When It Comes To Discovering New Tunes, AM/FM Radio Still Trumps Streaming Services

This may come as a surprise, but AM/FM radio still reigns supreme for new music. Consumers have access to countless streaming music providers, some of which are offered free, but data compiled by Statista show for many Americans, the "dusty old radio in the corner of the kitchen beats their shiny new smartphone for music discovery."

Statista, citing data from Edison Research, reported 19 percent of Americans make use of AM/FM radio to catch the latest music hits. By comparison, Alphabet Inc GOOG GOOGL's YouTube service took second place, as 15 percent of Americans said they use the platform to stay-up-to-date with music today.

Spotify ranked third at 10 percent, followed by Pandora Media Inc P at 9 percent, Sirius XM Holdings Inc. SIRI at 5 percent, and the social-media platform Facebook Inc FB at 3 percent.

Were Analysts Wrong Years Ago?

The data may go against the investment thesis that online streaming platforms like Pandora were poised to take market share from what seems to be the outdated AM/FM radio.

For instance, Jeff Houston, an analyst at Barrington Research argued back in 2014 that Pandora would begin taking share of the $16 billion U.S. broadcast radio market.

Regardless of the competitive threat in the growing streaming music place, Pandora falls well short of AM/FM radio in at least this one metric.

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