• by Jack Loechner , Staff Writer @mp_research, April 12, 2013

According to a new national survey from Arbitron and Edison Research, one in three Americans aged 12 and older now listen to all forms of online radio on a weekly basis, The study is the 21^st in a series dating back to 1998.  Among the many findings:

• 53% of all Americans aged 12 and over (an estimated 139 million people) own a smartphone; three-quarters of those aged 18-to-34 own these devices
• Weekly online radio listeners listened for an average of 11 hours 56 minutes per week, up by more than two hours over last year’s listening levels, and nearly double that reported in 2008. During the same time span, the report says that AM/FM Radio has grown to 243 million weekly listeners listening approximately two hours a day
• 27% of Americans check their social network several times per day, estimated at 71 million people
• AM/FM radio is an “almost all of the time” or “most of the time” in-car choice for 58% of adults aged 18 and over; dashboard AM/FM radio far outpaces frequent in-car use of CD players at 15%, portable digital audio/MP3 players (11%) and satellite radio (10%)
• AM/FM Radio delivers far more consumers (49%) than other media during the half hour before they arrive to shop, more than twice the number reached by the next closest medium (Billboards at 21%)
• 29% own a tablet, up more than 70% in the last year, compared to 17% ownership in 2012
• Among 45% of Americans who say it is important to learn about and keep up-to-date with new music, AM/FM Radio is the top source for new music discovery at 78%

Bill Rose, Senior Vice President of Marketing at Arbitron, concludes that “... we are... seeing the highest levels of weekly online radio listening... with the strength of AM/FM streams... and the near ubiquity of devices in which consumers can listen... “

And Tom Webster, Vice President of Strategy and Marketing, Edison Research, says “... the majority of Americans now have powerful computers in their pockets (Smartphones)... which has irrevocably altered... out-of-home listening behavior... “

For more information from Edison Research, please visit here