New York, NY (Top40 Charts) Westwood One and SoundHound Inc.®, a pioneering company in sound recognition and search technologies, and the makers of popular music and search discovery app, SoundHound, announced SoundHound for Radio, a mobile ad platform designed to give radio stations the ability to interact with listeners, brands, and advertisers. The user-friendly platform is available to stations as of June 15, 2015, and marks the first time that local stations can access this already successful audio platform.
Listeners are increasingly using mobile devices and advertisers are looking for ways to reach them on the go.
Radio reaches 245 million people in the US, or 91.5% of the national population each week. SoundHound has been downloaded by more than 100 million US radio listeners, who habitually identify music from radio. Through SoundHound for Radio, stations can enable their broadcasts to work with the SoundHound app in a new way that gives not only the song information, but also attribution. This drives interaction with the station's own advertising or engagement objectives, such as showcasing their playlists. When the listener "SoundHounds" the station that has implemented SoundHound for Radio, distributed by Westwood One, the results resolve to a branded station page including content, a contest, or coupon engagement opportunities.
Radio now has new reach, display, and interaction opportunities that previously only
Internet radio stations have enjoyed.
Stations have control over creating and managing ad campaigns, all of which can be sponsored, and include graphics, logos, and links to advertisers. SoundHound for
Radio also offers real-time analytics to track campaign results, including the number of clicks to the campaign and how it was shared on social media and other channels.
"SoundHound users have always engaged with radio, and now with the SoundHound for
Radio platform, we have made it possible for stations to keep the connection they have built with listeners. Within the many exciting technologies we have built in-house at SoundHound Inc., we view the ability to identify broadcast as transformative to an entire industry because we have, in essence, made 'radio clickable,'" said Katie McMahon, Vice President and General Manager, SoundHound Inc. "This gives radio the ability to keep engaging with their listeners on mobile, and to monetize that experience. With SoundHound for Radio, we, along with our partners at Westwood One, have just brought AM and FM radio into the mobile era."
"SoundHound for
Radio is an incredible platform for advertisers, allowing them to reach consumers at the tap of a smartphone," said
Millie Mrvica, Westwood One's General Manager, Interactive. "While extending the station's brand, it also extends branding awareness for advertisers and marketers who want to connect with those listeners through the mobile platform."
"As innovators in the audio market, Westwood One saw the potential of both SoundHound's installed user base and the extraordinary technology they build and productize, and set out to transform traditional radio with this offering," said Charles Steinhauer, COO of Westwood One. "Radio offers one of the most compelling advertising mediums, and now with SoundHound for Radio, we provide stations with the tools to deliver not only innovative and compelling programs, but the accountability and transparency of performance which is essential to grow in the digital and mobile world of today and tomorrow."
