1. COMMERCIAL AND NON-COMMERCIAL RADIO
COMMERCIAL
Commercial radio obtains its operating budget through ‘selling advertising’. Due to
the fact that they attract money through advertising, commercial radio stations need
a consistently large number of listeners. These ratings are used by the station to
demonstrate to potential advertisers that buying a commercial spot on the station will
reach a significant number of people and is a worthwhile investment. These numbers
are also used to price advertising. Therefore, the more listeners a radio station has,
the more it can charge for an advertisement slot, and so it will have a higher income
to be used for its operating budget.
NON-COMMERCIAL
Non-commercial radio includes college radio and community-based radio stations.
This also includes local National Public Radio (NPR). Though these stations may
carry advertising, it is widely spaced and not the main source of funding for a non-
commercial radio station. Most non-commercial stations rely either on subsidies from
a non-profit organisation, such as a university.
