Jacobs Media: You’d Better Worry About Connected Cars

Fred Jacobs

In his most recent JACOBLOG post, JACOBS MEDIA Pres. FRED JACOBS writes, "Today’s cautionary headline is in direct opposition to some of the stories you may have read last week in many radio trade publications (NET NEWS 8/24). Not surprisingly, the epicenter of the conversation is about radio and automotive.  The broadcast radio industry’s dependence on in-car listening has grown in recent years, due in large part to the disappearance of AM/FM radio at home and in workplaces.  And then there’s the sales piece because automotive continues to be radio’s leading revenue category, whether your station is in OKLAHOMA CITY or NEW YORK CITY.

"So it’s critical that everyone in radio, from its industry leaders to mom and pop owner/operators in small towns have a strong grasp of the changing automotive space, and what it means to radio.  That’s why it struck me as strange last week when I read some misleading and misguided information from two well-respected research organizations – NIELSEN and MARK RAMSEY – who may be letting the data or their opinions color what’s truly happening out there in the dashboard landscape.

"It started with the release of NIELSEN’s 2016 AutoTECHCAST Report Lite – a series of highlights from their AutoTECHCAST study that delves into consumer interest in auto technologies here in the States.  In reading coverage of the study, most headlines centered around the idea that safety is ahead of connectivity as a consumer priority in their cars.  And the other trade takeaway is that consumers are still baffled by connected cars; the implication being this technology is still very early and hasn’t really caught on."

Read the full post here.

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