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National Brands Increasingly Choose Clear Channel Radio's Online Network

Posted on: Monday, 19 June 2006, 09:00 CDT

Clear Channel Communications, Inc. (NYSE:CCU)

-- Growing List of Top National Brands Are Advertising on Clear Channel Radio Station Web Sites; More Include On-Air Tie-Ins

-- Food & Beverage, Automotive Advertisers Lead the Pack; Telecommunications & Cable, Media Companies, Consumer Products Also Play

National brands are increasingly choosing Clear Channel Radio station Web sites as advertising vehicles, the company announced today. Led by the food & beverage and automotive categories, current national-brand ads also promote telecommunications and cable services, entertainment and media content, and consumer goods.

"Over the past year, we focused on creating the broadest collection of compelling audio and video programming online, and we've prioritized local advertisers in our early months," said Evan Harrison, Executive Vice President of Clear Channel Radio and head of the company's online unit. "The interest from national brands is happening more quickly than we had anticipated, thanks to our enormous traction with the most sought-after listeners during the crucial workday day part."

According to data from ComScore/Media Metrix, the OM&R Network sites now draw more than 7.8 million unique visitors each month (placing it fifth among all online music networks). Further, those visitors generate 1.6 million unique station-broadcast streams (placing it third among all online music networks) and some 1.9 million on-demand plays of both audio and video content.(a) Indeed, the unit has quickly emerged as a leader in on-demand programming, growing its number of weekly plays by some 420% in 2006 alone.

Clear Channel Radio is the only radio company that submits its online sites to ComScore/Media Metrix measurements of Web traffic and to ComScore Arbitron measurements of streaming audience.

In just 12 months, Clear Channel Radio's Online Music & Radio Network has created considerable, exclusive content including strippedTM, Sneak Peek, and NEW!, an emerging-artist showcase. The network's audience has grown a full 10% just since January of this year, with the increases in unique streams and on-demand plays topping 420% and 1319%, respectively.

(a) On-demand plays measured by Akamai.

Automotive sector continues its march online

The most prevalent brand group currently advertising is food and beverage. Now playing on OM&R sites:

-- Oreo, which pairs a leader-board ad with a floating, rich-media depiction of a giant cookie. The top cover floats off to reveal the cookie center and a celebrity.

-- Hershey's, which combines a 30-second, in-stream audio ad with synchronized banners.

-- McDonald's, Coca-Cola, Corona, Budweiser, Arby's and Cold Stone Creamery.

Also moving in large numbers onto the OM&R Network: advertisers in the auto sector, with current ads from Dodge, Ford, Honda, Mercedes Benz, Pontiac and Geico. Like Hershey's, Geico combines a 30-second, in-stream audio ad with synchronized banners.

Rounding out the most popular categories are telecommunications and cable brands, including Verizon, Virgin Mobile, Comcast, Charter and Time Warner Cable.

In a notable buy, Time Warner Cable's presence in a single, major Midwest market includes online and on-air presence. Online, it has an exclusive banner ad on the strippedTM, Sneak Peek, NEW!, In Concert and Cluster Stream video/audio players, across the entire cluster of Clear Channel Radio station Web sites. In addition, the company has a 15-second gateway ad before the actual content, with up to 100% exposure. In the streaming broadcast, the company has a minimum of six 15- or 30-second spots per day. And on-air within the company's AM/FM broadcasts, Time Warner Cable gets one promotional announcement per hour, for a total of 24 per day. Also included: 10 recorded and 10 live promos per week when new artists appear on strippedTM and Sneak Peek. Finally, the ads are archived with the on-demand content for its full, indefinite shelf life.

Other national brands currently advertising on the network: Warner Bros. Records, BET, RE/MAX, NBC, Lifetime, Sony PlayStation, Radio Shack, TurboTax, and Travelocity.

About Clear Channel Radio's Online Music & Radio Unit

A division of Clear Channel Radio, this unit is focused on bringing terrestrial radio listeners online to the Web sites of the company's network of approximately 1,200 radio stations. Nearly seven million unique visitors per month choose Clear Channel Radio's online and on-demand music programming, which now includes videos of signature in-studio performances as well as live concerts, exclusive access to new releases and a full podcast roster of top-rated radio segments. More than 500 Clear Channel Radio station Web sites, including all of the company's stations in the top 25 markets, stream terrestrial broadcasts online. Over 950 Clear Channel Radio station sites are live with redesigned interfaces, extending to the Internet, the company's focus on improving the value of radio through less clutter.

About Clear Channel Radio

Clear Channel Radio is a leading radio company focused on serving local communities across the U.S. with more than 110 million listeners choosing Clear Channel Radio programming each week. The company's content can be heard on AM/FM stations, HD digital radio channels, on the Internet, via iPods, through Motorola's iRadio cell-phone service, and via mobile-navigation devices from Cobra, Garmin, Kenwood and others. The company's operations include radio broadcasting, syndication and independent media representation. Clear Channel Radio is a division of Clear Channel Communications, Inc. (NYSE:CCU), a leading global media and entertainment company. More information on the company can be found at www.clearchannel.com.

Certain statements in this release constitute "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Such forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements.

Source: Business Wire

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