Radio chief vows radio will ‘fight back’ in 2007

RadioCentre chief executive Andrew Harrison has vowed that radio will start to “change and fight back” this year…

Andrew%20Harrison%202

RadioCentre chief executive Andrew Harrison has vowed that radio will start to "change and fight back" this year.

Speaking at the inaugural RadioCentre members’ conference today (Wednesday), Harrison said radio is "at the heart of convergence" and described 2007 as the year the industry will return to growth. He also hinted that radio could benefit from Ofcom’s restrictions on junk food advertising around children’s TV programmes, saying that the rules are likely to be different for radio.

Harrison told delegates that radio continues to dominate the 15- to 54-year-old age group and added that it beats the internet in terms of reach.

Harrison outlined his five-year strategy at the "RadioActive" conference built around the acronym RADIO, which stands for Revenue, Audience, Digital, Influence and Organisation.

RadioActive was Harrison’s first opportunity to outline his vision for the commercial radio industry since taking on the merged trade body’s top job six months ago.

RadioCentre was formed last year from the merger of the Radio Advertising Bureau and the Commercial Radio Companies Association. Harrison, previously the interim marketing director at Boots and also a former managing director of Müller Dairy UK, was confirmed as chief executive in the summer.

Recommended

UGC and social networks are not just for the kids

Marketing Week

When Rupert Murdoch and Google entered the world of social networks and user-generated content (UGC) with their acquisitions of MySpace and YouTube respectively, many wondered whether these bold and expensive moves would prove a folly. The answer is a resounding “No”. At this year’s Marketing Week Interactive conference, which attracted speakers ranging from marketing heavyweights, […]