Young music fans 'not interested in radio'

The traditional music industry path of trying to promote artists via radio play may be becoming less effective, according to a new study.

Today's generation of teenagers are able to access music from a wide range of sources, most notably iTunes and streaming websites.

As a result, traditional radio does not play as big a role in formulating their musical tastes as it did for their predecessors.

Research by law firm Olswang for its Convergence Survey found that those in the 13-17 age group have not got into the habit of listening to the radio.

Instead they prefer to access music from streaming services which allow them to set up playlists and control what they listen to and when they listen to it.

Researchers found that 61 per cent of the teenagers quizzed already use music streaming services, compared with just 38 per cent of adults.

The report said that broadcasting and music industry executives were already well aware that they need to discover new ways to engage with young people.

It suggested: "One way to engage with the kids and other younger demographics may be to deliver playlists that can be adopted by the 'fans' of the person, band or brand providing the recommendation."

Absolute Radio is to experiment with a similar concept by launching Dabbl, a user-controlled music radio station, in December.

By Neil Hill