The total number of hours streamed by on-line broadcasters measured by MeasureCast declined nearly five percent during the week of April 9 – 15. The dip was due largely to the action by ABC, Clear Channel, and others to temporarily discontinue streaming their broadcasts as a result of the stipulation in the AFTRA contract requiring advertisers to pay a higher fee if ads originally recorded for radio are played over the Internet.
Listeners have been frustrated by the new silence of favorite station sites like WABC/AM-New York, and KSFO/AM and KGO-AM in San Francisco, which have consistently ranked in the MeasureCast top 25.
In the second week in April, the MeasureCast Internet Radio Index dropped 4.8 percent from a value of 168 to 141 – back to February listening levels. The index has declined a total of 13.3 percent during the past two weeks. However, online listening to stations measured by MeasureCast has increased 41 percent since January.
MeasureCast believes that the slowdown in online listening will not last. As Ed Hardy, MeasureCast chief executive officer, observes, “This is a short-term issue that will be resolved. Streaming and Internet radio is here to stay. Since January, MeasureCast has seen a 41 percent increase in the total number of hours streamed. That’s with the five percent dip in total time spent listening during the week of April 9 – 15. Many of the stations we measure have experienced 5-to-15 percent increases in listenership a week. MeasureCast continues to field calls from stations that want our service. And many of our customers have already told us they are coming back online.”
MeasureCast also has noticed the emergence of several newcomers to the firm’s weekly
Top 25ô list. ESPNRadio.com, the online home of the nation’s largest sports radio network, took sixth place by streaming 35,783 hours last week. Other newcomers to the Top 25 include: LaMusica’s El Zol/WXDJ 95.7, Amor 93.1 FM, and WRMA-FM Romance 106, as well as Positive Life Radio from Walla Walla College in Washington state.
