James Cridland’s International Radio Trends: Faking it – competition winners caught out

by James Cridland

Capital Radio Network in Australia said it wasn’t trying to mislead listeners. Guest columnist James Cridland calls BS on that, and explains why. It’s about holding a listener contest without holding one. Nothing new, James says, and cites an example. Plus: Previewing the next iOS version, congratulations to winning broadcasters, and a preview of Swiss Radio Day. Continue Reading

James Cridland’s International Radio Trends: Faking it – competition winners caught out

by James Cridland

Capital Radio Network in Australia said it wasn’t trying to mislead listeners. Guest columnist James Cridland calls BS on that, and explains why. It’s about holding a listener contest without holding one. Nothing new, James says, and cites an example. Plus: Previewing the next iOS version, congratulations to winning broadcasters, and a preview of Swiss Radio Day. Continue Reading

Mark Mulligan: Mainstream is the new niche

by Mark Mulligan

How is stardom calibrated in today’s music market? In his latest guest column, media thought leader Mark Mulligan compares three stars of three eras, putting side-by-side their album sales, Spotify streams (where applicable), concert tickets, and reach by percentage of population. The conclusion regarding Taylor Swift? “She is clearly a hugely successful artist at the top of her game,” Mark asserts. “But the game is not the same as it once was.” All this comes into focus when examining population reach. From that perspective, “mainstream” and “niche” merge together. A fascinating and important thought/research piece for understanding music success in 2024. Continue Reading

Steve Goldstein: Podcasting Captures Younger Audiences In An Aging Media World

“Recently, I’ve had several speaking engagements with media groups,” Steve Goldstein says in his latest guest column, “and there is a surefire way to get an instant gasp from the crowd – show them the median ages of the major media platforms.” The median age of TV viewing has risen from 18-49, to 65 and older. Some cable channels are younger, but Steve is aiming his point at podcasting, where the mean listenerage is 34. Podcasting is the new talk radio for the younger demo. (Commercial radio is median-58.) There is a Fountain of Youth story here for advertisers, is the point. “The plates are shifting” — and this is an important read. Continue Reading

James Cridland’s International Radio Trends: Capital – Taylor’s Version

by James Cridland

In his latest edition of International Radio Trends, guest columnist James Cridland listens (with his young daughter) to a pop-up Taylor Swift station in the UK. It’s a Capital contemporary hits station. and is well programmed, James says, and “shows the power of DAB as a flexible radio transmission platform, and more. Also: The UK general election, a BBC radio flashback, a demonstration of dynamic advertising, and more. Continue Reading

Streaming audio up, AM/FM down in new 2024 local advertising forecast from Borrell

Local media analytics company Borrell Associates has released a new forecast of local media advertising. This report is a follow-up to an initial forecast released in November and is, in the company’s words, “triggered by new information from Borrell’s principal sources.” We learn that streaming audio is a high achiever in local advertising expenditures. Click for lots of detail, revealing graphs, and the source link. Continue Reading