Bid4Spots President/CEO Dave Newmark told Radio World in an interview that the eBay deal “is a signal to advertising agencies that there are a growing number of ways to access radio inventory.”
“The agencies that will win in the long run are the ones who know how to pull each lever of the (marketing) machine properly. Every single method does something a little bit different,” he said.
Of approximately 11,000 commercial U.S. radio stations, the top 5,000 or so are rated by Arbitron two or four times a year, by demo and by daypart. “Of that, today we have about 2,400 stations, approximately half. I predict we’ll have all of the stations in the U.S. by the end of the year,” he told RW.
Newmark said he makes this prediction about the Bid4Spots system because there’s no commitment required for stations to sign up, observe or try the system.
He disputed concerns from some observers that online auctions will prompt a “race to the bottom” in rates. “What happens when there are more and more buyers? What happens when there are more and more people trying to transact in this space?” he asked, arguing that rates will go up, not down, when there is more demand for a product.
