Search Results for: &amp

Mark Mulligan: Mainstream is the new niche

Posted on by Mark Mulligan

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 →

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

Posted on by Brad Hill

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

Posted on by Brad Hill

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 →

James Cridland’s International Radio Trends: Momentum 24, and the BBC’s ads

Posted on by Brad Hill

by James Cridland

In his latest edition of International Radio Trends, guest columnist James Cridland summarizes the Christian Music Broadcasters conference “a radio conference like no other.” — dancing before sessions, bands playing between speakers — “never such a positive and vocal audience. (And he “never felt so old, so British, so reserved.”) Then, back to a key topic lately in this column: The BBC’s plan to insert ads into podcasts. He calls it “penalising the UK public.” Plus much more from Australia and Canada. It’s not called “International” for nothing. Continue Reading →

Steve Goldstein: Quality Over Quantity Is A Growth Strategy

Posted on by Steve Goldstein

by Steve Goldstein

In this latest guest column from podcast consultant and public speaker Steve Goldstein, Steve grapples with the problem of too much content competing for too few eyeballs and ears. The issue was highlighted in a recent investor call by Disney CEO Bob Iger, but is what Steve calls “a really huge issue in today’s media landscape.” In podcasting, only eight percent of shows have produced a new episode in the last 30 days. Small percentage, but it’s 345,000 shows. The result? “Choice Fatigue.” Steve offers a five-point recovery plan. Essential reading for creators at all levels. Continue Reading →

Podcast listeners: Scaled and upscaled (Cumulus Media / Westwood One)

Posted on by Brad Hill

“The state of podcasts” — that’s the title of the newest Audioscape study from Cumulus Media. In it, we learn that podcast audience growth is “on a tear,” and podcast audience demographics are favorable to advertisers. We learn about podcast listening hot spots in the U.S., view a timeline of advertiser perceptions of podcasts, and much more. Click through for a review with graphs and download links for the deck and video. Continue Reading →

James Cridland’s International Radio Trends: Networking but sounding local; and could the BBC go commercial?

Posted on by James Cridland

by James Cridland

In his latest guest column: Bauer’s brand bundling. Then there is this piece of wistful idealism: “As the BBC gets ready to put advertising in its podcasts (on third parties) in the UK, you might think that if only BBC Radio took commercials, we’d not have to bother with the TV licence fee and everything would be good.” And than a deeper dive into that concept. A great, informative read. Continue Reading →