Research

DR Radio Media Billings Increase 5.9 Percent in 3Q 2007

1 Mar, 2008 By: Shay Moftakhar Response

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Local radio increases $2 million as the top 10 gain $1 million.

Halting the downward trend of the previous two quarters, third-quarter 2007 DR radio media billings provided by TNS Media Intelligence (TNSMI) reported a strong 5.9-percent increase of $870,300 compared to 3Q 2006 results. This quarter's performance is in line with 3Q 2006's increase of $908,900. However, DR radio figures continue to remain 25 percent (or $5.2 million) behind 3Q 2004's record number.

Figure 1

Nine of the 17 categories reported gains in 3Q 2007. The "Computers, Software and Home Office" category had the highest dollar increase with a rise of $2 million. When measuring gains by percentage, many categories came out of the doldrums this quarter to leave 3Q 2006's numbers far behind. The "Food and Beverage" category led the bunch with nearly a 13-fold increase of $575,900 to settle in at $622,000. The "Video Supplies and Equipment" category boasted an eight-fold increase while "Correspondence Schools" enjoyed more than a four-fold advance. The "Automotive and Travel" category also got into gear with a 116-percent rally to finish just shy of $100,000.

Figure 2

It wasn't business as usual in 2007, as last year's golden category — "Business" — delivered a goose egg in the third-quarter, a decline of nearly $2.3 million. This completely wiped out 3Q 2006's $2.25 million gain. The "Collectibles and Art" category also laid its own goose egg, but lost just $3,400. The "Apparel" and "Home and Building" categories reported losses of 66 and 61.5 percent respectively.

Figure 3

Unlike second-quarter 2007, when all three DR radio outlets reported losses (or the previous five quarters when two out of three outlets reported losses), there is a new glimmer of hope, as two out of three actually reported gains in 3Q 2007. Local radio burst out of hibernation to claim a $2 million advance of 29 percent, good for an extra 10.2 points of market share. National spot radio rattled some cages with a 75-fold increase of $231,500, boosting its total market share to 1.5 percent. This is an impressive turnaround for a category that had only one campaign in 3Q 2007 and accounted for a microscopic 0.02-percent market share. Network radio managed to squander 3Q 2006's $1.1 million gain with a sizeable $1.4 million loss of 17.4 percent and a shattering 11.7-point loss of market share.

Figure 4

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