What is the future for public radio? How will it weather the tides of podcasting and other new forms of competition? Doug Kaye, from IT Conversations, presents his perspectives on the future of public radio.

Doug makes the argument that Public Radio faces the innovator’s dilemma (as described by Clay Christensen from Harvard Business School and my old firm The Boston Consulting Group).

The innovator’s dilemma is the problem faced by established players when an incredibly low cost, poor quality competitor provides content just good enough to capture the low end of the market. Over time, they find ways to improve their product at low costs, and eat away at the established players as the former market leader retreats to more demanding and more profitable market segments. Unfortunately, the new entrant eventually makes product good enough for everyone – and then good night former market leader. It has played itself out in consumer electronics, ram chips, autos, steel and numerous other examples.

Doug makes the case that this may be the situation that traditional radio is faced with. And if radio, reacts like the other industries it will be good night tradional radio.

Read Doug’s article at http://www.blogarithms.com/index.php/archives/2005/08/10/the-future-of-public-radio/trackback/

However, it does not need to be that way. Radio must change and find a way to re-invent itself and leverage podcasting into a tool for growth.
See this post for more perspective http://digitalpodcast.com/podcastnews/index.php/2005/07/13/podcasting_radio_competition_opportunity