From Scripting News
on commercialization of podcasting, with extensive quotes from Adam Curry and myself, and not surprisingly, we disagree. Adam says podcasting will kill radio. Nahhh. It’ll become radio and vice versa. Airwaves are just another method of distribution. Same with satellites. What will change is who’s talking and who’s listening.
Now the conversation will flow in all directions, with broadcasters listening to people they used to think of as “audience.” Blogs changed the architecture of written-word-journalism in the same way. The BBC did miss that I did the early podcasts that were the inspiration for Curry and others, and continue to podcast, so it’s not as if I’m on the sidelines, I’m in there, putting my ideas out, and helping inspire others to do the same.
Dave Winer, author of this, and Adam Curry were instrumental in the creation of podcasting. Both have made serious money elsewhere and have put their own money into blogging and podcasting with little chance of breaking even. Winer recently said he was down several million on what he’s put into creating blogs (he also invented blogging) and never expects to see it back. Curry spearheaded podcasting by helping create iPodder and I’m guessing that software didn’t write itself for free, not to mention what it’s costing him to have tens of thousands of people a day download his podcast.
Curry sees podcasting as having commercial possibilities, Winer is disinterested in this, instead focusing on podcasting as a way to get alt views and news out there. For those who bash Curry because he’s “commercial” and now has ads on his podcast, he’s never pretended to be otherwise – and his huge enthusiam, name recognition, and professional experience makes him a great front person for podcasting.