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TV continues to claim about half of an average adult’s media time; however, how this time is divided between various TV platforms has changed dramatically in the last 17 years. According to Intermedia Dimensions 2017, “linear” TV consumption is starting to feel the effects of SVOD and digital platforms; meanwhile, digital consumption (which we define as Internet/app usage on any platform) continues to rise.
MDI presents the evolution of media consumption in five-year intervals, indicating which media are on the rise, which are holding their own, and which are in decline. Our latest estimates of daily media usage for adults by age and income are also included in these two reports: How Much Time is Spent with the Media? and Intermedia Dimensions 2017.
A recent article from Nielsen, “Sounds Like Teen Spirit” (9/1/17), took a look at data from its 1st Quarter 2017 Total Audience Report, and found that as Millennials have aged, their use of traditional AM/FM radio has increased by over an hour compared to when they were teens. Nielsen credits Millennials joining the workforce as a major reason for this increase, as these young adults spend more time listening to AM/FM radio while commuting and when at work. The take-away, according to Nielsen, is that traditional media usage is far from dead among younger age groups, and tends to increase as they age.
OK, sounds good. But some questions are worth asking. According to the methodology of the report, both listening to AM/FM streams online and listening to satellite radio are included in the AM/FM radio numbers cited in the article. To what extent do these sources contribute to “AM/FM radio” listening? And what about digital music sources like Pandora or Spotify? They’re totally missing from the equation.
The same week, a report by NYU Professor Larry Miller, “Paradigm Shift: Why Radio Must Adapt To The Rise Of Digital,” took Nielsen and traditional AM/FM radio to task for failing to evolve along with changing music technologies. Of particular interest, Miller cites data from MusicWatch, which purports to show that online music streaming has reached parity with AM/FM music listening among GenZ, and is only expected to increase, particularly as in-car technology makes accessing streaming music services like Spotify much easier to access. There was a lot of blowback in response to this report, with both AM/FM broadcasters and Nielsen itself pointing out that AM/FM usage patterns have held steady. But without data from Nielsen on how much time is spent with streaming music sources, it’s difficult to assess the true impact of digital “radio” on traditional AM/FM radio.
It seems disingenuous to gloss over the impact of digital technology on how people, particularly younger generations, listen to music. And simply pointing out that traditional media is holding steady isn’t a very compelling argument either. Traditional TV is holding steady, too, but look at the inroads that services like Netflix and Hulu are making. And even if one argues that these technologies represent only a small fraction of total TV usage, one can nevertheless see their effect on the medium, as networks and cable systems have begun to put out “skinny packages” in an effort to remain competitive. There’s no reason to think that radio isn’t headed in the same direction. Times change and technologies change; it follows that media will change too. “Radio” will likely mean something very different to younger generations than the radio that older generations grew up with. And that’s OK…but the medium itself must keep up and find ways to monetize the inevitable.