As broadcasters look to smart speakers to increase AM/FM radio listening at home, a new study shows that one-fifth of broadcast radio’s biggest users already own such a device. That’s just one finding from “The Infinite Dial: Heavy Radio Listeners,” released today by Edison Research. The data is derived from The Infinite Dial 2018 study, which is conducted in partnership with Triton Digital.
This report looks at the 30% of the American population ages 12 and over who are “Heavy Radio Listeners” – defined as those who listened to more than one hour of radio in the last day. This new data on the Heavy Radio Listener from The Infinite Dial allows everyone to understand not just what other kinds of audio and media people are using, but how Heavy Radio Listeners compare to the population at large.
New insights from this report include:
- Almost 18% of Heavy Radio Listeners do not have a radio receiver in their home, meaning they achieved “heavy” status primarily through in-car or at-work listening.
- Twenty percent of Heavy Radio Listeners have Smart Speakers in their homes. Those devices may allow for more at-home listening over time, but can also make it easier to use competing audio services.
- Nearly two-thirds of Heavy Radio Listeners listen to audio online, with large numbers choosing YouTube, Pandora, and the streams of AM and FM radio stations.
- The qualitative profile of the Heavy Radio Listener is strong and shows a group that is employed and well-educated.
- Over 1 in 6 Heavy Radio Listeners say they have listened to a podcast in the last week.
In keeping with findings from past Edison Research studies, radio’s best customers are heavy users of all audio—they listen heavily to broadcast radio, but do not limit themselves to it, something which has implications for future smart-speaker behavior.
