RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, NC & PHILADELPHIA, PA, July 16, 2014 – The first phase of a two-part study completed by media research firm Coleman Insights® and its knowDigital® division reveals that NextRadio®, the new app that allows consumers to listen to local radio stations using the FM chips already installed in their smartphones, has the potential to address the portability needs of radio listeners. This is the most striking conclusion from one-on-one interviews in which consumers were introduced to the capabilities of NextRadio. The interviews served as a qualitative prelude to a large-scale national quantitative study that Coleman Insights and knowDigital will release later this month.
The research was funded by the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) and completed in cooperation with Emmis Communications (Nasdaq: EMMS), which developed NextRadio and has spearheaded the radio industry’s support for its rollout. Its first phase is based on one-on-one, in-depth interviews with smartphone owners between the ages of 20 and 39, which revealed a perception among many consumers that their ability to consume broadcast radio is restricted by their lack of access to devices that can receive broadcast signals. These consumers overwhelmingly cited that they have little access to radio outside of when they are in their cars, and as a result, they turn to other sources of audio entertainment when they are not driving. Furthermore, these consumers—after being introduced to NextRadio and having an opportunity to use it during the interviews—expressed the belief that NextRadio would make FM a truly mobile medium, allowing them to listen to radio while engaging in other activities during which they believe it is currently inaccessible.
“To anyone over 40 years old who grew up with transistor radios and Walkmans, the idea that radio isn’t mobile is striking,” commented Coleman Insights president/chief operating officer Warren Kurtzman, who—along with knowDigital president Sam Milkman—conducted the interviews. “That is, however, the perception among many consumers in their 20s and 30s and it appears that NextRadio has a great opportunity to address that challenge.”
“What I find most encouraging about these findings is the interest in listening to FM radio on smartphones,” said NAB executive vice president of communications Dennis Wharton. “Consumers want radio and they want it on the devices that accompany them everywhere they go.”
A streaming video presentation of the study’s findings featuring clips from the consumer interviews is available for viewing at www.ColemanInsights.com/NextRadio. Furthermore, Coleman Insights will release the results of the second phase of the research—a national, representative quantitative study of 18- to 49-year-old smartphone owners on their interest in NextRadio—later this month.
About Coleman Insights
Coleman Insights, headquartered in Research Triangle Park, NC, with offices in Philadelphia and Hamburg, Germany, is a firm that has helped media properties build strong brands and develop great content since 1978. Its clients include hundreds of media properties in North America, South America, Europe and Asia, including those owned by CBS Corporation, Sony Corporation, Emmis Communications, The Walt Disney Company, Lincoln Financial Media, Clear Channel Media + Entertainment, EMI, Radio One, Warner Music Group, Cox Media Group, American Public Media, Bell Media, Bonneville International Corporation, Vivendi SA, Hubbard Radio, Grupo Radio Centro, Newcap Radio, Lagardère International, Beasley Broadcast Group, Grupo Prisa, Mid-West Family Broadcast Group, Salem Communications, The Mondadori Group, Connoisseur Media, Corporación Radial del Perú, SBS Broadcasting, Townsquare Media and Alpha Media. Additional information about Coleman Insights is available at www.ColemanInsights.com.
About knowDigital
knowDigital, based in Lafayette Hill, PA, provides brand research for digital media. As a division of Research Triangle Park, NC-based Coleman Insights, it has worked with dozens of traditional and digital media companies investigating a wide array of issues including the digital media habits of Country music fans, audio streaming strategies, the viability of mobile television, strategies for developing local web portals, music download packaging options and new media content distribution platforms. More information about knowDigital is available at www.knowDigital.com.
About National Association of Broadcasters
The National Association of Broadcasters is the premier advocacy association for America’s broadcasters. NAB advances radio and television interests in legislative, regulatory and public affairs. Through advocacy, education and innovation, NAB enables broadcasters to best serve their communities, strengthen their businesses and seize new opportunities in the digital age. Learn more at www.nab.org.
About Emmis Communications
Emmis Communications – Great Media, Great People, Great Service®. Emmis Communications Corporation is a diversified media company, principally focused on radio broadcasting. Emmis operates the 9th largest radio portfolio in the United States based on total listeners. Emmis owns 18 FM and 3 AM radio stations in New York, Los Angeles, St. Louis, Austin (Emmis has a 50.1% controlling interest in Emmis’ radio stations located there), Indianapolis and Terre Haute, IN and operates two additional stations in New York (1 FM and 1 AM) pursuant to a Local Marketing Agreement (“LMA”) whereby Emmis provides the programming for these stations and sells all advertising within that programming pending its acquisition of the stations. In addition, one of the FM radio stations Emmis currently owns in New York is operated pursuant to a LMA by a third party. Learn more at www.Emmis.com.
###
