This may be the
year for internet radio
One force driving it will be stand-alone radio sets
By Heidi Dawley
Jan 21, 2009
After years of being out there and talked about, but not much more, internet radio may finally go from an interesting idea to a stand-alone commercial medium.
And that promise is pretty grand in the view of some analysts. "In 2009, internet radio may not just reinvigorate the medium of radio. It may reinvent it,” predicts Deloitte, the consulting outfit.
What will allow that to happen is what spawned internet radio in the first place: technology that untethers internet radio from the computer, making it far more portable. Enter the WiFi radio set, which uses wireless technology to access the internet and play internet radio stations and podcasts.
WiFi radio offers features not available through traditional radio, such as allowing users to search electronic programming guides, and in time the devices will offer DVR features as well.
“There is a very significant difference between analog radio and what you can do with WiFi radio,” says Paul Lee, director of research at Deloitte in London.
Such radio sets are already available, but Lee expects them to start coming down in price this year.
Another, perhaps even more significant factor in the potential of internet radio is the growing number of smart phones, which can also be used to play internet radio using WiFi. They will contribute to the rising popularity of internet radio among people who might otherwise not consider buying a dedicated set.
“It won’t be mass market this year because it is a year when people will be tight with spending,” says Lee. "But it should be a significant year for radio.”
Though internet radio has been around for some 15 years now, it's still relatively undeveloped, with some 10,000 stations compared to about 44,000 traditional stations worldwide, and Lee says that's it a niche medium.
But all that could change this year. With nearly 1.5 billion internet users worldwide and the majority of them sporting broadband connections, one forecast believes online radio’s addressable market could grow by 20 percent.
As that happens, internet radio will become that much more attractive to advertisers. Says Lee: "The power of online is accountability, and what WiFi radio offers is accountability.”
***
Meanwhile, in online ratings for the week ended Jan. 11, according to Nielsen Online, Google claimed the top spot among parent companies, followed by Microsoft, Yahoo, AOL LLC and News Corp. Online. The top five brands were Google, Yahoo, MSN/Windows Live, Microsoft and AOL Media Network.
Netflix claimed the top advertiser spot with 2.77 million impressions, followed by Experian Group Limited at 1.61 million. With 13.1 million ads served, Yahoo was again the top advertising site, well ahead of No. 2 MSN at 2.63 million.
Sessions per person per week rose one from the previous week to 17, and domains visited per person jumped two, to 43. PC time per person soared 13.9 percent compared with the previous week to 19 hours and almost 29 minutes.
|
Top 25 parent companies
Week ending Jan. 11 |
|
#
|
Parent
|
Unique Audience (000)
|
Reach %
|
Time Spent per Person (hh:mm:ss)
|
|
1
|
Google
|
102,921
|
70.5
|
0:42:25
|
|
2
|
Microsoft
|
91,709
|
62.8
|
0:50:32
|
|
3
|
Yahoo!
|
81,366
|
55.7
|
1:11:41
|
|
4
|
AOL LLC
|
53,960
|
37.0
|
1:27:38
|
|
5
|
News Corp. Online
|
44,258
|
30.3
|
0:39:01
|
|
6
|
eBay
|
35,400
|
24.3
|
0:46:41
|
|
7
|
Facebook
|
35,130
|
24.1
|
1:04:40
|
|
8
|
InterActiveCorp
|
31,599
|
21.7
|
0:10:31
|
|
9
|
Amazon
|
30,448
|
20.9
|
0:14:22
|
|
10
|
Apple Computer
|
29,217
|
20.0
|
0:36:50
|
|
11
|
Wikimedia Foundation
|
26,343
|
18.1
|
0:09:15
|
|
12
|
Walt Disney Internet Group
|
24,268
|
16.6
|
0:16:58
|
|
13
|
Turner Network (Time Warner)
|
23,974
|
16.4
|
0:21:01
|
|
14
|
New York Times Company
|
23,301
|
16.0
|
0:10:30
|
|
15
|
CBS Corporation
|
21,994
|
15.1
|
0:09:14
|
|
16
|
Landmark Communications
|
21,273
|
14.6
|
0:14:03
|
|
17
|
AT&T Inc.
|
18,733
|
12.8
|
0:19:23
|
|
18
|
CraigsList
|
15,907
|
10.9
|
0:36:39
|
|
19
|
Comcast Corp.
|
14,857
|
10.2
|
0:30:05
|
|
20
|
Glam Media
|
14,509
|
9.9
|
0:12:51
|
|
21
|
Verizon Communications
|
14,443
|
9.9
|
0:19:09
|
|
22
|
Scripps Networks Interactive
|
14,121
|
9.7
|
0:05:51
|
|
23
|
RealNetworks, Inc.
|
13,789
|
9.5
|
0:18:39
|
|
24
|
Time Warner (not inc. Turner Network)
|
12,964
|
8.9
|
0:11:41
|
|
25
|
Bank of America
|
12,894
|
8.8
|
0:21:43
|
|
* Time Warner division excludes Turner Network’s audience
Source: Nielsen Online
Note: The parent level is defined as a consolidation of multiple domains and URLs owned by a single company or division.
|
|
Top 25 brands
Week ending Jan. 11 |
|
|
Parent
|
Unique Audience (000)
|
Reach %
|
Time spent per person (hh:mm:ss)
|
|
1 |
Google
|
95,774
|
65.6
|
0:29:33
|
|
2 |
Yahoo!
|
80,576
|
55.2
|
1:11:52
|
|
3 |
MSN/Windows Live
|
69,528
|
47.6
|
0:51:38
|
|
4 |
Microsoft
|
59,854
|
41.0
|
0:17:22
|
|
5 |
AOL Media Network
|
53,960
|
37.0
|
1:27:38
|
|
6 |
YouTube
|
41,937
|
28.7
|
0:31:17
|
|
7 |
Fox Interactive Media
|
38,262
|
26.2
|
0:38:09
|
|
8 |
Facebook
|
35,115
|
24.1
|
1:04:41
|
|
9 |
Apple
|
29,217
|
20.0
|
0:36:50
|
|
10 |
eBay
|
26,715
|
18.3
|
0:53:35
|
|
11 |
Wikipedia
|
26,110
|
17.9
|
0:09:10
|
|
12 |
Amazon
|
26,093
|
17.9
|
0:13:20
|
|
13 |
Blogger
|
20,276
|
13.9
|
0:07:20
|
|
14 |
Ask Search Network
|
20,154
|
13.8
|
0:10:40
|
|
15 |
Weather Channel
|
18,710
|
12.8
|
0:14:17
|
|
16 |
CNN Digital Network
|
18,298
|
12.5
|
0:20:46
|
|
17 |
Craigslist
|
15,871
|
10.9
|
0:36:42
|
|
18 |
Glam Media
|
14,509
|
9.9
|
0:12:51
|
|
19 |
About.com
|
14,303
|
9.8
|
0:03:31
|
|
20 |
Real Network
|
13,749
|
9.4
|
0:18:41
|
|
21 |
AT&T
|
13,302
|
9.1
|
0:24:06
|
|
22 |
Bank of America
|
12,887
|
8.8
|
0:21:43
|
|
23 |
Wal-Mart Stores
|
10,699
|
7.3
|
0:08:54
|
|
24 |
Comcast
|
10,493
|
7.2
|
0:39:36
|
|
25 |
Chase
|
9,811
|
6.7
|
0:14:45
|
|
Source: Nielsen Online
Note: The brand level is defined as a consolidation of multiple domains and URLs that has a consistent collection of branded content. |
|
Top 25 advertisers
(excludes house ads)
Week ending Jan. 11 |
|
#
|
Company
|
Impressions (000)
|
|
1 |
Netflix, Inc.
|
2,676,845
|
|
2 |
Experian Group Limited
|
1,612,089
|
|
3 |
Scottrade, Inc.
|
1,217,433
|
|
4 |
AT&T Corp.
|
1,051,013
|
|
5 |
Vonage Holdings Corp
|
819,065
|
|
6 |
United Online, Inc.
|
758,909
|
|
7 |
InternetGiftPromotions.com
|
732,644
|
|
8 |
Verizon Communications, Inc.
|
585,471
|
|
9 |
NexTag, Inc.
|
578,448
|
|
10 |
Fandango, Inc.
|
515,769
|
|
11 |
Deutsche Telekom AG
|
512,552
|
|
12 |
Travelzoo.com
|
457,107
|
|
13 |
E*TRADE FINANCIAL Corp.
|
439,932
|
|
14 |
Degrees.info
|
429,547
|
|
15 |
Weight Watchers International, Inc.
|
406,213
|
|
16 |
FreeScore.com
|
371,623
|
|
17 |
Time Warner Inc.
|
356,289
|
|
18 |
InterActiveCorp
|
330,658
|
|
19 |
TD Ameritrade Holding Corporation
|
313,113
|
|
20 |
Apollo Group, Inc.
|
283,547
|
|
21 |
GIO General Ltd
|
268,656
|
|
22 |
DirectBuy
|
262,476
|
|
23 |
Sales Spider
|
261,404
|
|
24 |
Progressive Casualty Insurance Company
|
256,861
|
|
25 |
WebEx
|
236,740
|
|
Source: Nielsen Online, AdRelevance
Note: Nielsen Online, AdRelevance service estimated online advertising expenditures account for CPM-based image-based advertising. All reported estimated expenditures and impressions do not account for the following placement types: text only, paid fee services, performance-based campaigns, sponsorships, barters, in-stream ("pre-rolls") players, messenger applications, partnership advertising, promotions and email campaigns. AdRelevance currently does not report estimated spending for paid search advertising. Also, Nielsen Online, AdRelevance reporting data reflects advertising activity served on pages accessible via the World Wide Web and not within AOL's proprietary service. |
|
Top 25 advertising sites
(excludes house ads)
Week ending Jan. 11 |
|
|
Company
|
Impressions (000)
|
|
1 |
Yahoo!
|
13,068,031
|
|
2 |
MSN
|
2,633,718
|
|
3 |
Comcast.net
|
2,049,023
|
|
4 |
AOL.com
|
1,315,039
|
|
5 |
The Weather Channel
|
970,399
|
|
6 |
FOXNEWS.COM
|
931,469
|
|
7 |
Facebook
|
788,502
|
|
8 |
IMDb
|
778,468
|
|
9 |
eBay
|
429,058
|
|
10 |
CNBC
|
345,351
|
|
11 |
Amazon
|
341,870
|
|
12 |
New York Times
|
314,051
|
|
13 |
Juno
|
306,557
|
|
14 |
ESPN.com
|
305,135
|
|
15 |
Charter.net
|
273,069
|
|
16 |
NetZero
|
258,319
|
|
17 |
Pogo
|
249,414
|
|
18 |
Verizon Online
|
223,214
|
|
19 |
CNN
|
222,480
|
|
20 |
NeoPets
|
199,141
|
|
21 |
Tagged
|
187,561
|
|
22 |
CNN Money
|
187,421
|
|
23 |
MSNBC
|
182,232
|
|
24 |
MySpace
|
176,048
|
|
25 |
Perezhilton.com
|
167,318
|
|
Source: Nielsen Online, AdRelevance
Note: Nielsen Online, AdRelevance service estimated online advertising expenditures account for CPM-based image-based advertising. All reported estimated expenditures and impressions do not account for the following placement types: text only, paid fee services, performance-based campaigns, sponsorships, barters, in-stream ("pre-rolls") players, messenger applications, partnership advertising, promotions and email campaigns. AdRelevance currently does not report estimated spending for paid search advertising. Above data does not include any house advertising activity. Also, Nielsen Online, AdRelevance reporting data reflects advertising activity served on pages accessible via the World Wide Web and not within AOL's proprietary service. |
|
Average use
Week ending Jan. 11 |
|
|
Current Week
|
Last Week
|
% Change
|
|
Sessions/Visits per Person
|
17
|
16
|
6.25
|
|
Domains Visited per Person
|
43
|
41
|
4.88
|
|
PC Time per Person
|
19:28:58
|
17:06:22
|
13.89
|
|
Active Digital Media Universe
|
145,962,313
|
142,640,806
|
2.33
|
|
Current Digital Media Universe Estimate
|
229,154,856
|
225630937.0
|
1.56
|
|
Source: Nielsen Online |
|
|
|
