They say Rock and Roll will never die. Can the same be said of the medium that brought us those songs? Not so long ago, Bell Media announced the sale of 45 of its radio stations, shockingly declaring “it’s not a viable business anymore.” Radio ad revenues continue to decline across the country. Radio measurement has become problematic. Questions surround Numeris. How long can this continue?

I have worked on radio for 40 years and I continue to love the medium. Still, certain facts can’t be ignored. The PPM numbers I discuss below display a few wonky results. There have been a variety of problems with PPM and sample sizes continue to be a real concern.

The PPM methodology has been extremely expensive to operate, making the task of raising sample sizes difficult. In days gone by, we used to discuss the three-hit theory. With PPM, it is difficult to achieve a frequency of two. That raises the question, if Numeris shows stations in a relatively poor light to buyers, are we somehow doing a disservice to station owners? Is the system insufficiently reliable and stable for buyers and analysts? Right now, owners are exploring options. Tomorrow, I will discuss the diary markets and the alternatives being explored there. 

With this book, radio retains an average weekly reach of 83% for Canadians A12+. In home represents 49% of tuning. Out of home represents 51% of tuning. We should note that, for Canadians, 10% of radio consumption comes from AM/FM live radio streaming. Let’s forge on.

The latest PPM release from Numeris completes the 13-week period covering August 26, 2024-November, 2024. Let’s look at the five PPM markets.

Toronto: Bragging rights at the top of the ratings heap go to CBC Radio One delivering an 11.7% share for A12+, followed closely by CHFI with an 11.5%. CHFI-FM comes out on top with women 25-54 with a 13.7 % share (up from 12.3%). For men 25-54, boom leads with 10.1 % (down from 12.0%). In a surprising shift, 640 AM CFIQ is out in front for M18-34 with a 12.9%. CHFI is #1 for F18-34, topping the list at 16.1%. 

As I previously reported, 56 diary markets were discontinued by Numeris, leaving us with our current 22, reporting central area only. radioCount, using a different methodology, has recently released its October/Fall book surveying 22 different markets. All 22 Numeris markets were measured under continuous measurement, using the Online Radio Diary. radioCount uses individual recruitment, while Numeris uses household recruitment. Today’s Numeris release covers the period of November 7, 2022, to November 5, 2023. It is worth mentioning that, in these markets, radio reached 82% of adults 12+ and 84% of adults 25-54. This fall. 38% of A25-54’s listening occurred in their vehicles, up 4% from Fall 2022. In-home tuning, now at 33%, has decreased by 4 percentage points from the previous fall. Canadians 12+ in the top markets spent an average of 13.4 hours per week listening to the radio.

Quebecers 12+ spend 15.8 hours per week listening to radio.

That said, let’s look at 5 sample markets from the latest Numeris release.

Not so long ago, Bell Media announced the sale of 45 of its radio stations, shockingly declaring “it’s not a viable business anymore”. The buyers were Vista Radio, Whiteoaks, Durham Radio, My Broadcasting Corp., ZoomerMedia, Arsenal Media, and Maritime Broadcasting. Clearly, there are a number of believers remaining. Radio remains consistently popular, with an average weekly reach of 83% for Canadians A12+. In-home represents 50% of tuning. Out-of-home represents 50% of tuning. We should note that, for Canadians, 9% of radio consumption comes from AM/FM live radio streaming. Let’s forge on.

The new PPM release from Numeris completes the thirteen weeks covering May 27, 2024-August 25, 2024. Let’s look at the five PPM markets.

Toronto: Bragging rights at the top of the ratings heap go to CHFI delivering a 13.4 % share for A12+.  CHUM-FM receives a nice bump and comes out on top for Females 25-54 with a 16.3% share (up from 11.6%). For males 25-54, BOOM leads at 12.0 % (down from 12.4%). Virgin is out in front for M18-34 with 12.1% (down from 15.8%). Virgin is also out in front for F18-34, topping the list at 16.4% (up from 15.7%). 

As you may recall, Bell Media announced the sale of 45 of its radio stations, shockingly declaring “it’s not a viable business anymore”. The buyers were Vista Radio, Whiteoaks, Durham Radio, My Broadcasting Corp., ZoomerMedia, Arsenal Media, and Maritime Broadcasting. Clearly, there are a number of believers remaining. Radio remains consistently popular, with an average weekly reach of 84% for Canadians A12+. Perhaps reflective of the work-from-home trend, in-home represents 52% of tuning. Out-of-home represents 48% of tuning. We should note that, for Canadians,10% of radio consumption comes from AM/FM live radio streaming. Let’s forge on.

The new PPM release from Numeris completes the thirteen-week period covering February 26, 2024-May 26, 2024. Let’s look at the five PPM markets.

Toronto: Bragging rights at the top of the ratings heap go to CBC Radio One, delivering a 13.6 % share, and CHFI, with a 13.3% share for A12+. BOOM-FM comes out on top for Females 25-54 with a 13.6% share followed by CHUM-FM at 11.6 %. and CHFI-FM with 10.8%. For males 25-54 BOOM leads with 12.4 %. Virgin is out in front for M18-34 with a 15.8%. Virgin is also out in front for F18-34, topping the list at 15.7%.

As I previously reported, 56 diary markets were discontinued by Numeris, leaving us with our current 22, reporting central area only. radioCount, using a different methodology, has recently released their April/Spring book surveying 4 different markets while 22 markets are reported in the Fall. All 2 Numeris markets were measured using continuous measurement using the Online Radio Diary radioCount uses individual recruitment, while Numeris uses household recruitment. Today’s Numeri release covers the period of May 1st, 2023 to April 28th, 2024.

It is worth mentioning that, in these markets, radio reached 81% of A12+ and 82% of adults 25 to 54 In Quebec, weekly reach is at 84% for A12+ and 88% for A25-54. This spring, 38% o Adults 25 to 54’s listening occurred in their vehicles, flat with Fall 2023. In-home tuning, now at 34% has increased 1 percentage point from the previous fall. Canadians 12+ in the top markets spent a average of 13.3 hours per week listening to radio. Quebecers 12+ spend 15.9 hours per week listening t radio.

Numeris encountered a problem when recruitment calls were labelled as “likely spam” which led to a increase in call avoidance. The result was lower respondent engagement than expected for the Sprin Radio Diary release. As a result, 12 markets include samples from previous releases for Spring 2024.

On a personal note, my very good friend Bob Mackowycz passed away unexpectedly yesterday. Bo was a radio legend and one of the best human beings I have ever known. It was an honour to cal him my friend.

Now, let’s look at 6 sample markets from the latest Numeris release.

Significant changes in radio ownership across Canada have prompted discussions concerning the medium's future. Bell Media has announced the sale of 45 of its radio stations, shockingly declaring “ it’s not a viable business anymore”. The buyers are Vista Radio, Whiteoaks, Durham Radio, My Broadcasting Corp., ZoomerMedia, Arsenal Media, and Maritime Broadcasting. Clearly, there are many believers remaining. Still, with stations struggling to maximize revenue, it seems the good old days are gone.

Conversely, radio remains consistently popular, with an average weekly reach of 84% for A12+. Perhaps reflective of the work-from-home trend, in-home represents 52% of tuning. Out-of-home represents 48% of tuning. We should note that, for Canadians,10% of radio consumption come from AM/FM live radio streaming. Let’s forge on.

The new PPM release from Numeris completes the thirteen-week period covering November 23, 2023-February 25, 2024. Instead of driving to and from work, many are still working from home. In-home represents 54% of tuning while out-of-home represents 46%.

Let’s look at the five PPM markets.

Toronto: Bragging rights at the top of the ratings heap go to CHFI delivering a 15.4 % share for A12+ (up from 12.8 %).  CHFI comes out on top for Females 25-54 with a 15.2% share, followed by BOOM at 12.7 %. and CHUM-FM with 12.4%. For males 25-54 BOOM leads with 10.4 % followed by CHFI with 9.0 %. Q107 is out in front for M18-34 with an 11.9% (up from 10.8%) followed by CHFI at 10.4%. CHFI-FM is waaaay out in front for F18-34 topping the list at 24.9%.