high frequency radio

the digital revolution doesn't always bring more variety. Here's an interesting piece in the NYT on the strategy that many US radio stations are adopting in response to the new competition from the internet and digital music players: play fewer songs, more often.

while the overwhelming majority of Americans still tune into traditional broadcast radio each week, they are listening less. And they are increasingly drawn to the dizzying choices of music and other programming available on iPods and satellite and Internet radio. But many pop radio programmers appear keen to repeat the biggest hits as much as — or more than — ever...of the 10 songs that have notched the most plays in one week, 8 joined the list in the last three years. And the oldest of the 10, Avril Lavigne’s “Complicated,” dates only to 2002.

executives at some individual stations say they are playing hits more heavily than they did even two years ago. That is not so much out of concern over digital competition as it is a desire to respond to listeners’ busy lives, said Kat Jensen, music director for KKMG-FM in Colorado Springs, which played “Apologize” 78 times last week. “There’s a very limited window. If they’re going to listen 15 minutes a day, you want to make sure they hear their favorite song in that 15 minutes. It’s really the fast-paced life style that we all live.”

i suppose this is the counterpoint to long tail economics - some times it will make more sense, at least in the short term, to focus more than ever on your big hits in order to win the attention of consumers who surrounded by more choice than ever.