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Research Director, Inc. Presents Exclusive Feb. PPM Analysis For Houston, Washington DC, Philadelphia, Atlanta, Boston
March 18, 2014
Have an opinion? Add your comment below. HOUSTON-GALVESTON: A Tectonic Shift?
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ALL ACCESS presents FEBRUARY PPM market highlights, compiled by the ratings experts at RESEARCH DIRECTOR, INC. and powered by XTRENDS, radio's #1 PPM and diary analysis tool. All numbers reflect subscriber-only data. Another day, another round of ratings recaps involving the FEBRUARY 2014 survey. For those keeping score at home, this book was fielded from 1/30 through 2/26 so it is primarily in the month of its name.
As always, the ratings experts at RESEARCH DIRECTOR, INC. provide this information for discussion purposes only. Please, no wagering.
The countdown continues …
HOUSTON-GALVESTON: A Tectonic Shift?
For month after month, year after year, we would automatically pen RADIO ONE Top 40/R KBXX (THE BOX) into the top spot. It seemed that no matter what happened in the market, the race was always for second place. Then, just before the JANUARY book launched, CCM+E Urban KQBT (THE BEAT) made its debut and things have not been the same since. For the fourth straight survey, KBXX was not #1. This time the station fell from a tie at #3 into a tie at #4 even though it was flat (5.4-5.4). While KQBT did not have a spectacular survey – falling two spots into a tie at #12 (3.9-3.5) – its arrival has wrought many changes. Not the least of which was that cluster sister CCM+E AC KODA (SUNNY) was #1 for the fourth straight survey (7.0-7.2) with its best non-Rudolph-influenced number in over a year. COX RADIO Country KKBQ (93Q) had its second straight strong book (6.6-6.8) to remain a close #2. RADIO ONE Urban AC KMJQ (MAJIC) bounced back from its lowest book in over a year (5.4-6.0) to remain at #3. UNIVISION Regional Mexican KLTN (ESTEREO LATINO) turned in its best performance since OCTOBER (4.8-5.4) to move from a tie at #6 into a tie at #4. One station that truly benefitted from THE BEAT’s debut was COX RADIO Classic Hits KGLK (THE EAGLE), which cracked the five-share plateau for the second month in a row (5.2-5.1) as it slipped a spot to #6. Still, losing a direct-format competitor is a nice thing.
For the second month in a row, KKBQ took the 25-54 gold medal. Even though it was off slightly, it has put together two of the best in-demo months in its PPM history. KODA also gained some share in its post-FROSTY period to remain at #2, though it was in a delicate relationship with KLTN, which moved up from #3 with its best number since AUGUST. CCM+E Alternative KTBZ (THE BUZZ) copped its best, well – you know, since MAY to move up one notch to #4. KGLK was off a bit as it dropped two places to #5. As recently as the DECEMBER survey, KBXX was tied at #1 with KODA. However, the station has lost over two shares since then and this time slipped from #6 to #7.
With all the dire news we have been sharing about KBXX, it is worth nothing that the station was still a dominant #1 18-34. Yes, the station has lost about three shares in this new battle, but it still holds the commanding position. KKBQ had a second straight killer month as it remained at #2 and is almost four shares fatter than last year. Once again, KLTN had its best book since AUGUST as it inched up a spot to #3 while KQBT followed its debut book with something not quite as robust. As a result, it dropped back one place to #4. KTBZ ended a four-book slide and remained at #5.
Last month, KKBQ had its best book in over a year to assume control of the 18-49 demo. And, the station matched that performance this survey. KLTN’s fortunes continued to rise here as the station moved forward two squares to #2. Even though it was flat, KBXX dropped a spot to #3 while KODA was up slightly yet also had to take a step back – to #4. KTBZ was up for the third consecutive survey but was forced to stand its ground at #5.
WASHINGTON, DC: Cold Hard Facts
There has been speculation that the folks at HUBBARD News WTOP have some secret formula for making sure that for at least one week of every month the weather in our Nation’s Capital is cause for alarm. And, to be sure, the residents of this fair city do have a tendency to freak out when white stuff falls from the skies. This perfect storm of situation and need was beneficial to WTOP as the station remained at #1 with another rather large share (9.2-9.0). CCM+E Top 40/M WIHT (HOT) weathered the storms quite well after posting its best number since MAY (6.4-7.0) to move up a spot to #2. AMERICAN UNIVERSITY N/T WAMU was off sufficiently (7.6-6.9) to drop back one position to #3. HOWARD UNIVERSITY Urban AC WHUR also had a bit of a down book (6.4-5.9) as it fell back a position to #4. Close on its heels was RADIO ONE Urban AC WMMJ (MAJIC), which remained at #5 but inched closer to WHUR after posting its best number since AUGUST (5.0-5.6). A couple of cluster mates made a strong run this month. CCM+E AC WASH had its best sleigh-bell-free month since SEPTEMBER to remain at #6 (4.6-5.4) while CCM+E Classic Rock WBIG moved up two places to #7 with its highest number since JULY (3.6-4.5).
Last month, there were two stations knotted at #2 25-54. The ties that bind were broken as WIHT moved up to #1 with its highest number in over a year. As a result of being flat, WTOP remained a solid #2. The previous market leader – WHUR – had its second-best book in over a year. Unfortunately, that was not quite strong enough to prevent it from dropping to #3. WBIG’s big move was readily apparent here as the station had its best book in over a year to jump from a tie at #8 to #4. WMMJ remained at #5 despite posting its best number since JUNE. WAMU slid out of the top five altogether and landed at #6.
Yes, WIHT was #1 18-34 again and, yes, the station performed another double-digit feat. However, even by their standards, this one was huge – the best in over a year. This granted the station more than a five-share lead over #2 CBS RADIO Top 40/R WPGC, which was down a little. RADIO ONE Urban WKYS (KISS) reversed a five-survey down slide, allowing the station to inch up a spot to #3. WASH had its best non-KRINGLE in-demo performance since MAY to climb two spots to #4. CCM+E Alternative WWDC (DC101) remained at #5 despite posting its lowest total in over a year. CBS RADIO Spanish Contemporary WLZL (EL ZOL) followed its monster performance of the previous survey with something less robust as it fell three places to #6.
WIHT had its best 18-49 performance in over a year and stretched its lead over #2 WHUR to more than three full shares as the latter station was down. WASH’s rise was fairly dramatic after posting its best number since SEPTEMBER (discounting the months that benefitted from the roasting of chestnuts). The station grew from #7 to #3. WPGC was up slightly to remain at #4. Two stations were locked in combat at #5. WKYS remained in place with a slight loss of share while WTOP dropped from #3.
PHILADELPHIA: The News Broke
More like the news froze. As has been heavily documented in many places – including your FACEBOOK news feed – this winter has really sucked for a large part of the country. However, weather woes are often a book to radio and that seemed to be the case here as CBS RADIO News KYW-A had its best book in exactly one year (7.6-8.4) to move up to the #1 position. The newly re-branded WEAZ-FM RADIO AC WBEB (MORE FM) got a little bit less this time (8.8-8.3) and slipped back to #2. However, it should be noted that for all of 2013, the only time the station formerly known as B101 cracked an eight share was when it was playing reindeer games. CBS RADIO Classic Hits WOGL was up sufficiently (5.6-5.9) to gain one spot in the standings at #3. This bumped GREATER MEDIA Active Rock WMMR back to #4 even though the station was flat (5.8-5.8). CCM+E Urban AC WDAS remained firmly entrenched at #5 (5.4-5.1).
For the second straight survey, WMMR was flat 25-54. That was OK because the number was huge and the station remained at #1. WBEB was up a bit to remain at #2 while CCM+E Alternative WRFF (RADIO 104.5) was up ever so slightly, but that fueled a two-place rise to #3. BEASLEY Country WXTU was off a little and slid from a tie at #3 to #4. Two brothers from the same cluster were bound together at #5. GREATER MEDIA Classic Rock WMGK dropped down from #3 while GREATER MEDIA Adult Hits WBEN (BEN FM) had what was easily its best book in over a year to charge up the charts from #11.
For a good chunk of 2013, WRFF was a fairly dominant #1 station 18-34. Then that whole Christmas thing happened and the station’s shares softened a bit. Well, it’s back with its best number since AUGUST as it moved back to #1. A couple of stations that were tied at #4 last month improved their lots this time around. WMMR had its best number since MAY to move up to #2 while CCM+E Urban WUSL (POWER) ended up at #3 with its best score since JULY. WBEB dropped sufficient share to slide from #1 to #4 while WXTU saw enough of its number evaporate to cause a two-spot slide to #5.
Before that SANTA fellow came to town, WMMR had eight straight months at #1 18-49. Now that the right jolly old elf has split, WMMR has been back on top – now for two straight books. WBEB was off slightly to remain at #2 while WXTU was off just as slightly to stay at #3. The same could be said for WRFF, which was held in place at #4. WUSL had its best showing since AUGUST to move up a spot to #5. CCM+E Top 40/M WIOQ (Q102) landed its lowest score since SEPTEMBER to drop two places into a tie at #7.
ATLANTA: Ice, Ice Baby?
Remember all those images of thousands of motorists stranded and sliding along I-75 and pretty much every other road in ATLANTA? Well, that happened during this book and seemed to have a positive effect on COX RADIO Talk WSB-A, which had its best book since NOVEMBER (7.1-7.6) to reclaim the #1 spot. Cluster mate COX RADIO Urban AC WALR (KISS) was off slightly (6.9-6.8) but still managed to move up one place to #2. Last month’s market leader – CBS RADIO Urban WVEE (V-103) – took a bit of a hit (7.4-6.7) and ended up at #3. COX RADIO AC WSB-F (B98.5) remained at #4 despite a slightly improved performance (6.3-6.5). Cluster brother COX RADIO Classic Hits WSRV (THE RIVER) dipped a bit (6.1-5.8) but still improved its position by one, landing at #5. RADIO ONE Urban AC WAMJ (MAJIC) had its lowest number in over a year (6.3-5.5) as it dropped two places to #6.
Things looked quite a bit different 25-54. First, WVEE, despite a down book, was still the dominant market leader. Last survey, two stations were tied at #2. Both were down a bit and neither are now tied. WSRV didn’t budge while WAMJ slipped back to #3. WSB-F bounced back from its lowest number in over a year and moved up a spot to #4. CUMULUS Top 40/M WWWQ (Q100) could not duplicate its best book in over a year that it had last time and dropped to #5.
Things seem to be getting pretty tight around the top of the 18-34 leaderboard. RADIO ONE Urban WHTA (HOT) remained in the lead but it just dropped its lowest number since AUGUST. #2 WVEE was also down slightly but the gap between the two is at its narrowest point since HOT took over the top spot in SEPTEMBER. WSB-F has been on an up-and-down journey over the last few books. This one was up and the station climbed a spot to #3. CCM+E Top 40/M WWPW (POWER) had its best performance in over a year to move from a tie at #7 to #4 while WWWQ dropped two places to #5. WAMJ was down ever so slightly but that was enough for the station to slide from #5 to #7.
Okay, so WVEE had a down book 18-49. It was still #1 by more than two share points over second-place WAMJ, which also had a down book. WWWQ remained at #3 even though it, too, was down. The two stations that were tied at #5 last month were knotted together at #4 this time around. WSRV had its best book since SEPTEMBER while WSB-F bounced back from a down book. WHTA was completely flat but that could not keep it from sliding two spots to #6.
BOSTON: The Kiss Is In
For the second straight survey, CCM+E Top 40/M WXKS (KISS 108) was the market leader as it posted its best number since AUGUST (7.3-7.6). Last survey, two cluster mates were clustered together at #2. This survey they went in opposite directions. GREATER MEDIA AC WMJX (MAGIC) had its best decoration-free book in exactly one year (6.3-6.8) to remain at #2. Meanwhile, GREATER MEDIA Country WKLB was off slightly (6.3-6.1) and took a step back to #3. While the weather in NEW ENGLAND has been frightful – even by their standards – it did not seem to benefit CBS RADIO News WBZ-A too much as the station remained at #4 (5.9-6.0). GREATER MEDIA Classic Hits WROR scored its best number since SEPTEMBER (4.9-5.6) as it rose one spot in the ranks to #5. CBS RADIO Sports WBZ-F (THE SPORTS HUB) checked in with its lowest run total since AUGUST (5.6-4.5) to drop three places to #8.
For the third straight survey, WXKS gained share 25-54 to remain in the leadership position. WMJX was a less distant #2 after securing its best non-CLAUS book since MARCH. CBS RADIO Hot AC WBMX (MIX) was up for the fourth straight survey, posting its best number since JUNE. As a result, the station made quite the move from #7 to #3. WKLB was off enough to drop a spot to #4 where it was joined by cluster bro’ GREATER MEDIA Alternative WBOS (RADIO 92.9), which moved up from #5 despite a slight loss of share. WBZ-F’s stumble continued here as the station fell from #2 to #6.
For the second straight survey, CCM+E Top 40/R WJMN (JAM’N) was the #1 station 18-34. The current share is eerily similar to the one the station posted a year ago. The same could not be said for WXKS. The station closed the gap from its #2 position but is still a little over two shares lighter than it was a year ago. WKLB moved from a tie at #5 to #3 on the strength of its best book since AUGUST while GREATER MEDIA Rhythmic AC WBQT (HOT) moved up one spot to #4 with its highest number since SEPTEMBER. WBOS was off slightly to slip one place to #5 while WBZ-F dropped three to #6. Still, a pretty lofty ranking in this demo for a Sports station.
WXKS was up slightly 18-49 and all that did was increase its dramatic lead over the rest of the 18-49 field. We have been commenting on nothing but bad news for WBZ-F. While the station did lose a bit of share, it remained a solid #2 in this demo. WJMN was off slightly to remain at #3 where it was tied by WMJX, which moved up from #6 with its best non-seasonal book since APRIL. Last month’s tie at #4 was broken. WKLB was down slightly to slip to #5 while WBOS lost a bit more to end up at #7.
So concludes the second round of our analysis of the FEBRUARY survey. We will now take a short break to fill out our brackets (two words: TOM IZZO) before we return with the inner workings of DETROIT, MIAMI, SEATTLE, PHOENIX and MINNEAPOLIS. In the meantime, feel free to respond to anything we have said through the various channels listed below:
E-mail: sallan@researchdirectorinc.com
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