MUMBAI: Radio, being one of the oldest forms of communication has stood tall amidst evolving technology and social media presence in terms of its relevance. Today it’s World Radio day and we remember the medium while speaking to BIG FM Country Head – Product, Marketing and Thwink BIG Sunil Kumaran who highlighted on where the future of radio would lie upon.

“The radio business is evolving into an ‘audio’ business and would follow the consumer. Content across the world is more accessible and an individual today has a plethora of options to consume entertainment based on their areas of interest. Radio, as a medium, has overcome challenges by keeping up with the changing technology and reinventing itself by adopting a platform-agnostic approach and making content accessible on the radio as well as digital platforms. With the onus on the entire media and entertainment sector in India being towards increasing localization, there lies an interesting time for the radio industry ahead with the increasing relevance of local and hyper-local reach, growth of programmatic content and how the digital ecosystem is driving distribution across multiple platforms.

He further added, “While the medium has successfully managed to keep its originality over a period of time, what has still kept it relevant in the age of the internet is the localized flavor of conversations, chat shows, quizzes, and audience interaction. Not only this but leveraging the medium different RJs and celebs have now built their own brand, fan following and have given millions of listeners something to look forward to every day. While reflecting the true philosophy of the medium, major players of the FM radio industry has already gone down the digital route. By allowing listeners to tune-in to their favorite radio shows online, they are expanding their audience, and in the process, offering 360-degree solutions to advertisers.