Total Line Reporting

Effective with the Winter 2006 survey, Arbitron made an important change in the reporting of audience estimates for radio stations that simulcast 100 percent. This page provides background on Total Line Reporting and details the reporting of listener estimates for stations that elect this reporting option.

Questions? Read Simulcast Total Line Reporting FAQ.

Overview

Arbitron recognizes that simulcasting is a significant operational and marketing strategy for many radio broadcasting companies. Effective with the Winter 2006 survey, Arbitron started offering Total Line Reporting as an option for stations that simulcast 100 percent. This allows eligible stations to be reported through a single estimate line in all applications and reports.

Arbitron’s Total Line Reporting policy:

• Is available to radio stations in Diary markets that simulcast all content (including programming, commercials, and Public Service Announcements) 100 percent of the time the stations are on the air during each quarterly survey period.
• Is available to radio stations in PPM markets that simulcast all content (including programming, commercials, and Public Service Announcements) 100 percent of the time the stations are on the air during the entire three-month interval corresponding to each quarterly Diary survey period. (A station's Total Line Reporting status from the preceding Fall quarterly survey period is applied for the Holiday PPM™ survey month.)
• Is able to accommodate partnerships of two or more radio stations (including HD-multicasts and Internet streams) that simulcast 100 percent. However, all combos must include at least one AM or FM station and must choose an AM or FM station as the "primary" station.
• Reports estimates for simulcast partnerships through a single estimate line in all Arbitron local market reporting services for simulcast partnerships that request to do so.
• Allows the partnership to select the "primary" station from among the simulcast partners under whose call letters the partnership's combined listening will be reported.

Individual estimates for radio stations that are a part of a simulcast partnership that elects Total Line Reporting are not accessible through any of Arbitron’s applications or reports.

Total Line Reporting completely replaced all previous simulcast station policies. The Total Line Reporting policy provides consistency in the reporting of audience estimates for 100 percent simulcast radio stations across all Arbitron local market reporting services. Its implementation also eliminated the two-station limit on simulcast partnerships.

Combos that choose Total Line Reporting are identified on the "Station Information" and "Special Notices" pages of the Radio Market Report/Arbitron eBook^SM, and on a special page on the www.arbitron.com Web site that has information on all simulcast radio stations that have requested Total Line Reporting. The special page can be accessed at: www.arbitron.com/radio_stations/stationinformation/total_line.htm.

Station Information Collection

1. The quarterly Station Information Form includes a "Total Line Reporting" section where each station may indicate that it simulcasts 100 percent all content (including programming, commercials, and Public Service Announcements), with one or more stations for all 12 weeks of the quarterly survey period. There is space to list the call letters of all stations in the partnership, as well as to designate one of the partners as the "primary" station. These are the call letters under which the combo's estimates will be reported in Arbitron's local market reporting services. (Stations may also request Total Line Reporting by calling Arbitron's Station Relations department at (410) 312-8062.)
2. Upon completion of processing station information each survey, Arbitron sends a memo to station management for each new combo that has indicated 100 percent simulcast status and requested Total Line Reporting. This memo asks for reconfirmation of the submitted request and provides a reminder that only the primary station will be reported in Arbitron's local market reporting services.
3. After a new combo has been confirmed, the combo will be printed on the subsequent quarterly Station Information Forms for each partner station. Station management should sign and return the Station Information Form as directed each survey; failure to do so risks forfeiting Total Line Reporting for the quarter.

Note: Total Line Reporting must be confirmed on a quarterly basis, regardless of whether the combo's stations are measured four times per year or twice per year. (While some combos may be "home" to a market that is measured twice per year, they may also reach into markets that are measured four times per year.)

Processing Listening Data for Total Line Reporting Stations

Listening is credited to a combo’s individual radio stations during processing. Credit for the combo’s partner stations is “flipped” or recredited to the primary station of the simulcast partnership prior to the processing of audience estimates.

Reporting Estimates for Total Line Reporting Stations

1. Audience estimates for Total Line Reporting combos that meet Minimum Reporting Standards (MRS) are reported under the call letters of the primary station of the combo. MRS applies to the stations' combined estimates. Stations must simulcast 100 percent for all 12 weeks of a quarterly survey period (or for the entire time that both stations are on the air during the quarter) to be eligible for Total Line Reporting.
2. The partner station(s) of a Total Line Reporting combo is not included in the lineup in any of Arbitron's reporting services, and audience estimates for these individual radio stations are not available in any application or report.
3. Simulcast stations are flagged on the "Station Information" page of the Radio Market Report/Arbitron eBook. Report users should refer to the "Special Notices" page of the Radio Market Report/Arbitron eBook for a listing of the stations that are included in each Total Line Reporting combo that qualifies for the report. There are no special footnotes or flagging of Total Line Reporting combos on audience estimates pages or reports.
4. The Total Line Reporting page on the Arbitron Web site lists all combos, identifies the primary station of each, the primary station's home Metro (if applicable), and the primary station's home DMA®.
5. In Diary markets, changes to simulcast status reported to Arbitron through the end of Phase 1 will be reflected in Arbitrends^SM markets with the release of Phase 2 Arbitrends. Phase 1 Arbitrends will continue to reflect the stations' simulcast status as reported during the previous quarterly survey period.
6. In PPM markets, changes to simulcast status reported to Arbitron during the first month (January, April, July, or October) of a corresponding quarterly Diary survey period will be reflected with the release of that month's PPM Monthly estimates.

Reporting Prior-Survey Estimates for Total Line Reporting Combos

The historical information used for trend reports and multibook average estimates will always reflect the audience estimates originally published for the primary station of the combo, until the combo builds its own trends over a period of multiple surveys. This will occur regardless of whether the simulcast was in effect during the prior survey(s). Consequently, during transition periods, trends and multibook averages for Total Line Reporting combos may include surveys that were simulcast and surveys where the primary station was a stand-alone. When a Total Line Reporting combo ceases to simulcast (or elects to report each station’s estimates independently for another reason), the combo’s primary station will retain the historical data of the combo, while the partner stations will have no historical data associated with them for the surveys during which they were simulcast.

The Appendix to this document contains a simplified illustration of how trend reporting and multibook averaging works with Total Line Reporting.

Or, use Total Line Reporting Averaging Worksheet (XLS file).

Verification of Simulcast Partnerships

1. Radio stations will need to sign a memo confirming that they will be 100 percent simulcast (including programming, commercials, and Public Service Announcements) throughout the applicable report period. Confirmation of the combo's continuing 100 percent simulcast status will be required on a quarterly basis.
2. Radio stations may notify Arbitron if they believe a reported Total Line Reporting combo breaks simulcast during the survey period. In response, we would then request appropriate additional assurances from the purported simulcast partnership. Should it be confirmed that a reported Total Line Reporting combo broke simulcast during the survey period, remedial actions may be taken as Arbitron deems appropriate.

This enhancement to Arbitron's reporting process to better reflect listening to simulcast radio stations was reviewed with the Arbitron Radio Advisory Council at our August 2005 meeting and received the Council's endorsement.

Arbitron recognizes that this approach for reporting estimates for simulcast radio partnerships may not be suitable for all simulcast operations. Radio stations will have the option to continue to be reported independently. Stations that choose to be reported as stand-alone operations will not receive total line estimates in any Arbitron reporting application.

Please contact your Arbitron representative if you have questions or would like additional detail about Total Line Reporting.

Appendix: Illustrations of Multisurvey Averaging with the Total Line Reporting Process

Total Line Reporting Averaging Worksheet (XLS file)

Station Opts for Total Line Reporting Beginning with Summer 2009 Survey

Station Stops Simulcasting with Spring 07 Survey

*Some applications average only the on-air surveys for a station; others average the entire report period regardless of on-air status.

Questions? Read Simulcast Total Line Reporting FAQ.

PPM™ and Arbitron eBook^SM are marks of Arbitron Inc. DMA® is a registered service mark of Nielsen Media Research, Inc., and is used pursuant to a license from Nielsen Media Research, Inc.

Last updated: 8.7.09