Monday was the first opportunity to hear from a public radio company since the coronavirus situation ramped up into a serious crisis late last week. Townsquaare CEO Bill Wilson said the impact in the month of March has been significant.
Wilson said the company canceled all of its remaining live events in the month of March and that will have a significant impact on first quarter results “We expect to have to cancel many Q2 events as well as we are continuing to monitor the situation day by day and market by market.”
So far, according to Wilson, the impact on advertising has been less severe, but starting last week, Townsquare had many clients who promote live events as well as sporting events and other related businesses cancel or pause their advertising campaigns for the month of March.
Townsquare’s interactive business has not been impacted by the crisis. “This is an evolving situation which we know will have a negative impact to our business, and we will make the necessary plans and adjustments,” Wilson added. “The extent of that impact is uncertain at this time. What I can say with certainty and confidence is that, overall, we remain very confident and optimistic about the long-term demand for our products and marketing and advertising solutions.”
