Video didn’t kill the radio star…bandwidth did!

By on February 5th, 2010 In Media

I recently read an article about a group of people who have started their own radio station…on the Internet. Among other things the story reported that the group hopes someday to get an FCC license and broadcast over the airwaves. My question is, why bother?

Commercial radio is deader than newspapers. I hardly know anyone who listens to radio anymore, except perhaps to quickly catch the local weather and traffic. They listen to satellite radio. Or they listen to their iPod that is plugged into their car stereo. At home when they want to listen to music they go to their computer and launch iTunes or click over to Pandora or Last.fm. They certainly don’t listen to the radio. I even listen to baseball games on my computer now. In the car I can listen to any baseball game I want, from any city, on XM.

Besides, radio is full of commercials. Who needs that! SiriusXM has more than 150 commercial free stations. Internet radio stations rarely interrupt you for ads.

I think maybe we’re witness to the last few breaths of commercial radio. Or maybe not. Only the shadow knows…

Comments

Deb Krol Says:
February 5th, 2010 at 9:33 am

Oh, Len, Len, Len–you’re a great guy, but so many PR types are so urbanized these days that beyond Loop 202.

Radio won’t go away–radio will never go away, although I’m not so sure about AM–well, even AM is still around. Many communities still rely heavily on radio for their news–ever hear a Suns game broadcast in Navajo on KTNN?

Although non-profit and community radio stations are growing, there’s still lots of room for commercial radio to grow, especially in the rapidly-growing Hispanic market. If people are willing to move into the Hispanic market, that is–there’s huge potential for market growth there for those who know how to work with that market.

In other cities with large immigrant populations, first-language radio is also strong. Not so much here because the major non-English languages are Spanish and Navajo, but there is native language radio opportunity out there.

For what it’s worth though, I do listen to Radio Free Phoenix at times, but Andy Olson has sponsors as well as listener support. So even Net radio is beginning to be commercialized–

If you like commercial-free radio, so be it, but I’ll stick with good old fashioned commercial radio.

Mike Says:
February 5th, 2010 at 10:06 am

Maybe I’m old-fashioned, but I still enjoy commercial radio, and prefer it to CD’s or the iPod for my commute time. I love NPR, and frequently get a laugh from real-live DJ’s on other stations. It also helps me stay “plugged-in” to the real world, however biased or commercialized it may be.

It also feels good to know that I’m not paying exhorbitant monthly subscription fees for my entertainment. No cable TV, no satellite radio. We get great reception for about a dozen TV stations without cable, and so far that’s been enough for us. I’d rather invest the money in my kids.

iTunes is great, but like CD’s, keeps me in my personal bubble, which – I know its hard to believe – gets boring after a while. Pandora is awesome, still free, and a perfect compromise for me.

Peter Faur Says:
February 5th, 2010 at 12:11 pm

Satellite radio isn’t exactly commercial free. Even Howard Stern was still doing commercials last time I listened!

Also, Sirius and XM depend on local radio stations for feeds of baseball/football/basketball games. I suppose they could pick up cable/broadcast TV feeds, if radio dies.

I recently cancelled Sirius because I thought I should connect more with the Phoenix radio market. I’m glad I did. There’s still a lot of local programming, still a lot of irate callers, still a lot of quirky little stations all over the dial.

Jason Meyers Says:
February 5th, 2010 at 4:14 pm

Hi Len:

Now as you know I used to be one of those “air personalities” (Top 40 and R&B/ aka “Kid Corona”…aka “Jason Garrett”…) Y-95, Power92, KZZP, KOOL…and on and on. I worked at all the stations (early 90s) before consolidation hit. Remember Gary Edens and Fred Weber? Ah, the memories…Especially when Y-95 and Power92 were just across the alley from each other in downtown Phoenix; made for some pretty interesting times. It was war.

You can hear me on KKFR circa 1993:
http://airchexx.com/markets/phoenix/kid-corona-on-kkfr-power-92-phoenix-1993

Around 1996, when media went nuts here in Phoenix (all the TV stations switched affiliations and the big radio companies gobbled up all the privately owned stations, I thought about getting out…and I did eventually, working for the Republic and then transitioning into PR, which I now love.

Today, I only listen to commercial radio in the car…mostly KTAR, and my guilty pleasure, MEGA 104.3; maybe because it reminds me of when the music was more fun (although the jocks are not that great (except for Alex…he’s the man. “Awe yeah…c’mon now..on Mega..” ) I know many jocks who never moved on and some have been out of work forever.

I don’t so much miss listening to the radio as I do making great radio. Today, the heart and soul of commercial radio is missing. Give me a few carts, an editing pencil and a reel of tape any day…and I’ll show you how we used to do it right.

-Kid

Ted Anderson Says:
February 5th, 2010 at 5:28 pm

Don’t take this personally, but you’re reading too much media. Have you seen a recent Arbitron or Scarborough report??? WHile there has definitely been an impact by non-radio listenership (ipods, etc). Phoenix radio reaches approx 94% of people 6+ in a given month. Are you reporting values of your clients coverage by news stations such KTAR, if not you should. Their rates/values have almost doubled since Portable People Meters went into affect last year. PPM’s actually showed that there is MORE listers to radio, Not less, they listen to many more stations, and switch around ALOT.
And those are Stats with the largest Hispanic station NOT encoding, therefore not showing up.

Another thing to note, Satellite radio is down over 10% since the merger of XM/Sirius. Satellite is actually hanging by a thread, NOT regular radio.

As they say…The reports of my demise have been greatly exaggerated.

Kevin Curran Says:
February 5th, 2010 at 6:50 pm

I may be biased, but nothing beats radio as a mass medium. It is true that radio is not what it used to be I started my career at the ripe old age of 14.

But radio is still the best method for the immediate dissemination of news, weather and emergency information. As Len points out, nothing beats a ballgame on the radio.

Everyone should be able to remember their favorite DJs and I’m sure hearing certain songs bring back certain memories, happy & sad.

My best Christmas present last year was a wi-fi radio: instant access to my favorite stations in stereo without tying up my computer.

Radio has re-invented itself several times since the 1920s. While I cannot predict its next generation, it will always be the place to go when there is something you need to know.

Barbara Says:
February 5th, 2010 at 7:04 pm

great blog! keep it up :)

i have also seen the lack of interest in listening to the radio. probably because more and more people are turn to the internet and that already includes tuning in to internet radio shows. the same reason why i recently asked Prova to set-up my company website. traditional marketing is slowly being dislodged by its online counterpart.

Patrick Gallagher Says:
February 8th, 2010 at 9:30 am

According to Arbitron, since the inception of PPM, radio listening has grown over the past year. 96% of the market listens to local radio each week – this is more than TV and print (any kind) combined.

For example, KMXP/Mix 96.9 reaches over 1.1 million listeners each week – more than print and the 6pm newscasts on local TV combined.

Speaking of Satellite radio, Sirius/XM are not growing, nor are they garning any market share. Here’s an example of their saturation, which is fact: The number of satellite radio consumers equals the number of residents in New York City alone. Not that many people have satellite radio when you look at the big picture.

Regarding internet radio, more and more people are tuning to their favorite local radio stations websites and streaming the stations on their computers.

However, 95% of all Americans listen to local, free, radio each week.

Also, feel free to read this article about radio revenue growth. In 2009, radio was down in terms of revenue – not listening. In 2010, radio revenue is already up. For more about this: http://adage.com/mediaworks/article?article_id=141895

If you would like more research regarding the Phoenix market, feel free to email me.

Patrick Gallagher
Senior Account Executive
Clear Channel Media/Phoenix
602-374-6317

Mike Says:
February 8th, 2010 at 10:12 am

Another point in support of radio – the ability to listen, via the internet, to radio stations outside the immediate area. I spent many years in the Bay Area before coming to Phoenix, and I’m still a fan of KFOG. Now, I can listen in whenever I like.

Loren Condron Says:
February 8th, 2010 at 11:04 am

I agree with a majority of the folks who posted about their disagreement with Len’s post. Terrestrial radio is not dead, it just has a few cuts and bruises.

I worked for over ten years in radio and loved it. The two things that I saw that damaged the listenership were cell phones and the corporations that took hold of the industry after the Telecommunications Act of 1996. Everyone listened to radio when driving in their cars. Look around at a stoplight now and 2/3 of the people are on their cellphone.

Brent Diggins Says:
February 8th, 2010 at 12:46 pm

I actually like local radio commercials as they keep me informed of what’s going on. I feel more aware (even if it IS “selling”) of local events.

I have satellite radio and listen to that too, but there are some things like local talk radio and local sports radio that I can’t find on my satellite or my IPod.

Plus radio is free and that simply can’t be beat.

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