Are changes in the works for Emmis NY?

[Hunter]

Word is that Emmis is EXTREMELY concerned about the huge negative impact black skewing stations tend to suffer when PPM's are introduced. PPMs tend to show lower listening for most stations, but espceially those with a significant Af-Am audience. Emmis could get killed and is even considering a sale....but can they find a buyer?

 

[KML0224]

First of all, what is PPM?

 

[Hunter]

First of all, what is PPM?

Personal People Meter - The new device Arbitron will be using as they switch from a "diary" methodology to "electronic data" gathering methodology

 

[FreestylePete]

Convert CD 101.9 or Kiss FM to Dance/CHR!

 

[jkb]

Well provide more Af-Americans ppm's. In all of these years I have never received a radio book, tv box or any sample. The whole system is flawed anyway.


Now will you see stations turn away from rap 24/7??? Yes (Look at Radio One). What will they replace it with??

That's the million dollar question. There is tons of new music out there in the R&B genre. Just listen to the Neo Soul Cafe online and say wow I have never heard that song.

Is Kiss was smart they would create a Neo-Soul channel targeting 25+ crowds playing real new soul music not just the same 10 songs over and over again. Not only would that target college educated Af-Americans, but it would also appeal to non Af-Americans. NO Rap

 

[davideduardo]

Well provide more Af-Americans ppm's. In all of these years I have never received a radio book, tv box or any sample. The whole system is flawed anyway.

The PPMs in Black households mirrors the percentage of Blacks in each market. There is nothing wrong with the sample... there may be issues with cooperation (carrying) rates or it may be that the diary exaggerated listening... but there is no sample issue.

The average person will be surveyed by Arbitron about once every 100 years. That is why it is a poll, not a census.

 

[LinoNYC]

PPMs tend to show lower listening for most stations, but espceially those with a significant Af-Am audience.

I read an article about this problem after the results from the first Philadelphia PPM survey showed a dramatic decrease for the "urban" formats.

There is talk about gerrymandering...I mean developing a "compensating" mechanism to address this effect. They'll probably come up with something that would please the likes of Lani Guinier.

As I have stated before, I feel this system is flawed and contradicts the whole concept of a demographically diverse panel survey.

Case in point: Last night I met some friends at a restaurant here in my neighborhood. The location had WKTU playing over their system, during the 1 1/2 hours we were there we payed no attention to the radio, I couldn't recall a single song played, let alone commercials.

However, if one of us had carried a PPM, they would be "credited" with listening to a station we had no interest in.

In fairness, this system is probably "slightly" more accurate then the diaries that the average schmo wouldn't bother to fill-out 'till the last day, and, in anticipation of this new system stations are implementing background-friendly formats. I suspect that this is why we got some form of oldies back.

Lino

 

[MarcR]

Convert CD 101.9 or Kiss FM to Dance/CHR!

And watch their ratings plummet even more! ;D

 

[chuckydoll]

No -- just another whiteboy fantasy

Emmis did disclose that 98.7 Kiss FM took in less money than projected in June. That was mentioned in a company earnings report a few weeks ago.

Other than that there is nothing wrong with Emmis' NYC cluster or its formats. Hot 97 has been R&B/hip-hop for 14 years; 98.7 Kiss FM has been R&B for 26 years; CD 101.9 has been jazz/AC since the late 80's. You don't last as long as they have without some kind of advertiser loyalty.

Also, ID'ing a format as "urban" is racist and backward.

 

[davideduardo]

Re: No -- just another whiteboy fantasy

Other than that there is nothing wrong with Emmis' NYC cluster or its formats. Hot 97 has been R&B/hip-hop for 14 years; 98.7 Kiss FM has been R&B for 26 years; CD 101.9 has been jazz/AC since the late 80's. You don't last

The fact is that in both PPM markets, Black targeted stations have had major TSL issues and lower shares.

While I have not studied the specific issues, I can address the same concern among Spanish language stations. There we have also seen TSL erosion. The cultural explanation is real: in the diary, Hispanics tend to round to the nearest hour or, sometimes, half-hour... so the diary may have shown longer-than real listening. This changes in the PPM because the meter does not round but, instead, registers exact listening.

Such factors may be why Emmis has formed a PPM task force to look at how their urban and Black-core stations will do in the PPM, coming to NY in 50 days.

Advertisers are loyal to the extent of how well you did in the last book in markets that are agency-buy dependent. There is no loyalty beyond being faithful to the CPP.

 

[Hunter]

Re: No -- just another whiteboy fantasy

Emmis did disclose that 98.7 Kiss FM took in less money than projected in June. That was mentioned in a company earnings report a few weeks ago.

PPMs won't begin for several more weeks. What has happened in the past may only exacerbate future ratings/revenue challenges.

Other than that there is nothing wrong with Emmis' NYC cluster or its formats. Hot 97 has been R&B/hip-hop for 14 years; 98.7 Kiss FM has been R&B for 26 years; CD 101.9 has been jazz/AC since the late 80's. You don't last as long as they have without some kind of advertiser loyalty.

They have also had good ratings and good relationships in the ad community for all these years. Ad buyers will obviously have to change their strategy to accommodate the new methodology. Cost Per Point, the total point goal and the number of stations that are purchased for each buy will probably change. It will be a whole new way of doing business and stations and their advertisers will have to find a way to help each other - the new system, which tends to show lower listening levels for the market as a whole - and even less for formats similar to the Emmis properties, creates more of a challenge for agencies to keep their clients happy.

 

[Hunter]

By the way, just so I don't sound so doom & gloom for the radio industry with the switch, the TV industry went through a similar change in how local tv viewership data was gathered. Until a few years ago, Nielson also used a diary methodology to gather local ratings in each market, then switched to Local People Meters (LPMs), which caused similar problems for agencies.

As a side note, electronic tv set boxes have been used by Nielson for years to determine national network viewing, but started local usage of the LPMs more recently.

 

[Bob E. Nelson]

Re: No -- just another whiteboy fantasy

The cultural explanation is real: in the diary, Hispanics tend to round to the nearest hour or, sometimes, half-hour... so the diary may have shown longer-than real listening. This changes in the PPM because the meter does not round but, instead, registers exact listening.

Please elaborate. Why would ``Hispanics tend to round to the nearest hour or, sometimes, half-hour'' as opposed to other ethnic groups when recording listening in a diary entry?

Once assimilated, does this tendency still occur?

 

[davideduardo]

Re: No -- just another whiteboy fantasy

Please elaborate. Why would ``Hispanics tend to round to the nearest hour or, sometimes, half-hour'' as opposed to other ethnic groups when recording listening in a diary entry?

It´s cultural. Seldom do you hear someone saying, "I will meet you at 10:10" or at "Quarter past 10". It's 10 or 10:30. And adherence to 2exact time" is far less a preoccupation in Latin American society. There have been graduate theses written about this...

I have been reviewing Arbitron diaries at Beltsville, Laurel and Columbia since 1970 and have looked at tens and tens of thousands. Hispanic diaries have far more full hour entries than non-Hispanic white diaries do.

Once assimilated, does this tendency still occur?

By about the third generation, it appears to. This is also the generation where culturally, Hispanics are likely to be more "American" than "Latin."