My Radio

A really good friend of mine is currently in law school. She always talks about how stressful, difficult, and sometimes boring studying law can be. I am currently in the Advanced Entertainment Law course of my Full Sail University curriculum, and while the class work can definitely be challenging, it has been extremely interesting and very helpful!

I recently listened to the following law focused podcasts:

In the following paragraphs I am going to summarize these podcasts as well as explain how they can be applied directly to both the entertainment industry as a whole, and to my future business venture, Moguls in the Making.

This podcast hosted by Gordon Firemark and Tamara Bennett actually discussed several different legal cases within the entertainment industry that are currently being debated. One of my favorites within this podcast is the case between Victor Witmill and Warner Brothers. Witmill is currently suing Warner Brothers for the use of his tattoo design in the move The Hangover 2. Witmill designed the tattoo that is currently displayed on the face of Mike Tyson, and in The Hangover 2, the same type of design was placed on the face of one of the actors. This case stresses the importance of “dotting your i’s and crossing your t’s.” When I first heard of this case a few weeks ago my initial thought was “who is the one responsible for not putting this task on the checklist.” With major productions like film, it is very important to make sure that all legal issues are addressed and corrected before the film is released. My opinion here is that Witmill is just looking to earn a quick buck by making sure a hassle out of it, but at the same time, he may just be entitled to receive a monetary settlement for his work even though he did not copyright it within the appropriate time frame. In week one of our class we had to create an IP checklist for our business plans. After learning more about this case, I have been able to think of and add many more legal items to my IP checklist that I need to make sure are taken care of before my business goes live.

In this podcast, Anup Malani and Jonathan Masur discussed how the pricing of your innovations and its patents directly relate to one another. During my studies for my bachelor’s degree I took 2 or 3 economics class, therefore their reference to profits, demand curves, and surplus really resonated with me. One term that they used a lot was “patent pools”. Malani and Masur taught me that patent pools allow you to partake in two part pricing when registering patents which gives you the opportunity to buy a bundle of patents (or any other product or service for that matter) for flat rate, and then pay per patent for additional ones that supersede that amount in your bundle. When starting up my non-profit organization, I will be able to use this theory when it comes to applying patents to innovations that my employees, my students, or me come up with. It will allow us to remain creative without the worry of our competition stealing our ideas.

This podcast was my favorite of them all! It gave me a new respect for TMZ. Yes, TMZ the celebrity gossip TV show and website! Did you know that Harvey Levin, the creator and executive producer of TMZ is a lawyer? He went to the University of Chicago Law School. I was extremely shocked to learn this information. Throughout the podcast he discussed the importance of maintaining a line of privacy with celebrities and their personal lives. Now this may seem like an oxymoron due to the fact that all TMZ does is dive right into the personal lives of celebrities, but he gave several examples of how he chose not to publicize certain information that TMZ received about celebrities. This goes to show that even people whose explicit jobs are to report celebrity gossip still know how to maintain a level of professional and ethical behavior. My goal for Moguls in the Making is to have celebrities come in to mentor and teach my students. We all know that some celebrity lifestyles are not all rated PG13, but it is my job to make sure that my students know how to properly handle situations if they see a celebrity partaking in an act that they know is not right. It is not the job of the student to spread rumor or gossip, but they should know that the faculty is the place to vent about issues or things that they see and that when they talk about it with the faculty it is left there and not discussed anywhere else. This will build up a strong positive conscience and set of morals within my students that allows them to behave professionally in any situation.

The links to the podcasts that I listened to can be found below.

Tough Cookies and Heart Attacks

The True Cost of Patents

Privacy and the Media

Happy Listening!!

~*Love, Peace, & Radio*~

There are several different components that make up the Moguls in the Making program: music, art, journalism, dance, mentoring, etc. Because of this, there are several different ways that intellectual property can affect the way I, as well as my future students, currently and will in the future, conduct business.

Below I am going to discuss three separate occurrences that somehow involves intellectual property as well as relates to Moguls in the Making and the outcome of the services that the program provides.

Just recently Beyonce executed a perfect and extremely memorable performance at the Billboard awards. Some are speculating that she stole this performance from Lorella Cuccarini, an Italian pop singer who performed a similar dance sequence in 2010. The funny thing to me is that out of all of the people that are claiming Beyonce “stole” this performance, the actual singer that Beyonce got her inspiration from has no problem with it. I do think that stealing someone’s artistic expression in the form of dance can be seen as an issue of intellectual property, but if the artist has no problem with it I don’t see an issue.

This to me is unacceptable. Teachers, mentors, and professors always teach their students that plagiarism is never tolerated. Therefore, for a teacher to go and steal the exact words of his own students irritates me. In the article the teacher tries to explain that his plagiarism was unintentional, but I find that very hard to believe. This just goes to show that no matter where you are in life and who you come in contact with you always have to stay sharp and on your toes. I plan to make sure that my students know how to stay always stay on guard, but know how to properly work with people at the same time.

This instance shows complete infringement of intellectual property. PETA should have asked permission before deeming authority over parts of this film-maker’s art. It was said in the article that the film maker probably would not have granted them access to the film, but nonetheless, PETA should have followed the appropriate legal procedures to make sure this situation was handled correctly.

Me: How involved are you with negotiations in your everyday job?

Barbeth: I negotiate just about every day. I am a Senior Account Executive for two radio stations in Phoenix, Arizona.

Me: How long have you been in radio sales?

Barbeth: About 25 years.

Me: Who do you negotiate with and what are you typically negotiating about?

Barbeth: I negotiate with owners of small to medium sized businesses. Most of the time we negotiate about how much their they will pay the radio station for the advertising they do with us. The business owners, of course, want the loswet rate possible, or free, but it is my job to get them to understand the value of their advertising and accept a higher rate. 

Me: What do you say to them to get to them to understand the value?

Barbeth: I tailor the benefits of our station to meet the needs of their specific business. Once they see that their advertisements with us can bring more customers into the business they feel more comfortable with spending money with me. 

Me: Do you ever have to use objective criteria as well as specifics about their business to convince them to buy?

Barbeth: Yes, all the time. I use past successes that I have had with other clients to prove to them that radio works. There is also software that I use such as Arbitron, Media Monitors, and Xray that allow me to pull reports that show how much money is currently being spent in radio by business owners. This allows my client to realize that it must work since other people are spending so much money in this area. 

Me: With negotiations, conversations can sometimes get a little intense, how do you deal with negativity from the client?

Barbeth: When you are asking someone to spend money things can definitely escalate pretty quickly. I try my hardest to remain calm because at the end of the day I want this person to spend money with me. I re-assure the client that I appreciate his passion and his time but that there are certain rates that I must stick to. I let them know how successful radio advertising is and try to add other things into the deal to convince him to buy. Adding in free stuff usually always works and calms them down.

Me: How do you use your leverage and power to benefit you in your negotiations?

Barbeth: The thing to always realize about sales is that as a seller you have what your client needs and wants. As long as you always realize this than you will always win. My leverage is my knowledge about radio and knowing that it can increase their business. My power in the negotiation starts with the very first conversation. If I say that I am going to do something I always do it, and if I tell him I won’t give my client a discount unless they purchase more than I stick to my word. In the radio industry it is all about showing the value of your station, and not diminishing that value but just giving everything away for free. If you make it a habit of making exceptions they will expect that every time and not spend as much money with you as they could. 

Me: Thank you Barbeth for taking time to chat with me!

Barbeth: You are very welcome!

I don’t think I have shared this with you guys yet, but I absolutely adore Beyonce! I know you are thinking “of course you do, who doesn’t?” But, I have been a loyal fan since her “No, No, No” days with Destiny’s Child. This week in class we have been discussion Artist and Product Management and the link between the two. Last year Beyonce came out with her first fragrance called “Heat” (and by the way I am already on bottle number 3). According to the NY Daily News, this product had $3 million dollars in sales during its first month on the shelves. On the very first day of its launch Beyonce visited a Macy’s to promote Heat and promoted the sell of 72,000 bottles.

Beyonce is definitely a super-celebrity, so this already gives her the upper-hand in being able to produce a high volume of sales, but I also think the success of her marketing and advertising strategies helped in this as well. Heat is only sold at Macy’s. This provides exclusivity for Macy’s and gives them the opportunity to brand themselves with this opportunity, as well as provide additional marketing and advertising avenues for the new fragrance. This marketing strategy also shows loyalty through Beyonce’s brand name. It shows that she is not out just to make millions upon millions of dollars, but to also build partnerships and trust through both her buyers and her fans.

Many celebrities have launched perfumes in the past, but no one has seen fragrance numbers like Beyonce’s Heat has. According to figures from research firm NPD group, in 2008, the average celebrity fragrance generated only $2.5 million in the first year. As I stated earlier, Heat generated over $3 million in just the first month!

I will be adding to this number in the next week because as I look over at my vanity table my Heat bottle is almost empty. I will soon be out to purchase bottle number three! If you haven’t had the opportunity to smell it go out to Macy’s and take a whiff. It’s mixture of floral and vanilla is to die for.

For the last couple of weeks in class we have been discussing product and artist management. Since I currently work in radio, I began to think of radio as a product in its own as well as how and why it has seen so many changes throughout the past twenty to thirty years. I came across a video on YouTube that hosts a handful of radio professionals giving their opinion on the current status of the radio industry, and responding to the title of the video, which is “Why The Radio and Music Industry Sucks Nowadays.” I have worked in radio for only 8 short months, but in this time I have become quite fond of my job and the work that I put in everyday. The stories that I have heard from veteran radio executives have had me wishing that I was around for what everyone seems to call the “good ‘ole days.” I have heard stories of account managers making well over six figures by hardly having to even work for the money. Granted, the fall of the radio industry is heavily dependent on the fall of the economy and the lack of funds that businesses now have to invest in advertising, but I’m sure I would have had a great time back in the late ‘70s and early ‘80s when everyone had the big bucks to spend.

Ok, back to the video. I found it very interesting that some of the main points that were brought up in the video directly parallel some of the things that I have heard people recently say about why the radio industry is not what it used to be. Three main points that I took from the video are as follows:

As you can see, besides our economy being in a not so great state right now, the radio and music industry has several other factors working against it. I know that I started working in radio because I have a love and desire for music. Hopefully, more people will start to work in this industry for the same reasons as me, and not just for a paycheck; only time will tell. The question I will continue to ask myself and my co-workers is ….WHAT CAN WE DO TO CHANGE IT?!!??! I want to do two things while building my career path. 1) Make a LOT of money 2) Have Fun While Doing It!

I am absolutely in love with iHeartRadio! If you haven’t heard of it then you should definitely head over to iHeartRadio.com to learn more, or just continue reading and I will tell you all about it!

iHeartRadio was created by ClearChannel Communications in 2010. It gives listeners the opportunity to tune in to over 750 radio stations across the country. It has two different avenues of listening; online and on your mobile device. If you are at your computer you can easily log on to iheartradio.com and find your favorite radio stations or you also have the convenience of downloading to iHeartRadio application to your mobile phone for a very convenient way to listen to those stations while you are on the go.

The think I really like about iHeartRadio is that it gives you the opportunity to listen to radio stations from your hometown, places you used to live or have visited, or just explore new types of music and stations from places you have never been. It allows for an immense amount of culture to be learned right at the tips of your fingers.

iHeartRadio also hosts tons of contests for their listeners to get involved in. They want to make sure, as any other company, that their listeners stay engaged and continue using their apps and online features from a day-to-day basis. Since there are active listeners/consumers tuned in every hour of the day, there are also opportunities for business to come in and advertise their products. With any radio station, this is how the majority of their revenue is raised, through advertising.

So, if you would like a new music experience, try out iHeartRadio. It is amazing. Go to iHeartRadio.com and check to see if there is an application to download to the cell phone you have!

~*Love, Peace, & Radio*~

I absolutely love it when I hear of stories about companies showing their philanthropy efforts through giving back to the local communities. I think it shows a huge amount of gratitude and humility through not only the employees executing on the task, but also the leaders of the company. Good or bad attributes of a company always flow from the readers. I follow ClearChannel on Twitter, and they recently posted a story from the “Local Spirit” sector of the company website. The article was titled “Clear Channel Radio Rochester Breaks Records for Toys for Tots.” The article talks about how every year the local ClearChannel radio stations in Rochester, Minnesota participate in the Toys for Tots toy drive for the Christmas season, but according to ClearChannel.com this year they broke a regional record and  “23,432 toys were raised and distributed to 12,002 kids in southeastern Minnesota.  300 toys were specifically donated to families suffering the loss of their homes in the fall floods of 2010 (2010).”