Radio One CEO Alfred Liggins reported that it’s been a choppy revenue year for radio. “We started off slow, things improved, then we hit a rough patch and there’s been very little political so far.” Radio One is $3.5 million ahead of last year so far and Liggins remains bullish about the radio business overall.
Local was off nearly 3% for Radio One in Q2, while national was up over 9%. To date, Radio One has booked only $850,000 in political revenue. Radio One’s largest category, telecom, was up 12% in Q2. Food and beverage was up 17%, government spending was up 6%, and entertainment was up 5%. On the flip side, automotive was down 15%. Washington D.C., Charlotte, Cleveland, Richmond, Dallas, St. Louis, Atlanta, and Cincinnati all saw positive revenue growth. The increases were offset by declines in Columbus, Philadelphia, Houston, and Detroit. Radio One also saw double-digit ratings growth in nine of its markets.
Looking ahead, Radio One is pacing down for the second half of the year, with Q3 pacing down in the mid-single digits and Q4 pacing up in the high single digits. Liggins expects to see more political revenue in September and October.
This guy has flowon under the radar for a while. Things are not always what they seem to be. The day will come when a new book will be written with all the dirty tricks Alfred has done.
The writing is on the wall