadcast programs must be made safe so that women, children, and even infants can enjoy them without irritation! American intelligence will force the removal of poisonous advertising announce- ments, spelled p-u-t-r-i-d, which are holding back thousands upon thou- sands from joining the great Ameri- can radio family. Roasting will do it! Roasting the greedy advertiser at every turn, by letter to broadcasting stations, to spon- sors, to newspaper and magazine edi- tors, and to dealer outlets, until his blood is boiling in a carefully regulated oven. Roasting will free radio of putrid programs. Whoever you are, listener, dealer, manufacturer, reach for your bitterest Sucky Pipe take a mean swallow, and write your honest opinion of the sponsors who exceed the bounds of propriety. Do your bit to check the verbose and tedious advertising announcements which are holding back the growth of the radio family and reducing the hours radio receivers are be- ing used in every intelligent Ameri- can home! In Spain a government regula- tion prohibits stations from broad- casting more than 100 words of advertising per hour. We hope that American advertisers will learn how to govern themselves properly before a similar regulation becomes necessary in this country. A Lesson for the Radio Industry A LEAF FROM the page of the experience of the automobile industry may well be adopted by radio, especially if the former becomes a factor in radio receiver distribution. Motor car manufacturers take their dealers into their confi- dence. They assure the stability of their market by giving the dealer definite warning of changes in models and giving him full opportunity to unload. The automobile manufacturer shares some of the losses occasioned by the introduction of new models by paying a bonus based on the number of cars sold and in other ways. Few automobile dealers have old models two or three months after the introduction of new models. Another item of sales policy which the decentralized radio industry cannot yet adopt is the automotive industry's method of assigning definite sales quotas to definite terri- tories, thus eliminating order takers from automotive distri- bution. Also, one need hardly do more than privately whisper an expression of dissatisfaction with one's motor car to bring about visits from half a dozen dealers representing as many makes in a given territory. The radio dealer is still waiting behind his counter for the purchaser to come in and lay! down his money. If a receiver distribution franchise were valuable, the dealer would have incentive to reach his quota and this could be accomplished only by going aggressively after business.—E. H. F. • DECEMBER 1929 • 91