Prediction #7: Video May Have Killed the Radio Star but Radio Will Continue to Survive -- For Now

But in two years, we may not be making the same prediction. Today's kids do not listen to radio as much as previous generations did. They listen to iPods and soon, iPads.

We believe that radio continues to be important, especially during drive-time commutes. We think record companies should continue to support radio stations because people still listen to radio to discover new songs and then decide to download songs (or buy CDs, if they're boomers) based on what they hear on the radio.

But because today's children are not getting in the habit of listening to radio, and because today's homes are less likely to have radios other than as part of a stereo system, radio stations are going to need to find ways to reach and cultivate new listeners.

That's where record companies can come in, to their mutual benefit. Of course, radio may survive during increasingly long commute times since more states have enacted laws that prohibit texting while driving or require drivers to use hands-free technology when using their cellphones.

Is Internet Killing the Radio Star?

In 1979, one-hit wonders the Boggles wrote "Video Killed the Radio Star," which became the first video shown on MTV.

People have been predicting the death of radio ever since.

Yet, radio continues to hold on.

The New York Times ran a brief article, "Radio’s Popularity Declining Unevenly," that looks at the radio listenership. Given all the competition from old media, new media and MP3 players, radio listnership has fallen only 14 percent over the past decade.

Meanwhile, while I don't have specific numbers in front of me, network TV viewership over that time period has declined at much more significant numbers.

Radio's not dead yet...especially while Americans drive in their cars.

And neither is network TV...though it may be hurt by the fact that real-time TV is not widely available in cars (not that drivers should be watching). (Disclosure, a former client makes satellite dishes for cars and boats.) Also, networks need to figure a way to aggregate numbers based on real-time viewership, time-delayed vewiership (like TiVo), and web-based downloads. I bet network TV's decline would not be as significant if looked at that way.