Corporation Spotlight: EVE Radio - Is the beloved station at risk?
EVE Radio isn’t your average corporation; they are the corporation for the DJs and management of one of the largest online gaming radio stations in New Eden - a radio station that was on the verge of closure just months ago. We asked DJ Accy, the Station Manager for EVE Radio about the recent shutdown scare.
DJ Accy confirmed the rumors about the demise of EVE Radio weren't exaggerated; “It is true. We were behind on donations for July... We have seen ever decreasing numbers due to competition of other media sources... and as a consequence we were suffering badly.”
He went on to say that, “EVE Radio is safe for now, we are up to date, have covered October's donations and listener figures have increased from a poor summer. This is in no small part to the work of some very dedicated DJs.”
DJ Accy even had a ‘shaving incident’, which in his own words may have helped in the summer. DJ Accy explained that he “got laughed at for weeks for shaving my eyebrows, beard etc live on Twitch and on Eve Radio but not with water no, that would be too easy. I used Jack Daniel's honey as it was a listener request.” We asked him if this was a drastic measure taken to keep EVE Radio alive. He prefered to think of it as “more of a labour of love”, but conceded that “it was an....unusual....move.”
MrBlades, who is officially the network director, took a few minutes out of his busy schedule to reminisce about the humble beginnings of Eve Radio; “Mostly, I remember fondly how back in those early years listeners didn't get offended by every little thing which is hard to get away with in this day and age. Back in 2003 is was about having fun with players, devs and ISD volunteers on the radio, which for the most part was a fairly fresh way of interacting with a game back then. It grew very quickly from those humble beginnings and became serious business by the last quarter of the year when we setup a full time schedule and automation running in the off times. That's when it went from a couple of dozen regulars to hundreds overnight. I'm talking listeners of course, not staff. Although we've had hundreds of those over the years too.”
Many of the team at EVE Radio have fond memories of the past. The fondest for DJ Accy being the PLEX for GOOD (Phillipines) he explained that; “this was a collaboration between many DJs where we raised circa 18b ISK for the appeal.” When we asked DJ Yumene the same question, he replied “I think one of my good memories has to be during one of our mining ops we had with the listeners. I think it was the second one? I had kept saying that I wanted to fill this can before the noctis took it. It was some kind of goal ... I was tired. But one of the listeners found it funny to keep filling the can while I had stepped away for a quick second. I came back, saw my can filled and then everyone just started laughing at me because I was there trying to figure out who filled my can! I think this was a moment you had to be there to get it.”
EVE Radio has a new direction in its future. When asked about the future for EVE Radio both DJ Accy and DJ Yumene explained that they “do have plans. due to the changing nature of gaming, we are expanding from plain ole' EVE Radio and we are becoming something bigger. This is due to the number of players who have enjoyed Eve then moved on and play other games now. We want to help cater to all of them. We present: www.gamingnow.net Gaming Now is the new project that we have been working on that will be the new home for EVE Radio in the future. Right now it's still in beta, but we are also going to be working on video streaming as well in addition to radio. So we are going to be expanding. Call it moving with the times. We want to capitalise on all that is and was good with eve radio, and also move on and incorporate new games.”
The recruitment process is a bit different for EVE Radio. DJ Yumene explained that “The recruitment process usually goes with the initial application that applicants fill out on the recruitment website. From there they get reviewed and assigned to one of the members of the recruitment team for a formal interview where if they pass they move on to the testing phase where they have to show their knowledge of the software, their skills, and ability to produce quality shows. If they pass at that point then they become a probationary DJ.”
The EVE Radio team has plans for some upcoming events particularly on the run up to the holiday season. These include a Serpentis dreadnought giveaway on November 11th ( USA Veterans Day) and the annual pre-Christmas (dates to be confirmed) “Christmas Comes Early” event with organisers aiming for 40b ISK in giveaways.