Maybe it’s something in the water, or the sunshine.
The Southern California Broadcasters Association and Miller Kaplan Arase LLC reported a September total radio market revenue “surge” of 7.2%.
SCBA President Thom Callahan stated in the announcement that the month “produced impressive growth for the L.A. radio market.” He called it a critical swing period that “showcased some great revenue performances from our member stations, which maximized both local and national spot and blew the doors off digital revenue.” Total market revenue is revenue generated by the association’s member stations in that market. It includes local spot, national spot and all digital revenue from commercial radio stations.
Year to date, Miller Kaplan Arase reports total revenue growth at 3.4% through September for L.A., but Callahan said the trend line for the third quarter is stronger. “Simply put, Q3 was powerful and we see the same trend developing for Q4.”
He said projected revenue from the Affordable Care Act “has not met our initial expectations at this time” but that the broadcast association is encouraged by activity in the insurance category. Other encouraging sectors in SoCal include automotive spending and sports billing.
The most recent national estimate of commercial radio revenue was issued by the Radio Advertising Bureau in August; it showed overall revenue flat for the first half of the year.
