Edison Research has released its Share of Ear report for the final quarter of 2022. The report is based on surveys of 4,000 Americans to measure daily reach and time spent for all forms of audio. It is an authoritative examination of time spent with audio in America.
In brief, radio remains strong. The report shows that streaming is now 20% of AM/FM radio listening, podcast listening surged, but AM/FM radio dominates ad-supported time spent.
Key takeaways from the Q4 2022 report include the following:
- Perception vs. reality: American agencies and advertisers underestimate AM/FM radio shares and drastically overestimate Pandora and Spotify audiences.
- AM/FM radio’s listeners’ 18+ share of ad-supported audio (73%) is 15 times larger than Pandora (5%) and 18 times greater than Spotify (4%).
- In the five years since 2017: AM/FM radio remains dominant, AM/FM radio streaming has grown to beat ad-supported Pandora/Spotify combined, and podcasts tripled.
- AM/FM radio dominates ad-supported listening in the car with an 88% share.
- Streaming soars to 20% of all 25-54 AM/FM radio listening, driven by growth among men.
- Head snapper: AM/FM radio’s 25-54 streaming audiences are +44% larger than ad-supported Spotify and Pandora combined.
- Podcasts’ share of time spent has grown since the pandemic.
- Podcasts’ daily reach has grown sharply and shows no signs of stopping.
- Podcast growth is happening among all age demos, not just Gen Z and Millennials.
- Spotify’s push to promote podcast listening on their platform has paid off: 23% of time spent goes to podcasts.
You can see a review by Westwood One of the report here.