MUSCAT: Elie Azar is a Lebanese software engineer in the United States who has been making waves in the online Arab radio scene through “Radiorama Online” a Lebanese and Arabic Music radio, which was voted the best Internet Radio Station by Abu Dhabi TV in 2003.
Broadcasting from Salt Lake City, Utah, the online radio station and its Lebanese creator are attracting music lovers from all over the Arab and Islamic world.
The show is the result of the individual initiative and hard work of Azar; who started his radio career in Lebanon at the age of 15!
“I started my radio journey at Radio Capitole in Lebanon when I was only 15. Last summer, Radiorama Online was voted as the best Internet Arabic radio station on the Click Show hosted on Abu Dhabi TV. I flew there for a live interview on the click show with Toufic Gebran.
We are now the most listened to Internet Arabic radio (combining both of our channels),” he says proudly. “Technology is helping new generation media ventures such as, Radiorama Online, to achieve their goal of reaching every corner on this planet.”
“We broadcast in two different bandwidths, 24 kbps and 56 kbps to accommodate modem and broad band listeners. We are broadcasting live and the radio provides an automated request and dedication service that is available 24 hours a day,” he added.
The online radio expert has ambitious development plans for the near future. “Our future plan is to keep up with the latest technology so that we can keep up with the radio revolution and be able to be listened to in the car. Very soon, we will be recruiting DJs from all over the world and allow them to run live shows from wherever they are.”
“We started only in August 2000 and at present we have listeners from all over the world, Azar said in an exclusive interview with The Daily Star.
Azar is likely to be a budding media tycoon who can make strong waves in the new generation of Internet radio stations that have mushroomed in different parts of the world.
Born and raised in Lebanon, Azar  came to the US in 1994 to attended college. A graduate in computer engineering from the University of Utah in 1997, he is currently the director of a local software development company in the US.
While his parents still live in Lebanon, the radio star has been busy building an Internet radio, Radiorama Online (http://www.radioramaonline.com) which has gained much popularity among the Lebanese community in the US and other parts of the world.
“There is no capital investment required for running an Internet radio station. It is a personal effort and I pay all the costs. The radio is not making any revenues at this time due to some restrictions on the license we are operating with. We are currently seeking sponsors to help transform radioramaonline into a commercial business,” he said.
“It is unfortunate that several radio stations were forced to shut down in the 1990s due to new governmental regulations. I believe that Voice of Lebanon is the most popular news radio in Lebanon. What inspired me to start this new venture, is my love for broadcasting since I was a kid. I started my own neighborhood radio as a hobby with the help of my father at the age of 15. A year later, I joined Radio Capitole, one of the top FM stations,” he recollects.
“Yes, some of the startup Internet radio stations have closed down due to financial constraints. It is very expensive to operate especially from the US since we have to pay copyright fees for the songs we play in addition to the bandwidth fees. These facts make the cost of broadcasting too high and poses a lot of constraints on how we can operate and whether we can play advertising ads or not,” he revealed.
“It all depends on the broadcasting package that we can afford to subscribe to,” he added.
However, the online radio station has wide reach among the overseas Lebanese community.
“The feedback we get from the overseas Lebanese community is amazing. It is the real fuel that keeps this radio going. We have posted many listener comments on our web sites. The most common feedback that we get is that we remind people of their homeland and make them feel less homesick,” he said.