800.275.2840 MORE NEWS» insideradio.com THE MOST TRUSTED NEWS IN RADIO THURSDAY, OCTOBER 8, 2015 How Radio Can Play To Political Strengths. In the final part of our four-part roundtable look at how radio can better monetize its huge reach number and sell itself to advertisers, we asked our six industry experts about how radio can lobby for a larger slice of the huge local and national election-spending pie. “Radio remains the dominant and most cost-efficient medium for campaign advertising and it’s important to get political advertisers to recognize that,” says Radha Subramanyam, president, insights, research and data analytics for iHeartMedia. As to how, our panelists speak of tapping into radio’s proven assets. “Radio must utilize powerful new data-driven targeting to tell our story,” says Pierre Bouvard, CMO, Cumulus Media/Westwood One. Using Nielsen and Experian data, radio can now “show political consultants and their campaigns the right formats, dayparts and stations in local markets to reach each of the ten key voting segments.” It’s that targeting benefit that Steve Chessare, VP and market manager, Greater Media Detroit, also sees as radio’s most effective and sellable quality in the fight for election money. “Ben Carson has slowly been rising in the polls because he’s going market to market in the key states. He’s getting his message out there in the right places. That’s how radio needs to position ourselves; as a way to effectively and efficiently get a huge amount of messages out to the voting public throughout their day,” Chessare says. “We’re playing serious catch-up in this arena [but] targeting is becoming increasingly important,” adds Bill McElveen, executive VP, Southern region, Alpha Media, “and no other medium can target as precisely as radio.” Roundtable Record—Read the entire conversation only at InsideRadio.com. Radio Must Campaign For Political Dollars. To increase its share of political ad money in the approach to the 2016 presidential election, radio’s effort may have to start on Capitol Hill, selling the benefits of the medium to the political operatives and PR firms. That’s one of the top suggestions from six industry experts in the last segment of our four-part radio roundtable. “If we are to ever make any inroads into this space we have to begin on K Street in Washington, DC, preaching to the PR firms and political operatives the benefits and value of radio,” says Drew Horowitz, president and COO, Hubbard Radio. “We need to educate them on the targeting ability and reach of radio coupled with the cost effectiveness that can create a much deeper and broader penetration for the candidates.” Radha Subramanyam, president, insights, research and data analytics for iHeartMedia, would probably be joining Horowitz there. “Radio as an industry needs to talk to national political advertisers where they are,” she says. “We have a Washington DC-based team that focuses on working with political and issue advertisers and advertising agencies to create custom strategies, campaigns and content that leverage the reach and power of iHeartMedia, as well as fully utilize our programmatic and automated ad buying platform.” Once through the door, one must utilize the opportunity to show how radio stands out compared to TV and digital. “We should consider highlighting to the political agencies and candidates that a point of diminishing returns does exist in their TV spend,” says Bill McElveen, executive VP, Southern region, Alpha Media. “TV is a great mass reach medium but any medium can be overused. Radio reaches the light and lightest TV viewers. Viewing a commercial 80 times can’t be perceived to be a positive by any campaign and reaching 15%-20% of a target group only 1X can’t be acceptable to any media expert, political or not.”Roundtable Record—read all our panelists’ answers to this question at InsideRadio.com. Ajit Pai Changes Stance On AM Window. In a decision that almost certainly will prevent AM broadcasters from getting an exclusive FM translator window until at least 2017, FCC commissioner Ajit Pai has amended his stance on what has become a lightning [email protected] | 800.275.2840 PG 1 NEWS insideradio.com THURSDAY, OCTOBER 8, 2015 rod for the commission’s pending AM Revitalization Order. In a speech before the National Religious Broadcasters’ President’s Council, Pai says he now supports commissioner Mignon Clyburn’s position of allowing the relocation of FM translators up to 250 miles and delaying the translator window until after the TV incentive auction. Pai has pushed long and hard for relief for AM broadcasters, but after carefully studying Clyburn’s statement from last Thursday, he says he is “always willing to go the extra mile to find common ground with my colleagues” and is amending his proposed edits to the draft AM radio order to reflect Clyburn’s position. “Specifically, under this new proposal, the Media Bureau would be instructed to implement the 250-mile waiver process in 2016 precisely as commissioner Clyburn set forth in her statement,” Pai said. “The Media Bureau would also be instructed to implement in 2017, following the incentive auction and the 250-mile window, the FM translator window for AM stations that commissioner Clyburn has rightfully called ‘sound policy.’” Pai claims his change in stance wasn’t his first choice. But with FCC chairman Tom Wheeler opposed to the FM translator filing window— Wheeler sees it as a free spectrum giveaway, an opinion Pai doesn’t support— and the Media Bureau saying it can’t conduct the FM translator window until 2017, Pai says he is left with little choice. Besides that, even with his support, the FM translator window is one vote short at the commission. “I am willing to do whatever I can to reach a compromise in this proceeding that will help struggling AM broadcasters,” Pai said. “I hope that this finally brings us to consensus, and toward action.” Smartphone Growth Rate Set To Slow. The inevitable, gravitational pull that affects all growth has eased the skyrocketing pace of smartphones. According to a new eMarketer study, the growth rate of non-voice time spent on tablets and mobile phones, set to climb 11.3% in 2015 to 2 hours and 54 minutes, is expected to drop into single digits next year. Granted, while the growth rate slows, time spent on the devices will of course still increase, to an average of 3 hours and 8 minutes a day of non-voice phone activities. But the continued ebb in the growth rate—which has been slowly decreasing since 2012—is primarily because of the slowing number of new smartphone users as the technology reaches its peak. “A large majority of American adults are already using mobile devices, [which] means there will be fewer new smartphone and tablet users added each year,” said eMarketer forecasting director Monica Peart. “Also, the number of activities currently possible on mobile devices limits the amount of time a user can spend per day. For these reasons, growth in the amount of time spent on mobile devices will slow down significantly.” App use will bring the greatest increase in smartphone use. In 2014, U.S. smartphone/tablet users spent an average of 2 hours 51 minutes using mobile apps, while the 2015 forecast is 3 hours and 5 minutes per day. By 2016, mobile device users will spend 3 hours 15 minutes per day using apps, eMarketer reports. Time spent on mobile browser activities will hold steady at 51 minutes this year and next. Radio Holds Steady—Traditional radio will face little impact from mobile fortunes; go to InsideRadio.com. Uber Could Impact Auto Buying Down the Road. The increasing popularity of Uber as a primary mode of transportation is apparently robust enough to have some affect among potential car buyers. According to a new study from market research firm Frank N. Magid Associates that surveyed 2,000 adults 18- 64, among the 18% who have used Uber in the last year, 22% say they are likely to hold off on buying a new car because of the service. The study, conducted in late July and early August, also finds that U.S. Uber users have risen from a meager 5% last year to 18% in 2015. “It’s rare that a brand transforms the way we live in such a short amount of time but that’s what Uber has done,” said Andrew Hare, Magid’s director of digital research and strategy, who adds that [email protected] | 800.275.2840 PG 2 NEWS insideradio.com THURSDAY, OCTOBER 8, 2015 the growth will affect the auto industry “even if only a modest number of consumers begin to prioritize car ‘sharing’ over ownership.” Automotive remains radio’s No. 1 advertising category. And despite—or perhaps because of—the Uber impact, carmakers are on track for their strongest September sales ever. The survey was specific in its wording, making the results all the more clear. Those surveyed were asked: “Are you delaying or holding off on the purchase of a car because of Uber?” Mike Vorhaus, president, Magid Advisors, told Marketing Daily that while the results are dramatic, it doesn’t spell a doomsday scenario for the automotive industry: “Our basic point of view is that people will press an attitude well before they will conduct that action. We are looking at a few years, not a tomorrow.” Ellen K To Drive Mornings On L.A.’s KOST. After a decade cohosting mornings in Los Angeles with Ryan Seacrest on CHR KIIS-FM, Ellen K is striking out on her own.