In-Car Cell Phone Use Impacting Radio Listening!

Bridge Ratings recently completed its first six month analysis of in-car cell phone use and its potential impact on other in-car listening including that of radio. The study was commissioned by a wireless company in 2005 as part of a multi-year consumer study.

Cell phone pervasiveness is a significant contributor to threat to traditional media by cell phone use in vehicles. Topline findings of our national study conducted between July 2005 and January 2006 projects that in the United States, 66% of the population owns a cell phone: U.S. population stands at 297 million, with 197 million cell phone users. In fact, today cell phone technology is the only audio technology that could approach traditional radio’s market penetration (currently at 93% or 276 million Americans who listen to terrestrial radio at least once a week).

For the purposes of this study:

Only those individuals who spent at least one hour per day commuting in their vehicle were included Actual time-spent-listening to the radio was measured against time-spent-talking on cell phones.

From the analysis, it was clear that in vehicles in which the radio was being listened to, when cell phones were in use, radio behavior was affected:

Radio Volume Unchanged – 2%
Radio Volume Turned Down – 79%
Radio Turned Off – 19%

During the time when cell phone calls were made or received, attention was placed exclusively on the phone call and not on the radio.

Cell phone Use

By 2004, the U.S. Census estimated that 62% of the U.S. population or just over 180 million people own and use a cell phone. The following chart shows the trend line of cellphone use and average monthly phone bills.

To view chart CLICK above on ‘More Images’.