BIA/Kelsey’s Local Media Index Shows Industry Stocks Heavily
Affected by Economy in 2011; Digital and Political Advertising Among
Bright Spots in 2012
Analysts will share local media predictions for 2012 in webinar,
Thursday, Jan. 19
CHANTILLY, Va. (Jan. 17, 2012) – Stocks of publicly held local
media companies performed worse last year than the overall stock market,
falling 18.7 percent, according to BIA/Kelsey’s Local Media Index
(LMI). The LMI tracks the local media sector, with a market capitalization
of $2.2 trillion, to better reveal underlying dynamics in both secular
and cyclical industry trends.
BIA/Kelsey concludes, overall, there is a secular shift toward growth
in digital revenues as an increasing component of a fairly flat local
advertising economy. As local media companies shift their ownership
portfolios along with their sales and product strategies, eventually
the results are reflected in share prices, with local media companies
more involved in the digital space benefiting most.
Certain subsectors, such as Yellow Pages and newspapers, brought down
the LMI, with those sectors’ indices dropping by 77.5 percent
and 27.8 percent, respectively.
Elements of the LMI that were positive last year and hold equal, if
not greater, promise in 2012 include online advertising and search
(8.0 percent), diversified media (7.8 percent), broadcast television
(6.1 percent) and radio (2.1 percent).
“BIA/Kelsey’s Local Media Index is showing the values
of local media companies can be more volatile to the perceptions about
the future of the economy and local ad spending than the S&P itself,
a fact that would not reveal itself through other indices,” said
Mark Fratrik, vice president, BIA/Kelsey. “Last year’s
poor performance of the LMI was caused by deep concerns over the health
of the global economy in Q3 and the belief that businesses would severely
cut back on their advertising spending. While the last quarter of 2011
saw a rebound in media stocks, the drop-off had been too significant
to overcome.”
BIA/Kelsey sees the prospects for local media companies improving
along with the economy in 2012. The anticipated strong political advertising
year and the outlook for radio and television stations should bolster
several sectors in the LMI.
With the maturity of digital technologies driving the delivery of
content across multiple platforms, advertising opportunities are significantly
increasing, and local media firms are starting to book incremental
sales. According to BIA/Kelsey’s forecast, by 2015 approximately
25 percent of all ad dollars spent in local media will be in digital
media augmenting traditional media spending. Increasingly, this will
occur in coordinated cross-platform media buying with integrated creative
and marketing campaigns.
BIA/Kelsey will examine the opportunities for 2012 during a free webinar
on Thursday, Jan. 19, titled, “Looking Ahead to a Year of Transition
and Transformation for Local Media.” For more information and
online registration, go to https://www1.gotomeeting.com/register/233280920.
About BIA/Kelsey’s Local Media Index
Launched in 2011, the Local Media Index is a $2.2 trillion market capitalization
index offering a directional view of how approximately 60 publicly traded local
media companies in the key sectors BIA/Kelsey follows and analyzes are performing
relative to the overall economy. The LMI includes public companies tracked
by BIA/Kelsey in cable, broadcast television and radio, newspapers, print directories,
outdoor and digital/online advertising. The index is updated each Thursday
morning on the BIA/Kelsey website and can be found at www.biakelsey.com/LMIndex.
About BIA/Kelsey
BIA/Kelsey advises companies in the local media space through consulting
and valuation services, research, Continuous Advisory Services and
conferences. Since 1983 BIA/Kelsey has been a resource to the media,
mobile advertising, telecommunications, Yellow Pages and electronic
directory markets, as well as to government agencies, law firms and
investment companies looking to understand trends and revenue drivers.
BIA/Kelsey’s annual conferences draw executives from across industries
seeking expert guidance on how companies are finding innovative ways
to grow. Additional information is available at www.biakelsey.com,
on the company’s Local
Media Watch blog, Twitter (http://twitter.com/BIAKelsey)
and Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/biakelsey).
BIA/Kelsey publicly available information (including, but not limited to, press releases, blog posts, company Web site content, presentations, and excerpts from advisories and reports) may be cited, provided BIA/Kelsey is properly identified as the source (Source: BIA/Kelsey). If you are uncertain about a particular use, please contact us for approval. Provide the full citation and context for your request via e-mail to Eileen Pacheco at eileen@tango-group.com
Company Information
BIA Advisory Services (BAS) is doing business as (d/b/a) BIA/Kelsey. BAS is owned by BIA Financial Network. For more information on this parent company and for a list of affiliated companies, please click now.
