Nielsen Releases 2016 State of the Media: Audio Today

Nielsen has released its Audio Today Report 2016 and it reveals Radio leads all other platforms when it comes to weekly reach (93%) among adult consumers - and with new insights available to compare radio to other platforms on a regular basis, it’s clear that radio is an integral part of media consumption for millions of Americans.

Today the words “radio” and “audio” mean many different things to many different people: music, commentary, podcasting, digital listening, in-car entertainment and on and on. What’s certain is that the radio consumer is a highly qualified audience, delivered in real-time across hundreds of markets every single day. Most radio listeners are in the workforce and are reached when they’re away from home and ready to buy.

In a time of intense competition for audience attention, radio reaches more Americans each week than any other platform. Ninety-three percent of adult consumers (18+) use radio on a weekly basis, more than TV or smartphones.

Today the words “radio” and “audio” mean many different things to many different people: music, commentary, podcasting, digital listening, in-car entertainment and on and on. What’s certain is that the radio consumer is a highly qualified audience, delivered in real-time acrosshundreds of markets every single day. Most radio listeners are in theworkforce and are reached when they’re away from home and ready to buy.

In this year’s report Nielsen examines a host of new and different angles of the American radio audience, including network radio’s national footprint, and the lifestyles and habits of radio’s heaviest contributors.

Click Here To View The Report

And for the first time Nielsen leveragies insights from Nielsen Entertainment to highlight which songs were the most played, purchased and streamed. Building strong radio brands requires more insights than ever before, and at Nielsen our goal is to continue arming broadcasters and content
creators with the right tools and knowledge to engage audiences and cut through today’s crowded media world.

Source: Nielsen National Regional Database, Spring 2015, M-SU 6AM-MID, all listeners 12+, AQH Share
*Country = Country + New Country
**News/Talk = News/Talk/Information + Talk/Personality
***Adult Contemporary = Adult Contemporary + Soft Adult Contemporary