I just noticed that CNN is offering Podcasts, and of course the new iTunes Podcast directory offers many more of commercial type podcasts. So not that I ever really believed that Podcasting was really the new pirate radio, but what happens to the format when the market becomes so saturated this quickly? D’Arcy Norman certainly begins to ask the right questions about the relevance of multiple iPod directories, but I guess I am thinking even beyond this … the old question … what happens when ‘x’ becomes too commercial?
I know this question has been asked before re: blogging and RSS, however, in my opinion, listening to a podcast, due to the audio format, requires much more attention and time from me than it takes from scanning through my RSS feeds, looking for what catches my eye. If Goldhaber was correct in his classic article, “The Attention Economy and the Net“, it would seem to me that Podcasting in its current incarnation as an attention-heavy format may still be at a long-term disadvantage. I’m not writing off the format, however, but I certainly see some major changes necessary in the short term.
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It could be something as simple as a fast-play mode, where you can play the audio at 2x or 3x or 4x without smurferation. Newer iPods support this for audiobooks, and I’d guess it would certainly help cut down on the time commitment required by audio content.
In addition, better intra-audio navigation would be good. The new chapters feature in the last rev. of iPods is pretty cool, and might help there. I just have to buy a new iPod :-)
That was likely the quickest reply to a ping ever! Thanks for your thoughts … thats’ sort of what I am getting at … ffwd, chaptering, random access … this would make the format, to me and likely others, much more usable..