Datasort

There's a new currency in radio - 'connected listening'.  Last week, in the gap left by the missing RAJAR figures, many commercial radio operators shared big numbers from their own servers - adding up the number and duration of connections made online, for live-streaming, or catch-up/on demand, or podcast downloads. 

Radio Today has many of the details. Mike Hill, running the industry-wide RadioPlayer says he has lots of info but is only prepared to share 'general trends'.  The BBC, which used to regularly publish charts and tables of such info for the Radio iPlayer, is more reticent about the detail undoubtedly provided internally from BBC Sounds. Two years ago, James Purnell called on the radio industry to construct an agreed podcast chart - surely it's time for a bigger initiative ?