Welcome to week one in our four-part Weekly Insights series of research findings about radio. We felt like it was time to take a moment and put the spotlight on the strengths of a medium that can be misunderstood in the abundance of press about digital audio. Last week we released The Infinite Dial®, with support from Amazon Music, Wondery, and ART19, and yes, it showed the dominance of digital audio – but radio has a stronghold in many spaces, including in-car listening and among ad-supported audio choices.
So, our week one finding on the power of traditional AM/FM radio in the U.S.: AM/FM Radio is the #1 Ad-Supported Audio Source for All Ages in the U.S. Listeners age 13+ in the U.S. spend 59% of their daily, ad-supported audio time with AM/FM radio, more time than with all other ad-supported audio sources combined, including YouTube, podcasts, and ad-supported streaming services.
AM/FM radio is the top ad-supported audio source for all ages in the U.S., including Gen Z (age 13-24) who spend 33% of their daily ad-supported audio time with AM/FM radio, more than for any other ad-supported platform.
The finding comes from our Share of Ear® dataset and focuses on ad-supported audio. It’s important to remember that only a portion of audio sources are available to advertisers.
Gen Z audio consumers are well-known to favor their mobile phones for audio consumption, so it may come as a surprise to learn that33% of the total time they spend on a daily basis with ad-supported audio goes to AM/FM radio, which includes over-the-air broadcasts and streams.
When considering only ad-supported audio, the next closest platform for Gen Z is YouTube, which is where they spend 31% of their daily audio time. Streaming services represent 20% of their total ad-supported audio time, and podcasts account for 15%.
Beyond Gen Z, AM/FM radio remains the number one source of ad-supported audio for all other ages. Americans age 25-54 spend over half of their daily audio time (55%) with AM/FM radio (including over-the-air and streams), and Americans age 55+ spend the overwhelming majority of their ad-supported audio time (78%) with AM/FM radio.
Then join Edison Research Vice President Megan Lazovick and Wondery COO and General Manager Jeanine Wright tomorrow at 10am as they share Podcast Consumer: An Infinite Dial Presentation onstage. This presentation is a deep cut of podcast listening data from our latest Infinite Dial® report (see below).
The Infinite Dial 2023 from Edison Researchwith support from Amazon Music, Wondery, and ART19 is now available to download or view
Last week we presented the 25th anniversary edition of The Infinite Dial®. This year’s study included updates on device ownership and usage, online audio measures, podcasting, social media, and more. You can download the presentation here, or watch a replay of the webinar.
