This new venture this "Captain" is purported to be starting is getting more elaborate with every comment I get. This new "broadcast source" started out as someone having a pre-subscription list of around 500 members who are content to sit around for MONTHS while this new fangeled THING gets off the ground.
For a while I was convinced that someone was taking advantage of what is out there and getting into mobile new media coverage in much the same manner I did.
Unfortunately like all fish tales, this one seems to be growing from a bait fish to a full blown beluga whale.
IT is time to come to your senses here. It is one thing for a one person one lap top operation to duplicate what I do to having a fleet of fairly new (based on the beat up van wise crack) roaming around the country covering a number of these cases.
I am going to go into just a few of the expenses and problems this new Captain will encounter.
First whatever platform is going to be used, car, van, truck, the procurement and operational costs alone are going to be astronomical, It costs an average of 30 cents per mile EACH to run an average vehicle needed for this purpose, and that is at the cheap end. IF this is going to be a SUSTAINED broadcast, a USED vehicle is out of the question. It is then a NEW vehicle for purchase or LEASE comes into play. You now have a rocket of expenses ready for lift off.
That does NOT include, by the way, the cost of BUYING the thing. Even a used vehicle is not cheap. You need something new enough to stand up to the wear and tear of running around covering these stories. The mileage on the odomoter will pile up FAST, believe me.
Next is insurance. ANY insurance carrier is going to consider this a COMMERCIAL venture. This is NOT private use. Even if it is a non -profit, the term applies. The premiums will be at least DOUBLE the normal driver's insurance. Due to what the insurance carriers call EXPOSURE, they would recommend the kind of coverage I have which raises the premium even more.GOD FORBID THE DRIVERS OF THESE THINGS ARE UNDER25 AND MALE!
Then, guess what? There is the cost of getting the signal on the internet. I accomplished this using Verizon usb modems (I mistakenly called these things aircards) at around $60.00 a piece per month. With that you get around 5-10 hours of continuous airtime before the added charges kick in. I ran up a 700.00 bill after only 3 days at Blanchard and nearly shut down because of it. I was able to negotiate an additional 5gb of airtime with Verizon keeping my total expenses for the service at 125.00 or so.
This still,only gained me another 5-10 hours or so of airtime. Multimedia broadcasts of this nature eats up a lot of bandwidth. Bandwidth costs money, LOTS of it.
This is why the commercial networks use Satellite trucks. They are on the air 24/7 and it is cost effective to them. It also results in BETTER audio/video quality. Most often the signals are split at the studio for feeds over the internet. Most media outlets do NOT have someone sit and transmit ONLY from the internet. It is called cross utilization of assets.
Add to this the fact that the NETWORKS and LARGE MARKET outlets are jumping on the bandwagon. Most new sat trucks are now being retrofitted to do over the air t1 transmissions over the intenet.
CNN has been doing this for years, starting with the Iraq war coverage and they are expanding daily.
There is also the cost of such things as cameras, microphones, the computer, fees and permits (parking) and other minor expenses.
Oh, there are the OTHER minor expenses such as eating and finding a place to sleep, or do the operators of these vehicles plan on sleeping in them and providing their own food. I can only guess that all of these drivers and such are volunteers. I would hate to have to go into the labor laws and expenses. By the way, some states and even the federal government may require WORKMAN'S COMP and other INSURANCE as it relates to operate a fleet.
So, if this fish quits growing and this venture is for real, I am looking forward to see how it is carried out. By the looks of it the Captain may want to stock up on some strong headache medicine. HE/she is going to need LOTS of it.
Stay Tuned.
It looks like 2010 is shaping up to be an interesting year.
MURT
