Analytics, Metrics and Music for the Radio Industry
An Indie Artist Pipeline to Internet Radio
Radio Industry ROI Strategy
A New Breed of Indie Artists
Friday, July 1, 2011
 
 |
Mobile Radio Listening Report
The end of June brings another time to tabulate data on a variety of metrics. It's become a ritual for me at month's end, and it keeps me on top of exactly what is happening at each of Audio Graphics' internet properties - all of which serve the radio industry.
| "Considering that smartphones first began to get noticed in October of 2009, these graphs show the rapid rise in use." |
We'll keep this brief, and let our U.S.-based readers off to celebrate our country's Independence Day. One point to ponder before resting: at the half-way mark in 2011, smartphone reach to radio stations at AG's RadioRow has already surpassed the whole of 2010. On a graph, the difference is remarkable. |
If we look at how smartphone use to access radio stations is growing by the day, we see weekends continue to outpace all other days of the week.
This graph gives a good picture of how daily pacings are going as a percentage of using smartphones, between 2010 and 2011.
While the overall use of smartphones for listening to radio at RadioRow still represents a small percentage of overall listening (only 3.17%), the rapid rise of smartphones for listening should not be ignored. The following graph shows growth from January 1, 2010 through June 30, 2011.
Considering that smartphones first began to get noticed in October of 2009, these graphs show a rapid rise in use. If you also consider that recent reports have consumers choosing smartphones 55% of the time when purchasing cell phones, the future is predictable.
If radio industry executives ignore these growth patterns, this will turn into a fierce fight for listeners. Radio industry executives can no longer ignore the rapid rise in smartphone use, especially as it relates to listening to radio programming (as opposed to the accountability of advertising).
Couple this with the onrush of internet connectivity on the dashboard, and you can see there's a fierce battle brewing. The winner will not necessarily be the one boasting "local content."
