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Radio Has Strong Presence In Vehicles
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May 31, 2016 by Mark Maier
90% is a big number. MediaPost reports the latest research showing over 90% of those in cars are listening to traditional AM/FM Radio..."According to Edison Research newly-released survey results, 9 in 10 commuters listen to traditional AM/FM radio while in their car on the way to work, with AM/FM radio easily beating out CDs (62%), own digital music files (54%) and streaming internet radio (42%) as the most common form of in-car audio during commute time.
According to the Edison Share of Ear study, commuters spend an average of 87 minutes each day listening to audio in their cars. 43% of the total sample would choose traditional AM/FM radio given only one choice, but respondents who have ever listened to streaming internet radio during their commute would stream (28%) over traditional AM/FM radio (25%).
Among those who listen to an AM/FM station that plays commercials, 29% don’t typically switch away, but 23% say they tune away immediately. Overall, 71% switch at some point during commercials: 23% tune away immediately; 25% say they listen to part of one commercial; and 23% listen to at least one commercial. Note that research released several years ago found radio delivering 93% of its lead-in audience during commercial breaks, says the report.
Interestingly, among the Edison Research respondents who listen to Pandora during their commute, 61% say they don’t switch away at a commercial break, while only 12% tune away immediately.
Commuters Response to AM/FM Radio Commercials (American adults commuting to work for more than 20 minutes or alone)
When Commercial Comes On AM/FM Radio During Commute | |
Action | % of Respondents |
Do not switch | 29% |
Listen to at least one commercial | 23% |
Listen to part of one commercial | 25% |
Tune away immediately | 23% |
Source: Edison Research, April 2016 | |
Considering Internet radio, covering audio ads delivered on mobile devices, the average number of ad units per hour hovered between about 5 and 5.4 during this year, with the vast majority of these units (79-84%) being thirty seconds in length.
Internet Radio Ad Loads (2015) For 5 Radio Publishers | ||||
| 2015 | |||
Ad Loads | Q1 | Q2 | Q3 | Q4 |
Ad loads per hour | 2m 18s | 2m 32s | 2m 21s | 2m 29s |
Number of ad units/hour | 5.04 | 5.4 | 5.01 | 5.27 |
% of Ads 30s in length | 79.3% | 83.0% | 83.2% | 83.7% |
Source: Xappmeida, April 2016 | ||||
According to the report, the analysis only covers audio ads delivered on mobile devices and “does not attempt to quantify the number of banner ads served during a listening session” as the vast majority of listening takes place “while the device screen is blank or not viewable.”
- The average hour of internet radio included 2 minutes and 29 seconds of audio ads in Q4, up to 6% from Q3 but down from the year-earlier average of 2 minutes and 44 seconds
- Among the 5 publishers examined, the top 3 by ad time averaging roughly 3 minutes per hour in Q4 and the bottom 2 average 1 minute and 39 seconds
- The average time to first ad decreased again in the 4th quarter, falling to 13 minutes and 13 seconds, a 36-second drop from Q3
- The top advertiser in Q4 was The Home Depot, with more than 7% of all ads identified. It was followed by GEICO (4.73%), Progressive (2.66%), Discover (2.51%) and Macy’s (also 2.51%)
For additional information from Edison Research, please visit here; For more from Xappmedia, visit here."
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