Not Good News When The News Cycle Turns Down

Michael Hedges July 19, 2010 Follow on Twitter

In the news business, it’s a given that ratings rise and fall with big news. Only so much can be done to pump up ratings when nature and politicians turn quiet. Not to worry: something always happens.

French national radio audience estimates for the April through June period, released by Médiamétrie (July 13), were a reminder to some of just how fickle audiences have become. Fewer people are tuning in and those who do are spending less time with radio on average. Three of five national channels specializing in news and information dropped significantly.  

Times spent listening (TSL) fell by ten minutes to 170 minutes from 180 minutes, year on year. Indeed, time spent listening has fallen in each survey period since January-March 2009, 183 minutes, a historic high pegged to interest in domestic, international and economic events. Overall reach was unchanged, year on year, at 80.9% of the French population but this is the historic low.

RTL held the top spot in the national rankings with 11.9% market share, down from 12.5% year on year. The general interest channel’s share of persons 15 years and older hasn’t been below 12.0% since April-June 2006.

Public channel France Inter retained second ranking, falling to 9.5% market share from 9.8% one year on. Like the other top ranked news-oriented channels, it has benefited from high value news interest since early 2009 but share has fallen in every survey period since.

Third place Europe 1 (Lagardère) also suffered from the news cycle, falling to 7.7% market share from 8.0% year on year. During the January-March survey period the channel reached 9.0% market share, a historic high.

Public regional network France Bleu rose to 4th place, market share increasing to 5.9% from 5.6% year on year. Business-oriented RMC fell to 5th place, 5.7% market share from 6.0%. France Info, the public rolling-news channel, held 10th position, market share rising to 3.6% from 3.4% one year on.

Programmers at the top three general interest channels – RTL, France Inter and Europe 1 – have, through the last half year, undertaken fairly significant personnel changes, some rather high profile. Most of these changes have been clear attempts to strengthen schedules. And, too, there have been several high profile firings. Radio audiences, particularly listeners to general interest channels, tend not to take change easily.

The decline in aggregate market share for news and information channels is less likely an effect of simple schedule and personnel shifting. The news cycle has – or interest in it – shifted. The aggregate market share of the five national primarily news and information channels has fallen to 38.4%, roughly the same as the post-Sarkozy election – pre-economic crisis period.

None of this has been bad news for hit music channels, particularly SkyRock and Fun Radio but also NRJ. Still holding 6th position, NRJ’s market share has been drifting lower for two years. In the current survey the channel posted 5.5%, down slightly from 5.6% year on year. SkyRock’s rise has been nothing if not blistering. The rap/hip hop channel sits in 7th place with a historic high 5.3% market share, up from 4.5% year on year. Fun Radio, 9th place, rose to 4.2% market share from 3.9% one year on. Interestingly, Fun Radio (RTL Group) posted its previous historic high market share – 4.2% - in April-June 2007. Since then, virtually everything about the programming and marketing has changed, several times. So much for the conventional wisdom that young people have turned off the radio, yes?

Other national music channels fared badly. Oldies channel Nostalgie fell to a historic low 4.3% - 8th place – from 4.8% one year on. In April-June 2004 Nostalgie ranked 5th with 6.6% market share. RFM (Lagardère) continues to drift lower, 2.8% market share down from 3.2% year on year. The ‘80’s oldies channels’ moment in the sun was 2005 through 2007.

Most of the other music channels slightly gained or lost market share. The exception – French radio is full of exceptions – is Rire & Chansons. The quirky comedy and music channel from NRJ Group posted 1.7% market share, up from 1.4% year on year.

The significant drop in time spent listening in this cycle and the more long-term decline in overall reach seems related to a sizeable set of French listeners – probably news listeners – spending their media time elsewhere. That oldies channels – not counting classical music – are waning suggests adult listeners are also in flux. Increases for “youthful” radio channels may say less about the media habits of young people specifically than the appeal of a certain tone. But, there’s a cycle to that, too.

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