What's the business model (/motivation) for RadioDJ?

[catalyst]

Hi -

Does anybody know what the business model is for RadioDJ, given that it is provided for free?

The old saying goes "If you're not paying, you're the product."  So, how is/are the author/s making benefit from providing this for free?

Sometimes providers of "free" compiled binaries make money via support. But that doesn't appear to even be offered at RadioDJ.ro

So, if we aren't paying, and it's not obvious what the motivation of the author(s) is (/are), are RadioDJ users "the product" in some way?  E.g. is there info returned to RadioDJ.ro about media or application use? Or is the provider selling info about RadioDJ users as advertising leads? Or, are users mining crypto for the author?  Has anybody done any sleuthing / network sniffing to see what info is sent by the RadioDJ software to other internet hosts (e.g. usage info, or crypto results, or ...)?

And, who can make a definitive statement about this that can be trusted?

I might understand a claim of "merely for the benefit of users" if the application were open source. It's not open source, that I can see.  Open source coders have a clear motivation: They all want to benefit from community contributions. I'm quite clear on the benefits; I've started two open source projects, and started a large company to provide enterprise products around an open source product (Acquia/Drupal).

I'm fairly hesitant to consider this until I know why the authors are providing this for free.  And if the answer is "for the mere benefit of users", why not make the entire application open source, so the motivations are demonstrable?

[Vanlen]

Um, Donations were made in the early days.  There will be a paid version with more features in the future.   Don't really understand your narrative mate. But hey Merry Christmas.

[catalyst]

My suspicion level about free software is MUCH higher than it was in prior years.

I used to simply be grateful for all the freeware (or shareware, or trial ware, or ...) available.  But now, we are all hearing more frequently that that freeware is monetizing me us ways we might not prefer.

In my case, I'm evaluating RadioDJ vs. SAM to launch a new station. If I'm going to make a bet on a piece of software to build a station on, I want to know what I'm getting into.

• SAM. I know how I'm "paying" - I'm buying a license.
• RadioDJ. It's not clear what the real cost is to me. I want to know how I'm "paying" - because I bet I'm paying one way or another.

Even though there are functional / product differences, that's not all one should consider.  I might rather pay for SAM because I know how I'm being monetized, because it's not clear with RadioDJ. But if somebody trustworthy can tell me what the payoff is for RadioDJ, and if I'm ok with it, I might rather that route.

So, in light of modern times, this is a reasonable question.

[Vanlen]

Okay, I see.
Well I've been using RadioDJ since version 1.60 in 2011ish and is great for my needs. I looked at the software you mentioned but too many problems and bugs from a paid software and terrible support. 
Your mileage may vary.  So give RadioDJ a try, support is great and you can decide from there.

Cheers

[ghm72]

Marius has said on several occasions that RadioDJ will never be open source.

RadioDJ. It's not clear what the real cost is to me. I want to know how I'm "paying" - because I bet I'm paying one way or another.

I've used RadioDJ 9 years now and I've only ever had to pay for stuff like streaming servers and of course the electric to run the computers.

There are no nasty surprises with RadioDJ (So you have to use an external/stand alone encoder) but that shouldn't be an issue

You really want to know how bad SAM can be then feel free to search my blog for several reasons why.

So, if we aren't paying, and it's not obvious what the motivation of the author(s) is (/are), are RadioDJ users "the product" in some way?  E.g. is there info returned to RadioDJ.ro about media or application use? Or is the provider selling info about RadioDJ users as advertising leads? Or, are users mining crypto for the author?  Has anybody done any sleuthing / network sniffing to see what info is sent by the RadioDJ software to other internet hosts (e.g. usage info, or crypto results, or ...)?

There are no crypto mining or other variants of spyware or viruses in the program, Sometimes AV software can throw up false/positives when it comes to some of the code within RadioDJ but there never has been a virus in the software and after 9 years IF there ever had been anything to worry about with the software then I'd have stopped using it a long time ago.

I get it you have genuine concerns but take it from someone who knows RadioDJ is the BEST choice you will make when it comes to radio automation it just works.

[Chip Douglas Mosley]

Here's my two-cents...RadioDJ is a great program. I've worked with commercially produced automation hardware and software and can do a lot more with RDJ than I could with some of those systems. The price is right...the group support is great...and you can get some great ideas from the other people on the board, which is more than I can say for SAM. After what I've seen with the free version, I'd be willing to pay for any expanded version that Marius wants to release. And I can ask Marius about the program...can you do that with SAM?

I'm just a hobbyist, but as a 40-year radio veteran, I tell everyone that I use RDJ...Proudly!

[Capt_Fuzzy]

I've used RadioDJ as a hobbyist now for a while and as Chip Douglas said, it's exactly what it claims to be.
There are no "hidden costs" to using it what so ever.

The only money that I've sort of spent on it was for hardware, stuff like a mixer, mics, cables, that sort of thing, but not one red cent on the software itself.
There's no catch, none what so ever.

[xanaftp]

As a station who used to use SAM Broadcaster, please avoid SAM Broadcaster at all costs. It appears to be a great program with much flexibility, especially when it comes to automation (PAL scripts) and audio (live audio processing and many effects). And while that's true, SAM comes with its fatal flaws.

• User support is terrible. At one point, we filed a bug report and got no response from them for over 3 months. The bug got so bad we couldn't use the software anymore and went to RadioDJ.
• The program is always unstable. We've had numerous bugs, program freeze-ups, crashes, audio drop-outs, and so on. SAM should not be relied on for professional radio stations.
• PAL scripting, if you make a mistake, can freeze the entire program. They don't put catches in there to break infinite loops and anything that would cause instability in the application. And as a coder, it's easy to accidentally make an infinite loop in PAL scripts and cause a complete program hang-up.

However, RadioDJ may or may not meet your needs. Remember, it is closed source, so you don't have much flexibility when it comes to RadioDJ, unless you conform to the developer's SDK and make some RadioDJ plugins (I don't think it's ready for v2 yet, someone correct me if I'm wrong). We use RadioDJ now, but RadioDJ alone does not suit our needs. Thankfully, Marius has developed the REST server plugin, which allows controlling of RadioDJ remotely over HTTP. I've developed a separate Node.js server to work with RadioDJ and give us the additional tools we need that RadioDJ does not provide, such as a track request system web interface, visitor/DJ chatting, Google Calendar automation / integration, management of now playing metadata, show logging, system checking, automatic failsafes, silence detection, etc.

I would highly advise looking at additional options. Don't limit your research to just 2 applications. Consider checking out other systems too, such as DRS,Wide Orbit, DAD, Sourcefabric Airtime, PlayitLive, and so on. See what meets your needs and your budget most.

RadioDJ is freaking awesome though in terms of it being a free automation system. It has all you need to start an internet radio station. And the application is surprisingly very stable. Our computer crashes more often than RadioDJ does.

[djclewes]

Sam you pay for.
Radio dj is free.

Been has radio dj is free would it not be easier to install it and see the benefits for your self and do the same with sam trial. Not everyone does things for profit but more the fun or has a hobbie.

[JoshTheRadioDude]

I have to second xanaftp's comments here.  You do NOT want to use SAM.  It's the ENCO DAD of hobbycasting (and if you're at all familiar with commercial automation systems, you know why that's a bad thing).  It will consume far too much time in your life and never perform the way you need it to.

[bazclack]

7 years down the line. Never had a problem with Radio DJ. Never looked elsewhere for a replacement. Out of respect for the developer we will be buying the paid version but doubt we'll need more than the free one. If you're concerned about free software, look at audacity. Everyone uses it, costs nothing!