Abacast Inc.

NextMedia Radio wanted to improve their Internet radio business model and customer experience, while allowing customization for each of their 27 local markets.  Specifically, NextMedia wanted to offer their customers the same local broadcasting and content they are used to, and generate revenue through a custom, ad-supported media player.  Abacast developed customizable players for each online station, complete with unique station branding and ad management, all integrated with Abacast’s unicast and peer-assisted delivery.

The media players have local RSS and weather feeds, synchronized banner ad spots for the title sponsor, station promotion ad spots and the ability for the user to request a song, or in the case of talk radio, send information. Also, the players have menus with links to sample other affiliated stations in the region.  When clicked on, the player transforms into the station selected complete with logo and branding dynamically swapped in.

Behind the scenes, all the players feature Silverlight for cross-platform compatibility, working on Internet Explorer, FireFox, and Safari. The players incorporate video gateway ads or station webcams as well as ad injection to replace terrestrial content. When not showing video, the player window displays a Flash slideshow of station pictures taken to add an element of personalization to the player.

Abacast’s Hybrid CDN Services Selected for NextMedia Radio Group’s 27 Online Stations

NextMedia Radio chooses Abacast citing Abacast’s strong customer service and business model support.

(August 19^th, Camas, WA) Abacast, the industry leader in Hybrid CDN Services, has announced that NextMedia Radio Group has selected Abacast’s Hybrid CDN Service across its 27 stations.  Abacast’s services will be used for hosting, unicast and peer-assisted streaming, ad management and insertion, audience analytics, and user experience presentation. 

NextMedia, a national media company, operates in 12 rated and suburban markets and has an established track record for high levels of customer satisfaction and performance.  Abacast’s end-to-end solution is comprehensive and robust and allows NextMedia  to provide a high quality service for their customers and to do so extremely efficiently.

 “I have found that Abacast has gone above and beyond to earn our business,” said Brian Foster, VP of NTR for Next Media.  “Our customized player started out as a simple sketch on an Excel spreadsheet.  Abacast’s industry knowledge, including revenue optimization and user-experience innovation, enabled them to build a differentiated, world class player that is critical to our online radio business.  They worked very hard to implement every piece of functionality that we dreamed up.  When our radio markets have a question, they usually get a response in the same day.  That is critical to me.”

Abacast’s solution for NextMedia Radio enables an improved Internet radio business model and customer experience, while allowing customization for each local market.  Abacast developed customizable players for each online station, complete with unique station branding and ad management, all integrated with Abacast’s unicast and peer-assisted delivery.

“Our eight years experience serving the radio industry with end to end solutions really came through in working with NextMedia Radio and winning their business,” said Michael King, President of Abacast.  “We’re excited that they chose us, and we’ll continue to try to move the online radio business forward with branding, business model, and delivery innovations.”