Listeners who are not AOL subscribers can get only two hours per day of free broadcast, through AOL's Radio@Netscape service.
Tom Bartunek, the station's president and general manager, told the Times that the Web feed produced no revenue for the station, and that there were no prospects of it ever doing so. The new agreement means that most of the streaming costs are paid by AOL, and that listeners get a better-quality broadcast.
WQXR had over 100,000 listeners when it was a free broadcast; Bartunek told the paper that the new AOL figures are not yet available.