U. S. Radio (Jan-Dec 1960)

AUSTRALIAN RADIO FACTS Over 100 comtnercial stations now on the air Maximtim commercial station power 5,000 watts MEXICAN RADIO FACTS Radio is dominant advertising medium • Radio accounts for about 40% of all ad expenditures • Approximately 2.2 million receivers in use • Soaps, beers, cigarettes largest radio advertisers • Commercial radio reaches 90% of potential audience • Prime evening hours usually completely sold out • Radio accounts for about 75% of all ad expenditures • Spot announcements purchased by number of words Some stations switching to "formula" broadcasting Audience ratings are fairly constant throughout day by telephone wires and, therefore, able to simulcast. The other networks use tape. There are no coverage limits imposed on stations. As a result, it is possible to have a situation in which one station blankets 'almost the entire country. This is irue of XE\V, a 250,000 \\alt stalion. Another Mexico City station. XKQ, is a 150,000 watt operation. Dominant' Ad Medium I There are no representatives in Mexico, \\ith all time being pur( liased directly by the advertising ragency or advertiser. W'ith no im■portant competition from print or tv, radio finds itself in the position luhere the 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. period lis completely sold out, with additional advertisers waiting for a chance to get into the schedule. The Noble Advertising Co., a "native" agency billing close to S5 million a year in the Mexico City market, reports that 40 percent of these billings are in radio. The bulk of the radio advertisers ire subsidiaries of American firms. \nd following the U. S. pattern, the largest radio users are in soaps, beers md cigarettes. Some of the "blue hip" radio users in the Noble agen I cy include Kiml)erly-Clark of Mexico, Du Pont, Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing of Mexico, Pan American Standard Brands, Procter S: Gamble of Afexico, the Mennen Co., U. S. Rubber Mexicana. The agency reports it is currently producing 74 radio programs a week. Most of the radio commercials fall into the spot category. However, the agency buys these announcements by the word. Under the Mexican system, the advertiser is allowed five seconds for 10 words, 10 seconds for 25 words, 30 seconds for 50 words. It is also interesting to note that there are no published local rates and there arc no frequency discounts. Advertising Copy The government does put restrictions on advertising copy. For example, it is not permissible to present competitive drug ads. .\11 products which come under the jurisdiction of the Board of Health, including such things as toothpaste, are subject to advertising copy censorship. On the programming side, there is a wide variety appealing to all tastes. There is, for example, a sta \U. S. RADIO Au"ust 1960 tion in Mexico City which broadcasts nothing but time signals and sj)ot announcements. There is a station \v'hich programs exclusivelv for women. Quiz shows, rock and roll, soap operas and sports rank among the most popular types of programming fare. Although the government does not specify how much air time is devoted to it, each station must carry some public service programming. As part of this obligation, every station in Mexico broadcasts The Natinnal Hour every Sunday. This is a 90-minute variety show produced by the government. Audience Ratings The radio audience appears to be fairly constant. A recent research bulletin issued by the International Research Assoc, Mexico City, offered the following figures for ratings in the Mexico City federal district. The audience in the morning, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., was 32.4 percent; from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m., 28.3 percent, and in the evening, from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m., 26.5 percent. It should be noted that the hoins from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. have been omitted. This is the traditional "siesta" time in Mexico. • • • 35