Digital radio growth speeds up, forecaster says

INSIDERADIO

February 25, 2015

With internet radio in phones, cars, game consoles and even refrigerators, it’s no wonder analysts at eMarketer see usage stepping up. The firm forecasts 169.9 million Americans will listen to digital radio per month in 2015. That projected 6.1% growth rate compared to last year is an increase from eMarketer’s earlier forecast for 2015 that estimated growth of 5.9%. As total usage continues to climb, the laws of math mean the year-to-year increases will moderate in the coming years. But the forecast says internet radio’s reach will be larger than was predicted earlier. By 2018, eMarketer now estimates 184.8 million Americans will listen to digital radio each month. That’s up from its 183.4 million forecast released last February. The updated outlook also predicts that number will climb further to 191.6 million in 2019. “Digital radio has evolved into a viable, robust digital channel that complements social media, video sites and other mainstream venues,” the report says. Advertisers are following, although by how much isn’t entirely clear. The Radio Advertising Bureau reports broadcasters’ digital revenue grew 9% to $973 million last year. But that figure includes all forms of online revenue, not just that associated with streaming.

More big data is coming to online radio advertising. For the second time in as many months, an audio ad tech company has partnered with a big data platform with an eye toward improving the targetability of online radio advertising. The latest hook-up involves streaming ad services provider AdsWizz with Lotame, a data management platform (DMP). Common in digital advertising, DMPs allow marketers to combine audience data from a variety of sources. Lotame collects audience data — such as demographics, personal interests and online behavior — from websites, online video, mobile apps, social media and other sources. Its data will be integrated into AdWave, the audio ad exchange owned by AdsWizz, to allow advertisers to tailor their ad creative and delivery to specific audience segments. In the U.S., AdsWizz provides a range of ad services for iHeartRadio, Emmis, New York Public Radio, TuneIn and Marketron, along with ad networks and agencies. It claims to have doubled its audio inventory in the U.S. since the start of the year. Lotame’s data partners include BlueKai, eXelate, Kantar and Quantcast, among others. Last March Lotame bought AdMobius, a mobile audience management platform. The AdsWizz-Lotame deal follows January’s partnership between Triton Digital with data provider eXelate. AdsWizz CEO Alexis van de Wyer says the combination of third party data with one-to-one ad targeting "will offer audio advertisers unmatched access to their target audiences." Lotame chief revenue officer Kevin Kohn says the partnership’s targeting capabilities "will enable publishers to unlock even greater value from their existing stations."

Country comeback: station count hits 13 year high. Fueled by solid ratings, a crop of cross-over artists, and the rollout of a national brand by one of radio’s largest groups, the number of country radio stations is at its highest level since 2002. As the format’s programmers, personalities and musicians come together this week at the Country Radio Seminar, there’s plenty to be happy about. "I think the industry is very healthy," CRS executive director Bill Mayne says. Plenty of operators apparently agree. There are 2,132 country radio stations currently on the air, a 3% increase over a year ago according to the Inside Radio database. It’s also the most in more than a decade. Country radio’s resurgence, as well as a makeover for CRS, has led to a double-digit percentage increase in conference attendance during the past four years. Digital will play a large role at CRS again this year, and Mayne says organizers are bringing in several country outsiders such as Broadcast.com co-founder Todd Wagner to give a "fresh and different perspective" on radio. The definition of what qualifies as country music has certainly evolved, and Mayne thinks the swinging pendulum from a traditional sound to so-called bro country is part of the normal format cycle. "Country today is still the dominant music genre in the United States and it remains that way because it is very broad," he says. "People have been trying to get us to niche the format for the past 40 years, and I think one of the reasons that country radio has remained so strong is it has refused to be specifically defined." Albright & O’Malley & Brenner partner Jaye Albright says country performs well in more demos than just about any other format, from 18-24 to 45-54, both men and women. "The secret to its success is to find those common audience threads," she says.