Clear Channel to use new ratings system |
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Sat, 23 Jun 2007 08:49
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NEW YORK (AP) - Radio industry leader Clear Channel Communications Inc. has agreed to use a new electronic rating system in the top 50 U.S. cities, a person familiar with the agreement said.The electronic audience measurement system is aimed at replacing a decades-old system of paper diaries. Several other radio broadcasters have already agreed to use the system from Arbitron Inc., which currently provides radio station ratings.A person familiar with the situation but who requested anonymity because the deal has not been made public yet said Friday the Clear Channel deal covered the top 50 U.S. markets, and that the contracts would typically run for four years.CBS Corp.'s CBS Radio unit, the No. 2 U.S. radio company, as well as other broadcasters have already reached deals to use Abritron's new electronic system, which Arbitron calls the Portable People Meter after a pager-like device that listeners carry around to detect audio codes embedded in radio broadcasts.PPM ratings, while more expensive to produce than the old paper diary method, provide far greater detail about actual radio listening and don't have to rely on the memory of listeners.Clear Channel has long resisted using Arbitron's PPM system even as it gained momentum in other parts of the industry. Clear Channel cited several concerns including cost, the technology used and Arbitron's ability to implement it quickly across major markets, and has said it wants to explore alternatives to PPM.In March, Clear Channel made its first agreement to use PPM measurements in Philadelphia, where the company owns six stations. In May that city became the first in the U.S. to be measured by PPM ratings, following a series of trials over the past six years.Arbitron says it intends to roll out the PPM system across the top 50 U.S. markets to replace the paper and pencil system, which dates back to 1965.Copyright 2007 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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