Media Info Bureau

NBCUniversal's U.S. household addressable footprint is set to expand by nearly 40%. To accomplish this, it has agreed to a newly formed advanced advertising pact with one of the nation's top cable TV service providers. Importantly, NBCUniversal says the deal makes its advanced advertising offering one of the largest offered in the market by a TV publisher.

During its “Stream On” event, Spotify announced that it plans to launch a Hi-Fi streaming plan offering lossless streaming in CD quality later this year in selected markets. This announcement is significant. But, is it noteworthy and of concern to radio broadcasting companies in the U.S. and Canada?

Comcast-owned FreeWheel Advisory Service’s latest research report, “The Definitive Guide to Video,” explores the differences between linear and digital TV advertising. Author David Dworin examines the progress the industry has made in bringing these two worlds together, specifically across two dimensions, in this report.

With the last broadcast transaction of the year the broadcast deal volume for 2020 passed the $1 billion line, closing with a total of $1.02 billion. That's an 87% drop from 2019, Volker Mörbitz of S&P Global Market Intelligence notes, clearly highlighting the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. It is, however, a volume 27% higher than that of 2010.

"Radio is one of the best performing media to help brands recover from a recession." Really? For broadcasters across Great Britain, that seems to be the case, new research from Ebiquity indicates. What learning lessons are there for U.S. radio broadcasting companies that can't seem to propel themselves out of the COVID-19 bog?

The cord-cutting movement is no longer just about saving money on cable versus streaming. Subscription fees for streaming services continue to rise. At the same time, choices are multiplying. Are cord cutters still saving money?

Global marketing firm WARC has released its latest Global Advertising Trends report, with the subject of "Next Generation TV." The study focuses on where ad dollars flowed in 2020. To little surprise, streaming platforms are siphoning dollars, pounds, euros and more away from linear video opportunities.

To better understand the consumer reaction in Michigan to the launch of sports betting, Cumulus Media and its Westwood One national radio arm commissioned MARU/Matchbox to conduct a study of 700 Michigan adults aged 21 and older. The findings are now being shared.

The FCC’s Online Public Inspection File server for radio and television broadcasters has been “live” for nearly three years. Much has been written about what goes in the OPIF, and when. And, the FCC provides a good summary online. Little attention has been paid, however, to what comes out of the OPIF: the co-equal obligation to remove expired material.

Stonecom Radio owner Larry Stone came to Tennessee in 1997 to build a new radio station group serving the Upper Cumberland region of Tennessee from the ground up. Now, he's frustrated and has something to say about the state of the industry. In short, Stone laments, "We are a crisis point in radio." Why? He points to syndication company frustrations of late.

Here's something you may find weird: The time spent watching television increased across 2020. Yet, eMarketer analysis finds, viewership "plummeted" last year. The data suggest television was punished by COVID-19 in very much the same way broadcast Radio was.

The Mentoring and Inspiring Women in Radio (MIW) Group has just released its 2020 Annual Gender Analysis study. It tracks the career progress of women in radio broadcasting rising to the ranks of management. "Even with the unpredictability of 2020, you will still see glimmers of hope within the findings," they say.

Diverse representation matters. That’s been the mantra across the advertising industry and all facets of Corporate America for the last 8 to 10 months. "The challenges and atrocities that we’ve collectively experienced in that timeframe have led to a social awakening," says advertising agency executive Louis Maldonado. Why, then, were the Super Bowl LV spots such a letdown?

GroupM released a blog post on Friday that shares more details on how it is operationalizing data ethics with a proprietary scoring logic, criteria, and standardization tool. The topic could be of key interest to broadcast TV and radio executives. As such, we are sharing it in its entirety to RBR+TVBR Members.

In this Media Information Bureau column, veteran programming consultant Clark Smidt writes about "Smooth transitions, new styles, new challenges, adjustments, attitude, cooperation and teamwork." It could prove to be a catalyst for positive growth at your radio or TV stations.