Vox AM/FM recently purchased a cluster in the Burlington, VT-Plattsburgh, NY market from Clear Channel – but it won’t be buying the Arbitron ratings that Clear Channel has used. Vox has signed to have Eastlan Ratings enter market #137 with the Fall 2008 book.
"We get a great product that gives us everything the other service does and more, but at a fraction of the price. That’s money right to our bottom line," said Vox COO Ken Barlow.
Eastlan has been adding markets with regularity and now provides radio audience measurement data to over 400 subscribing radio stations in more than 80 markets across the United States. Based in Washington State, the company made a major move to Eastern markets when Galaxy Communications CEO Ed Levine resigned from the Arbitron Radio Advisory Council and signed a contract to have Eastlan provide radio ratings in Syracuse. He later invited Eastlan into Utica-Rome, where Galaxy also has stations.
"When Ed Levine at Galaxy took the plunge with Eastlan first in Syracuse and then in Utica and had such positive results…I was sold!" said Barlow in comments distributed by Eastlan.
RBR/TVBR observation: As Arbitron focuses on rolling out PPM in the top 50 markets, how much business is it going to see slip away in the 100+ markets? Eastlan is out there drumming up business. Any day now we should hear from Cumulus Media about the new ratings provider it has selected for its 100+ markets from its RFP. No doubt that vendor will be making lots of pitches to other potential subscribers.
