Weekly News Recap May 7-11, 2018 TV And Digital Woes Nielsen Media Impact planning tool, expected in coming months. Have Advertisers Radio is likely benefitting from troubles in other media sectors. The TV market is increasingly fragmented and digital Rediscovering Radio. media is suffering repeated missteps. After marketers plowed money into The tide is turning. After combatting a re-discovering the power of radio and digital, the medium’s patina is tarnished stagnant ad market and losing dollars how it can augment, supplement and amid concerns about fraudulent to newer, data-rich digital channels, amplify their media mix,” Kelly wrote in delivery and unsavory environments. the radio industry is getting revived the report. That has resulted in some major brands interest and increased activity from pulling back on spending. CPG giant advertisers. Some brands, including Such positive news is helping radio Proctor & Gamble is one of the biggest major national players, are reinvesting, sellers reframe their message, but the leading the way, having shifted millions while others are making their first buys. challenge isn’t attracting audiences away from digital and invested more to radio, but rather swaying the ad in radio. Also, new direct-to-consumer Why all the sudden attention? In community to follow them, top radio brands like Dollar Shave Club, Casper recent years, it’s not that brands executives say. With nine out of 10 Mattress and Blue Apron are making have doubted radio, but rather they Americans listening to radio, “We radio a centerpiece of their strategy. In may have been distracted, industry definitely don’t have a consumer its tracking, the RAB sees CPG, health, executives say. “Radio just sort of fell challenge. As an industry though, legal and financial services up in local out of their consciousness. So now we often face a marketer perception markets. we’re reintroducing it to them. And challenge,” says Gayle Troberman, they’re engaging, they’re very open to CMO of iHeartMedia. It isn’t all rosy for radio, though. Indeed, it,” Nielsen’s Head of Audio Brad Kelly in both local and national sales, recently told Inside Radio. Nielsen reports that 93% of adults listen “It’s trench warfare out there,” says to radio weekly, yet marketers surveyed Beasley’s McCurdy. thought the number was closer to 52%, she points out. “This is our biggest Some marketers haven’t changed their challenge: helping the advertising radio spend — for better or worse. In community understand the new Charlotte, agency chief Nancy Haynes consumer journey with audio begins says her clients “never lost faith in with mass reach on broadcast radio radio” and have maintained radio and then extends to new and emerging budgets, in some cases for decades. audio platforms, including streaming, To prove radio’s effectiveness, her podcasts, smart speakers and more,” agency closely tracks clients’ calls, foot she says. traffic and web activity by date and time. Adds the principal at Collins, Haynes & Others offer a more direct explanation. Radio Back In CPG Back Media Mix Lully, “During radio flights, all of these Pierre Bouvard, chief insight officer for At Beasley Broadcasting, several increase.” Westwood One and Cumulus Media, consumer packaged goods (CPG) contends, “The renewed interest in brands have increased their radio radio is a direct result of the collapse spend in the last of TV viewing and the dawning horror year. Grabbing a over digital ad fraud.” larger share is just the WHAT HAS beginning, says VP of There’s also urgency in the advertising sales Bob McCurdy. market. At a time when marketers “For these advertisers PROGRAM are demanding accountability, radio to continue to invest, can back up its pitch with data and it is critical that their studies—and more transparency than media mix modeling DIRECTORS ever. corroborate radio’s positive impact TALKING? In a widely circulated report, Nielsen on their ROI,” he recently noted that blue chip brands are says. For instance, Read more on page 3 committing tens of millions of dollars to McCurdy says it will radio across music and spoken word help when Nielsen formats. “Billion dollar advertisers are adds radio to its THIS IS AN ADVERTISEMENT Page 1 Weekly News Recap May 7-11, 2018 Saga’s Ed Christian On Q1: ‘It’s Better Than Anticipated.’ Saga Communications had a 7.1% net revenue lift to $28 million as ever colorful CEO Ed Christian called the first quarter “better than I anticipated; I was skeptical about Q1,” he said. Same station revenue increased 0.3% to $26.2 million, and operating income was up 17.5% to $2.3 million. Christian pointed to challenges for the company, including “an awful winter,” which had a direct impact on over-the-air advertising. Add to that “longer ramp-up conditions than we expected” with the company’s Charleston stations, part of a $23.0 million deal with Apex Media in May 2017 that included four FMs, one AM and two translators in Charleston, and three FMs and two translators in Hilton Head and Beaufort, SC. Looking at categories in Q1, the CEO explained that two in particular saw losses. “Automotive is either hot or it is not,” he said. As well, medical & hospitals experienced a dip. Looking ahead, Field Tells Entercom Investors Hold On For ‘Solid Growth.’ Christian told shareholders that there are potential underlying A perfect storm of factors caused Entercom to turn in what quandaries with the nation’s political turf that could come into David Field called a “weak” financial performance in its first play. “Like it or not, our country could well be facing some full quarter of financial results since closing its historic merger depressing economics,” he noted. “Internally at Saga, we with CBS Radio. However, the CEO told investors to expect refer to the environment in which we operate as a jitter buggy “meaningful, sustainable growth” in the second half, once economy. We’re really dependent on the economy and the organizational, structural and programming changes have feeling of well being in this country.” See more HERE time to take root. The company took a $12 million revenue hit from its ongoing problems with United States Traffic Network, FCC Proposes Eliminating Posting Requirement At which buys and resells Entercom ad inventory. Overall soft Transmitter Sites. ad market conditions were another factor. Meanwhile, a half As part of the ongoing Modernization of Media Regulation dozen post-merger format changes reduced company billings Initiative, the FCC has proposed eliminating a 1930 rule that by 1%. Entercom is also is in the midst of getting rid of so-called has required stations to physically display their broadcast cash infusion deals, in which third parties resell inventory at licenses and authorizations. The FCC said the old requirements a deep discount. That slimmed billings by another 1%. These were intended to ensure that info regarding station ownership factors, coupled with higher merger integration costs, “masked and contact info is readily available and easily accessible to the underlying progress” the company is making, Field said. the public. But now that stations’ local public inspection files are posted online, it has tentatively concluded the posting “We still have lots of work to do,” he added, “as these tempo- requirements are “redundant and obsolete.” The FCC has rary factors abate and our growth initiatives take hold.” On a opened a comment period asking for feedback. Among the same-station basis, revenues for the quarter declined 7.5% to issues it’s considering is whether there are any public safety $300.6 million. Same station revenue was down 4% when the implications that could hamper emergency responders’ on- USTN impact is backed out of the numbers. See more HERE scene assessment during an accident or disaster when online databases may not be accessible. MORE Entering Boston’s Sports Market Paid Off For Beasley. Owning sports stations in both of the markets that sent teams Townsquare Puts Priority On Its Core Radio Business. to Super Bowl LII paid off for Beasley in Q1. The company re- In reporting Q1 2018 earnings, Townsquare Media touted ceived a revenue boost after picking up New England Patriots’ its Local Marketing Solutions division – which encompasses flagship radio station “The Sports Hub” WBZ-FM (98.5) Boston local radio and digital – as the force behind its growth. The from Entercom/CBS Radio, just as Tom Brady and company segment saw its 17th consecutive quarter of positive organic made a run for another NFL Championship. And while Beasley revenue growth in Q1 with a 5.9% gain, or 5.6% excluding doesn’t own the broadcast rights to the Philadelphia Eagles, political revenue. The increase helped the company’s overall the buzz around the Super Bowl Champion Birds in sports- billings increase $5.8 million, or 6.6%, to $94.2 million. crazed Philly helped increase revenue “National revenue, which has experienced a fairly significant at “97.5 The Fanatic” WPEN, too. headwind over the past several years, was flat inQ1 and our CEO Caroline Beasley said the first local revenue, once again, drove the growth in this segment,” full quarter operating WBZ-FM fueled co-CEO Bill Wilson said. Year-over-year political billings grew the majority of the company’s 2.6% from $450,000 to $700,000. While noting that the company revenue growth to $55.2 million in the made difficult decisions to reset their local live events and first quarter. Beasley didn’t report pro- national digital businesses, Prasad said he was “pleased to forma results for Q1. The company report that both of these businesses had outstanding quarters.” also experienced some ad slowdown in the first quarter in the The exception to that was the company’s North American Northeast due to four back-to-back Nor’easters, which closed Midway Entertainment (NAME) sector, which continues to be business and schools and kept many people at home.