FM radio space in B'lore may see churn

FM radio stations have been around for some time but lack differentiation. Hence, there is a buzz in the sector that it will see some consolidation and product differentiation without which building a dedicated audience base will be difficult.

Radio City sees a 'differentiated' radio emerging, which is expected to give advertisers a better idea of who they are reaching out to. The channel will soon have Kannada radio jockeys for its Bangalore station as a start.

But the real "differentiator will be the music," said Rana Barua, national head (marketing), Radio City. Adult contemporary music, relying more on evergreens, the internationally popular format with melody music which ignores chartbusters, will be the mainstay of Radio City.

"We don't want to be a mass player," said Barua adding, "but attract listeners from Section A and Section B (the top two consumer layers) who are the consumer class with purchasing power and propensity to consume." Radio City, according to an industry analyst, enjoys around 30 per cent share of the ad market for FM radio in India and occupies second place.

Radio One, which is number "three or four" in the city, on the other hand sees no scope for differentiation. "Till there is a change in the licensing policy allowing for a second station, it is not possible," said Shyju Varkey, station head, Radio One. Only more stations can cater to secific niches. Hence, stations are concentrating on music which is easier to programme and comes within the licensing obligation, he added.

BBC Worldwide Holdings BV has a stake in Radio Mid Day West (India) Pvt Ltd, part of the Mid-Day Multi-media, which owns Radio One, which it had bought for Rs 31.85 crore. The venture has bagged licences to operate FM stations in Delhi, Chennai, Bangalore, Kolkata, Ahmedabad and Pune.

In orer to choose, advertisers are turning to "Radio Audience Measurement or RAM, devised on the lines of the TV audience measurement (TAM). This ensures the radio channels are no longer shooting in the dark," said Ratan Singh Rathore, Investment Group Head, GroupM-South. GroupM is the media firm of WPP, the global advertising giant.

Measuring listenership using RAM has now given advertisers and the advertising agencies a better yardstick. After many experiments, the measurement system, with 480 unique customers, was evolved. Equally distributed between the sexes and spread such that it reduces statistical errors to a great extent.

"It is a more reliable than the earlier ones and more widely accepted," he added. Hence, there has been a rise in the proportion of ads on FM stations. From 2-3 per cent of total media spend during the pre-RAM days, it has today risen to over 4.3 per cent and is rising. Of the Rs 15,000 crore spent on advertisements in the country last fiscal, about Rs 650 crore went to the FM radio space. This year it is expected to be approximately Rs 950 crore.