Play Ball! These two words are the reason the All Sports format’s share of radio listening is up in the latest national Personal People Meter (PPM) ratings for April. You can count on the start of baseball season to deliver a springtime bump to the Sports-Talk stations in the major league markets.
Among persons 6+ the All Sports format rose from a 4.2% share in March to a 4.5% share in April. The 18-34 audience climbed from a 3.1% share in March to a 3.2% share in April. The All Sports core demographic of adults 25-54 moved up two-tenths to hit a 5.0% share in April. Looking back over the past four years, the All Sports format has steadily gained share as the nation’s appetite for sports continues to surge.
All Sports April Listening Trends
| All Sports | April 2013 | April 2014 | April 2015 | April 2016 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Persons 6+ | 4.1% | 4.2% | 4.4% | 4.5% |
| Persons 18-34 | 3.2% | 3.2% | 3.3% | 3.2% |
| Persons 25-54 | 4.6% | 4.8% | 4.8% | 5.0% |
| Source: Nielsen |
Spanish Language Formats Continue Their Hot Streak
Spanish Language formats are also off to a strong start this spring. Mexican Regional is the most popular Spanish Language format, and its share of listening grew this April. Among all persons 6 and up, Mexican Regional’s 3.7% share this spring is up slightly from last year. During the month, the format had a 5.1% share among persons 18-34 and a 4.6% share among adults 25-54. Both numbers are more than half a share point above last year’s performance.
Mexican Regional Listening Trends
| Mexican Regional | April 2013 | April 2014 | April 2015 | April 2016 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Persons 6+ | 3.9% | 3.7% | 3.2% | 3.7% |
| Persons 18-34 | 5.6% | 5.2% | 4.5% | 5.1% |
| Persons 25-54 | 4.7% | 4.5% | 4.0% | 4.6% |
| Source: Nielsen |
Spanish Contemporary is also having one of its best April books in quite a few years. Currently, Spanish Contemporary’s 2.6% share is just one-tenth of a point from its all-time high of a 2.7% share among person 6 and up. The format’s 3.1% share of persons 18-34 has tied April 2013 for best April performance, and the format’s 2.9% share among persons 25-54 is the best April on record. According to the Audio Today 2016 report, 97% of all Hispanics can be reached by radio each week making it no surprise that these two formats are leading the way.
Spanish Contemporary April Listening Trends
| Spanish Contemporary | April 2013 | April 2014 | April 2015 | April 2016 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Persons 6+ | 2.3% | 2.1% | 2.3% | 2.6% |
| Persons 18-34 | 3.1% | 2.7% | 2.7% | 3.1% |
| Persons 25-54 | 2.6% | 2.4% | 2.7% | 2.9% |
| Source: Nielsen |
April 2016 PPM Markets Top Five Formats by Average Quarter Hour Share (Full Week Daypart)
| Persons 6+ | Adults 18-34 | Adults 25-54 |
|---|---|---|
| News/Talk (9.5%) | Pop CHR (8.8%) | |
| Pop CHR (8.0%) | Country (7.3%) | |
| AC (7.5%) | Hot AC (7.3%) | AC (7.1%) |
| Country (7.4%) | Urban Contemporary (6.7%) | Hot AC (7.0%) |
| Hot AC (6.4%) | AC (6.5%) | News/Talk (6.7%) |
| PPM—Portable people meter. CHR—Contemporary Hit Radio. AC—Adult Contemporary. Source: Nielsen |
*Nielsen Audio officially has 48 measured PPM Markets, but three of them (Nassau-Suffolk, Middlesex-Somerset-Union, and San Jose) are included in the larger New York and San Francisco metro areas. Therefore, the listening data from those Markets are included in these results even though we did not break them out separately.
Data used in this report is inclusive of multicultural audiences. Hispanic consumer audiences are composed of both English- and Spanish-speaking representative populations.
