Digital radio sales and listening rise
Official data relating to digital radio broadcasts in Australia was released by Commercial Radio Australia (CRA) today in the Digital Radio Industry Report 2011, showing there are nearly 700,000* people listening to digital radio in an average week, in the five state metropolitan capitals of Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide and 406,012** digital radios in the market.
When compared to 2009 (July09-Dec09), there was an increase indigital sales of 185% in 2010/11 (Jan10-Jan11) and a rise in digitalradio listening to 5.6% (691,000 people) up from 3.7% (449,000) in2010.
Commercial Radio Australia chief executive officer, Joan Warner said:”The commercial radio industry has spent more than $25 million dollarson an ongoing and extensive digital radio marketing strategy andcampaign and continues to work collaboratively with digital radioretailers and manufacturers to build the awareness with listeners.”
“We’re very pleased with these latest figures but recognise there isstill much work to be done, particularly in relation to the roll out ofdigital radio to the rest of Australia. Our priorities over the next12 months will be to build the growing metropolitan audience and therange of receivers available to them; work on specific promotions withretailers; work with car manufacturers to get DAB+ radios into cars;and work with the Government to plan the regional rollout”, said MsWarner.
The Digital Radio Industry Report 2011, compiled by CRA, includes datafrom the official radio industry audience measurement survey provider,the Nielsen Company, consumer electronics market research company GfK,market research organisations, the Hoop Group and HOED and an uptakeforecast from PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC).
Other key findings from the report include:
- Time spent listening to radio via DAB+ digital radio devices is11 hours and 11 minutes each week, up by two hours and 55 minutes sinceSurvey #1, 2010.
- Time spent listening to radio via a DAB+ digital radio hasovertaken listening to radio on the internet by 2 to 1 (TSL on internet5 hours & 11 minutes).
- 78% of those surveyed were aware of digital radio, up from 63% at the beginning of 2010.
- 87 % of people who own a digital radio would recommend it to a friend.
- Digital radio uptake in Australian households conservatively estimated at around 16% by 2014.
The report highlights the fact that radio broadcasters continue tolaunch new digital-only services with up to 20 new DAB+ only stationson air in each market, plus an additional 13 short-term or pop-upstations.
There are now more than 80 different digital radio models on sale inAustralia, across 700 retail outlets plus online stores. The averagesales price has fallen to AUD$105.
The full Digital Radio Industry Report 2011 can be downloaded here by clicking on the Digital Radio Industry Report ticker on the home page.