The 'Howard Stern Factor' is overrated: few Americans expect to purchase satellite radio

CHARLESTON, S.C. – Despite recent media attention about shock jock Howard Stern’s widely publicized transfer to satellite radio, a nationwide survey indicates a large majority of Americans (86 percent) are not likely to consider the purchase of satellite radio in the future because of his move.

Broken down further, 69 percent of those responding said they were “not at all likely” to consider purchasing satellite, and 17 percent said they were “not very likely” to after Stern’s move. The respondents’ negative reaction to the Stern question was even stronger than another question that asked their likelihood of paying for satellite service.

In that question, respondents were first told that satellite radio usage requires the purchase of equipment and a monthly fee, then were asked if they were likely to purchase satellite radio over the next year. Eighty-two percent said such a purchase was unlikely, with 64 percent saying they were “not at all likely,” and 18 percent responding “not very likely.” Eighty-eight percent of those surveyed responded that they are not subscribers of satellite radio.

“We have long suspected that all the national media interest in Stern and satellite radio did not reflect what was going on with the American consumer,” said Ed Seeger, President and Chief Executive Officer of American Media Services (AMS), which commissioned the survey. “These are dynamic times for conventional broadcast radio; there are lots of new opportunities with the emerging technologies, and radio has proven again and again that it is here to stay.”

The survey also revealed that almost two-thirds of those surveyed – 64 percent – responded that they are listening to radio more, or about the same amount of time, as they were five years ago.

AMS Findings Bolstered by Second Survey

Seeger noted that the AMS findings are supported by another survey released in January by the Center for Media Research that found conventional radio listenership beginning to stabilize. “This supporting finding is a result of radio owners’ decisions to lower commercial loads and concentrate on content,” he added. “We believe that there are compelling numbers in these results that indicate radio will continue to be a strong contender for consumers’ attention.”

The AMS survey was a random digital dial telephone survey of 1,008 American adults that was conducted by Roper OmniTel, the weekly omnibus survey of GfK NOP of Princeton, N.J. The survey was conducted over the weekends of January 13-15, 2006, and January 20-22, 2006. A random sample of this size reflects American opinion within plus or minus three percentage points.

Additional Stern-related findings indicated that only 12 percent of respondents were likely to consider purchasing satellite radio to listen to Stern. Of those respondents, most fell into the 18-34 age group, and men outnumbered women two to one. Outside of that age group, the respondents’ likelihood of purchasing satellite because of Stern fell off sharply.

“Listening to local radio continues to be a part of the American fabric, and this survey supports that,” Seeger said.

What the Consumer Likes About Local Radio

The survey also asked the 1,008 respondents what they liked best in conventional radio. Thirty-three percent of them said “local traffic and weather information,” while another 25 percent said they liked radio because “it’s always available when you need it.” Thirteen percent said they liked radio because it helped connect them to events taking place in their community, and 10 percent said they liked radio because they knew they could get vital information from radio in case of an emergency. As to what consumers did not like about radio, 57 percent responded that “the amount of time for commercials” is the highest on their lists.

“This survey has reinforced what we have known for several years, that local radio has a unique and unmatched place in the American community,” AMS’s Seeger said. “Other technologies are going to be there to compete, but radio has made some fundamental changes over the past couple of years, and I think the consumer knows that.”

AMS is a full-service radio brokerage, engineering and developmental engineering firm, and its developmental division leads the country in successfully implementing station upgrades by moving them into larger markets, dramatically increasing their value. Since its founding in 1997, AMS has increased the value of 21 stations across the country by $205.1 million, and more than $200 million in proposed rulemakings are currently pending before the FCC.