Radio Holds More Than 92 Percent of its Lead-In Audience During the Average Commercial Break

Radio ratings data from Arbitron's Portable People Meter andcommercial occurrence data from Media Monitors indicate that thelowest rated minute during an average commercial break is 92 percentof the size of the audience before the spots began, according to a newstudy by Arbitron, Inc. (NYSE: ARB), Media Monitors and Coleman.

What Happens When the Spots Come On: The Impact of Commercials onthe Radio Audience is the first in a series of studies on the radioaudience behavior during commercials using the power of passiveelectronic measurement, both for audiences and for commercialoccurrences.

The study dispels the mistaken belief among advertisers, agenciesand radio executives that radio loses a considerable portion of itsaudience during commercial breaks.

Arbitron, Media Monitors and Coleman analyzed 93,876 radiocommercial breaks from November and December 2005 in Houston, Texas,comparing the audience level for each minute of a commercial break tothe audience for the minute before the commercials began.

Key findings of the study include:

The lowest rated minute during an average commercial break inmorning-drive is 94 percent of the lead-in audience. The high level ofaudience retention in the morning-drive daypart suggests greaterlistener engagement in the morning and substantiates the value ofmorning-drive inventory.

The audience for one-minute breaks is nearly the same as thelead-in audience (99.6 percent), and the lowest rated minute intwo-minute breaks is 94.7 percent of the audience prior to the spotbreak.

The lowest rated minute during three-, four-, five- and six-minutebreaks ranges from 87.7 percent to 89.4 percent of the lead-inaudience.

Radio audience levels do not drop significantly during the third,fourth, fifth and sixth minutes of a commercial break. While audiencelevels are higher during the first and second minutes of the longerbreak, they "level off" between the third and sixth minutes of acommercial break, as many listeners return to stations toward the endof stop sets.

Younger listeners are more likely to tune out of commercials thanolder listeners. Even among younger listeners, however, radio audiencelevels remain very high during commercial breaks.

These findings stand in stark contrast to the perceptions of theadvertiser/agency industry and even of radio broadcasters about theimpact of commercials on the radio audience. In a web poll conductedby Arbitron and Coleman, people identifying themselves as members ofthe advertiser/agency industry (200 responses) said that, on average,the size of the audience in the middle of a radio commercial break isonly 63 percent of the size of the audience one minute prior to thestart of the break. On average, respondents identifying themselves asmembers of the radio industry (324 responses) believe radio holds only68 percent of the audience during commercials.

"This study shows that the long-held perception that listenerstune away from commercials in large numbers is simply not true. Radiodoes a remarkable job of holding its audience through commercialbreaks," said Bill Rose, senior vice president, Marketing, ArbitronInc. "Radio's ability to hold onto 94 percent of its lead-in audienceduring commercial breaks in morning drive suggests greater listenerengagement while people are starting their day and reinforces thevalue of advertising during radio's prime-time."

"For years, people in the industry have assumed that manylisteners change stations or turn off the radio when the ads come on,said Jon Coleman, president, Coleman, a media research firm. "Thesefindings indicate that audience loss due to commercials may notdeserve the hyper-focus it has received from radio programmers."

How the study was conducted

The study compares the radio audience for the minute prior to thestart of commercial breaks (the "lead-in audience") to the audiencefor each subsequent minute during the break. This analysis looks atthe radio audience for 93,876 unique commercial pods during thetwo-month period of November and December 2005 in Houston.

Leslie Wood Research arrayed the data into discrete commercialpods/breaks by determining the date and start/stop times from MediaMonitors. Arbitron PPM data was analyzed to determine the audience foreach of these 93,876 commercial pods/breaks, ranging in length fromone minute to six minutes.

About the Portable People Meter

The Arbitron Portable People Meter (PPM) system uses a passiveaudience measurement device - about the size of a small cell phone -to track consumer exposure to media and entertainment, includingbroadcast, cable and satellite television; terrestrial, satellite andonline radio as well as cinema advertising and many types ofplace-based electronic media. Carried throughout the day by randomlyselected survey participants, the PPM device can track when and wherethey watch television, listen to radio as well as how they interactwith other forms of media and entertainment.

In its current form, the PPM detects inaudible codes embedded inthe audio portion of media and entertainment content delivered bybroadcasters, content providers and distributors. The company is fieldtesting an enhanced version of the meter that can also collect audiosignatures for any radio station, which are later matched tosignatures collected by an in-market monitoring system.

At the end of the day, the meter is placed in a docking stationthat extracts the codes and signatures and sends them to a centralcomputer. The PPM is equipped with a motion sensor, a patented qualitycontrol feature unique to the system, which allows Arbitron to confirmthe compliance of the PPM survey participants every day.

About Coleman

Coleman, headquartered in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina,with offices in Los Angeles and Hamburg, Germany, is a media researchfirm that has provided its clients with deeper insights into musictrends and branding opportunities since 1978. Its client base includesMTV Networks, as well as hundreds of radio stations in North America,South America, Europe and Asia. Additional information about Coleman:http://www.colemaninsights.com/.

About Media Monitors, LLC

Media Monitors, LLC is a world leader in identifying advertisingcontent and providing same-day, online reports for broadcasters,newspapers, media research firms and advertising agencies. Itsservices include spot monitoring for radio, broadcast TV and localcable, also ad tracking in major metropolitan newspapers, Spot Ten(R)weekly charts of radio advertisers, and custom research projects uponrequest. The Media Monitors broadcast content recognition process ofaudio fingerprinting is protected by U.S. Patent 5,437,050. Additionalinformation: http://www.mediamonitors.com/.

About Leslie Wood Research

Leslie Wood Research provides sophisticated analytics, mediaoptimizers and media research consulting services for a blue-chip listof customers including Procter & Gamble, Initiative Media, ArbitronInc., Mediacom, RJ Palmer, Mediamark Research, Time Inc., Dentsu andCompetitive Media Reports. Additional information about Leslie WoodResearch: http://www.lesliewood.com/.

About Arbitron

Arbitron Inc. (NYSE: ARB) is an international media and marketingresearch firm serving radio broadcasters, cable companies,advertisers, advertising agencies and outdoor advertising companies inthe United States, Mexico and Europe. Arbitron's core businesses aremeasuring network and local market radio audiences across the UnitedStates; surveying the retail, media and product patterns of localmarket consumers; and providing application software used foranalyzing media audience and marketing information data. The Companyhas also developed the Portable People Meter (PPM), a new technologyfor media and marketing research.

Arbitron's marketing and business units are supported by itsresearch and technology organization, located in Columbia, Maryland.Arbitron has approximately 1,700 employees; its executive offices arelocated in New York City.

Through its Scarborough Research joint venture with VNU, Inc.,Arbitron also provides media and marketing research services to thebroadcast television, magazine, newspaper and online industries.

Additional information about Arbitron: http://www.arbitron.com/.

Note: A copy of the full report is available at the followinglink: http://www.arbitron.com/downloads/ppm_spot_study.pdf

PPM(SM) is a service mark of Arbitron Inc.