Content on Demand now in production. A year after learning that ACI Radio was experimenting with the AI-based content creation system “Content on Demand,” we spoke again with Piermattia Fioravanti Cinci Agricola to see how things were progressing. Unexpectedly, we uncovered a completely unrelated issue linked to DAB, which we consider highly important.

ACI’s Radios

On Thursday, September 5th, we contacted Piermattia Fioravanti, Business Development Manager at ACI Informobility, to get an update on their Content on Demand trial.

The interview was more than interesting on the subject in question. But then, we asked a few questions related to our roundtable discussion on the difficulties of listening to the radio while driving in the era of “dashboards” managed by car manufacturers… and Piermattia added an important piece to the puzzle, specifically regarding the attribution of PI codes, highlighting an issue we hadn’t encountered in any press article before.

Too many interesting topics came up, so we decided to split the interview into two parts: today we publish the part concerning Content on Demand, and in two days, we will release ACI’s testimony regarding PI codes and the Automotive issue.

ACI Radio Today

FM-world (M.H.B.): Twelve months (and six days) have passed since our last interview. What has been the evolution of your radio over this year?

Piermattia Fioravanti: We have tried to refine the content and improve the schedule. We changed a few presenters, choosing those who better fit the tone of the station. So, we made some adjustments, but no major upheavals. We still hold the same communication ideas.

And above all, we have enriched the content dedicated to the automotive world. In short, we remain aligned with our initial goal and with what ACI does.

FM-world (M.H.B.): There are also now studios in Milan, as I heard on air.

Answer: Yes, we have studios both in Rome and Milan. The ones in Milan are not owned by us, while those in Rome are, and we have presenters in both cities. This allows us to engage guests from both metropolises. These are two important hubs from a mobility perspective—think about the proximity to Monza—and with so many production companies.

One Publisher, Two Radios

FM-world (M.H.B.): In two words, what differentiates your two radios?

P.F.: They are two very different things. Luceverde is a traffic information radio, closely tied to mobility, providing traffic updates. ACI Radio, on the other hand, covers mobility 360 degrees. So yes, we provide traffic information, but we also talk about alternative mobility, regulations, Formula 1, minor sports, and safety.

Content on Demand

FM-world (M.H.B.): You previously mentioned your use of Content on Demand (COD), which I believe was already in beta testing…

P.F.: Exactly. We use COD for the infomobility news on Luceverde Radio.

The workflow is as follows: the basis is the editorial content created by our editors, the ones who write the pieces we want to broadcast. Then, we input them into COD, which adds pre-roll and post-roll, corrects any errors, and creates the audio part.

FM-world (M.H.B.): Does COD also automatically integrate the contributions into the broadcast system?

P.F.: No, that phase is still done manually, but we are, of course, moving toward automation.

Formula 1 and Jubilee

FM-world (M.H.B.): Other uses?

P.F.: Yes, a crucial one: creating content in other languages. It was essential during the Monza GP and will be again for the Jubilee.

In this case, we took the Italian content, had it translated by the platform using its artificial intelligence, and then had it “voiced” by one of the many available voices, which we selected.

FM-world (M.H.B.): Do you consider yourself in the experimental phase or in production?

P.F.: Production, production. What I’ve told you is in production. But we are also experimenting, as we aim to create news bulletins starting from basic news.

Let me explain: if today COD voices the exact content created by editors in Italian, tomorrow it will generate additional content based on simple agency news. A way to increase productivity, so to speak. Or perhaps to generate more content with the same number of collaborators. We must also remember that the traditional process often involves errors, which this automated workflow allows us to avoid. (M.H.B. for FM-world)