Network radio revenue grew 9% in the third quarter compared with the year-earlier period, followed by non-spot radio, with a 7% increase, writes MediaBuyerPlanner, citing data released by the Radio Advertising Bureau.
Year-to-date (first three quarters), non-spot radio gained 10% over the same time period last year, while network radio grew 5%; however, local radio declined 2% in the same period, while national declined 4%.
Network radio revenue was driven by heavy investment from retail and automotive, according to RAB, which used TNS Media Intelligence data:
- Revenue from the retail category grew 42% in Q3 and nearly 21% in the first three quarters.
- Revenue from automotive increased 70% in Q3 and 42% in the first three quarters.
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Two key advertiser categories that had a strong showing in earlier quarters continue to outpace total radio spending in Q3:
- Communications spending increased 16.8% through three the first three quarters of 2007 compared with the year-earlier period.
- Concerts/theaters/movies revenue posted a gain of 20.7% in the first three quarters of 2007 compared with the year-earlier period.
In terms of government advertising, there are definitely some leaders in radio both in Q3 and Q1-Q3 of 2007, according to data compiled by Miller, Kaplan, Arase & Co.:
- In the presidential race, Mitt Romney leads in local market spending, followed by Barack Obama, then Rudy Giuliani, and Hillary Clinton.
- Interestingly, according to TNS reports, Giuliani is the only presidential candidate thus far to also use network radio.
- Network radio spending is also high within the Government, Politics & Organizations category, as reported by TNS, with a 44% increase in Q3 and 16.8% increase year-to-date:
- The greatest year-to-date increase came from the fourth-largest advertiser within this category, the US Army, at 301.7%.
- The largest network radio advertiser, the US Navy, was up 19.9%, followed by National Highway Safety (up 75.5%), and the Office of National Drug Control Policy (up 71.5%).
About the data (pdf): Local and national revenues are based on a pool of approximately 150 markets as reported by the accounting firm of Miller, Kaplan, Arase & Co. and extrapolated to the entire US. Network revenue includes the top five radio network companies. Non-spot data has been collected and verified since January of 2002, and reported since September of 2004.
