Boston Arbitron Radio Ratings: July 2012

[pjc1961]

Boston area ratings: http://www.radio-info.com/markets/boston

Publicly released age 6+ overall rankings for the July 2012 survey period covering Thu. 6/21/12 - Wed. 7/18/12.

The next survey period will be for August 2012 covering Thu. 7/19/12 - Wed. 8/16/12 with the report delivery date being Wed. 9/5/12
(delayed one day due to Labor Day holiday on Mon. 9/3/12).

Note: stations that do not subscribe to Arbitron in certain markets will not show in those markets.

 

[promixcuous]

WBZ is not what it once was. Thoughts?

 

[fmradio1]

At first glance, Kiss 108 doesn't seem to be affected by AMP. However, Jam'n is down, and now out of the top 5. There may be some sampling of Amp going on. Considering the drastic change in format, WODS didn't take as big of a hit as could be expected. The next book should be interesting. My guess is the cume will go up, but the 6+ may not.

Slight rebound for the Sports Hub (I thought the last book was an outlier) while WEEI is down (Sox tanking can't be helping) but their cume is strong so they have the upper hand, at least for now.

True to form, Talk 1200 had a decent book before they blew it up. They came within 2/10's of a point behind WRKO despite a smaller cume. Three months before a presidential election (with an incumbant Democrat AND a tight Senate contest nonetheless) and TKK and WRKO are down. Normally talkers spike before major elections. Not this year. This should be a warning sign, and it could be why CC is pulling out of the format.

WROR and Magic seem to be the beneficiary of Classic Hits going away on 103.3, as expected. Everyone else holding steady.

 

[chrocket87]

No last book numbers for FNX? Shame on you, phoenix.

 

[Improv]

Interesting to me that WGBH is only slightly above WERS, while WBUR remains way up there, seemingly unshaken by 'GBH.

 

[Jimmy128]

Interesting to me that WGBH is only slightly above WERS, while WBUR remains way up there, seemingly unshaken by 'GBH.

The Great WGBH is beaten again by Nashua station WFNQ and also the late WXKS-AM.

 

[reelyreal]

WBZ is not what it once was. Thoughts?

Summer slumps for news/talk and other 25-54-heavy stations is nothing new, and I don't see any reason to think it's anything other than that.

WROR is definitely looking like a winner right now.

 

[4CX1000A]

Look at WXRV: same share as the next station down, WCRB, but with more than twice the cume.

 

[leethalweapon]

Look at WXRV: same share as the next station down, WCRB, but with more than twice the cume.

Cume wise, it would appear FNX listeners may have been hopping between WBOS and WXRV.

 

[fmradio1]

WFNX's flip isn't reflected in this book. Mindich stopped subscribing to Arbitron, so 101.7's last rating as an alternative station is unpublished. The numbers at WXRV and WBOS are largely normal fluctuations, and most likely those two stations shared a lot of listeners with WFNX anyway. The NEXT set of ratings will be the first full book for the Harbor and AMP, and it will give us a much better idea how they are resonating in the market, at least to start.

 

[Joseph_Gallant]

Not surprised WXKS-FM-107.9 spiked.

Popularity of top-40/CHR stations always seems to spike in the Summer, thanks to all those teens out of school.

 

[mgpt6]

Think WBZ will be on FM soon then one would think. No.7 overall in cume with even ZLX doing better in cume..prediction: AMP-FM 103.3 becomes AMP104.1 with MIx on HD-2 and Newsradio 1030/103.3 WBZ AM and FM Boston. WRKO is next AM only at 13 th or 14th place overall. The real estate for the towers is woth more than AM stations.

 

[raccoonradio]

I was thinking that too, Amp to 104.1 as part of it. From Newsradio 1-0-3-0 to Newsradio 1-0-3-3
(on both AM/FM actually)

 

[reelyreal]

They're not idiots at CBS. If that's what the plan is, AMP would have launched on 104.1.

It's all about the billing, and WBZ still brings it with nobody to threaten it in Boston.

Also, I wouldn't say "even WZLX." Number 1 station males 25-54? ZLX is the station to beat for the male demos.

 

[NERadio2007]

They're not idiots at CBS. If that's what the plan is, AMP would have launched on 104.1.

I don't know about the "they're not idiots" comment because they are run by incompetant people...but yes, it would be hard to not see WBZ go FM within the next 5 years or so. Start to play more heavy rotation of AMP music on Mix and just eventually switch the name over to 104.1 and then BZ on 103.3

 

[leegart]

I was thinking that too, Amp to 104.1 as part of it. From Newsradio 1-0-3-0 to Newsradio 1-0-3-3
(on both AM/FM actually)

Prediction:

103.3/1030 Newsradio/Talk At Night Simulcast.

104.1......Classic Hits/Oldies in some form (ala CBS-FM "Flip Back"... after AMP 103.3 and Mix 104.1...have a series of unsatisfactory ratings books). They will be scrambling around to find an unserved audience after they don't make much of a dent in KISS-108 and JAM'N's ratings and there aren't too many other format options.

 

[reelyreal]

You're showing the reasons none of you work in radio full-time. You don't get it.

As someone who has worked for many broadcasters large and small, full time, I can tell you that CBS is run by people who get it. I don't like Greg Strassell, but on a whole I can tell you that they're smart, they get it.

 

[CTListener]

104.1......Classic Hits/Oldies in some form (ala CBS-FM "Flip Back"... after AMP 103.3 and Mix 104.1...have a series of unsatisfactory ratings books). They will be scrambling around to find an unserved audience after they don't make much of a dent in KISS-108 and JAM'N's ratings and there aren't too many other format options.

Good luck finding advertiser support for that.

 

[mgpt6]

CBS will want to save WBZ same way Entercomm saved WEEI by putting 850AM on 93.7 FM too. Who knows which formats CBS will keep on their remaining main FM signals. Pretty sure that Sports Hub 98.5 will remain

 

[reelyreal]

CBS will want to save WBZ same way Entercomm saved WEEI by putting 850AM on 93.7 FM too. Who knows which formats CBS will keep on their remaining main FM signals. Pretty sure that Sports Hub 98.5 will remain

Save it from who? The non-existent FM competitor?

The WEEI situation was totally different. They were doing just fine until a quality FM competitor launched.

Show me a new all-news FM in Boston, and then I'll buy the "WBZ to FM" idea any time in the next five years. It'll happen way down the road, but there is just no. compelling. reason. for it to happen now.