CBS Local Digital breaks monthly records

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CBS Local DigitalCBS Local Digital Media’s websites and mobile apps attracted 56.8 million unique users – a new record for a single month – in January. Last month’s traffic topped the previous all-time high (50.6 million in April 2013) by 12% and was up 37% compared to January 2013.


The traffic surge comes on the heels of a record-setting performance during 2013, when CBS Local’s sites and apps attracted year-to-year growth of 21% in average unique users per month.

In the four years since CBS Local created new websites featuring the combined assets from CBS-owned television and radio stations, the number of monthly unique users has surged by more than 230%.

Also last month, CBS Local shattered its monthly record for unique users who accessed its sites and apps via mobile devices with 27.1 million users in January. Mobile traffic was up 24% compared to the previous high (21.9 million in December 2013) and up 109% compared to the same month last year.

“Our continued integration of digital into all parts of our local business is yielding dividends. The great mobile presence our stations have via mobile websites, Radio.com and CBS Local apps creates a presence that gives the consumer a great user experience,” said Anton Guitano, COO, CBS Local Media.

Original audio and video content continues to be part of CBS Local’s business strategy. Shows include: “Tailgate Fan,” an inside look at professional and college football tailgating around the United States; “Essentials,” mini-documentaries telling the stories behind the biggest artists and athletes; and “Pre-Game Playlist,” a look at the music that professional athletes listen to when they are on and off the field, rounded off with frequent artist and athlete interviews that give consumers an exclusive behind-the-scenes look into the world of sports and music. CBS Local’s unwired digital newsroom is the largest in the nation, giving consumers an unprecedented breadth and depth of content to consumers.

RBR-TVBR observation: Radio.com, CBS Local’s version of iHeartRadio, should merge with CBS Interactive’s music discovery (Pandora-like) service Last.fm to offer a more complete one-stop-shop for listeners. Last.fm, which had 23 million subscribers in 2012, showed a loss of $6,517,237 in that year, as income sank by 70% at its UK HQ. However, revenues in the US grew by 22%, which now makes it Last.fm’s biggest market, revenue-wise.