iHeartRadio slips local news into streams, hopefully without the used car ads
The advent of internet radio let many of us tune into music we never would have heard without packing our bags for a trip. However, it often keeps us isolated from events just outside our door -- a disconnect that Clear Channel wants to end through its newly launched Add-Ins for iHeartRadio streams. Check the right boxes and hourly local news, traffic and weather will appear between tracks, whether for the nearest city or a manually chosen favorite. Add-Ins don't have much mystery involved as a result, but they could keep us grounded in the real world... minus some of the all-too-real commercials.
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iHeartRadio Introduces Local News, Traffic and Weather "Add-Ins" to Its Custom Stations
"Add-Ins" To Offer Users More Convenience and Control Over Their Personalized iHeartRadio Listening Experience
AUSTIN, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--iHeartRadio, Clear Channel's all-in-one digital radio service, today announced Add-Ins, a new feature of its Custom Stations, which will offer users more convenience and control over their personalized digital listening experience. Beginning today, the new "Add-Ins" feature will enable iHeartRadio listeners to insert short local news, weather and traffic updates into their Custom Stations when listening online.
iHeartRadio, which provides instant access to more than 1,500 of the nation's most popular live broadcast and digital-only radio stations from across the country, plus Custom Stations inspired by favorite artists and songs, will now offer a geo-targeted news and information experience. "Add-Ins" brings another level of personalization to listeners' Custom Stations by allowing users to add local news, traffic and/or weather via regular updates into the listening experience. This new feature will leverage Clear Channel's extensive national network of more than 850 stations in 150 markets and utilize its unmatched radio resources to provide listeners with a custom experience they can't find anywhere else. iHeartRadio's ability to utilize Clear Channel's broadcast resources allows users to receive localized information based on their current location or choose to receive updates from hundreds of markets across the country while listening to the music they love. Once enabled in Account Settings, "Add-Ins" will automatically pinpoint the listener's location -- or users can set an alternate location by entering a zip code under the manual "Add-Ins" settings.
"Clear Channel's best-in-class infrastructure and local content resources now allow iHeartRadio users to get timely local updates in a way no other digital radio service can replicate," said Brian Lakamp, President of Digital, Clear Channel Media and Entertainment. "With iHeartRadio's new 'Add-Ins' feature, listeners can choose to stay connected to their hometown, get easy updates on their work commute and know whether or not they should take an umbrella when they leave the house."
Add-Ins is now available on iHeartRadio.com, with iPhone, Android and other platforms coming soon.
iHeartRadio is the fastest digital service to reach 20 million registered users in internet history - and registered users are only a percentage of iHeartRadio's overall listeners, since registration is only required for the Custom Station feature. iHeartRadio continues to be the No. 1 digital radio service and also includes a number of other groups such as Univision, Cumulus, Greater Media stations, WNYC, EMF's Contemporary Christian Air1 and KLove stations, college radio, Cox, Emmis, Salem and others. The iHeartRadio app is available across all major platforms including web, mobile, tablets, automotive, television and gaming devices. Visit iHeartRadio.com for the complete list of app availability.
