Big audience boost for commercial digital radio
The number of DAB+ digital radios in Australia increased by more than 930,000 last year, helping to boost average weekly audiences for digital-only radio stations to over two million, according to the latest DAB+ update released by industry body Commercial Radio Australia.
More than 4.21 million people, or 30% of the population aged 10 and over, listened to DAB+ digital radio each week in the five metro capital cities in 2018, up from 3.62 million in 2017.
The commercial radio industry’s digital-only radio stations, which offer alternative formats including chillout music, country, specialist rock, 80s and retail services, reached 1.35 million listeners each week, a 30% jump over the previous year.
CRA chief executive officer Joan Warner said the growth figures were pleasing and would open the way for further commercialisation.
Says Warner: “Digital radio represents one of the growth areas for commercial radio. More listeners are discovering the new stations and more media agencies are including DAB+ as part of their advertising buy.”
Consumers need to upgrade their AM/FM radios to DAB+ radios to tune in to the digital-only stations or listen via streaming. The total number of DAB+ radios in Australia, including those in cars, rose to 4.73 million at the end of 2018, a 24% increase from 3.80 million at the end of 2017.
Sixty-five per cent of all new vehicles sold in Australia were factory-fitted with DAB+ radio in 2018.
The latest data, compiled from GfK radio surveys, GfK sales reporting and new vehicle sales data provided by Glass’s Automotive Business Intelligence, shows DAB+ grew strongly last year:
- Weekly listeners to DAB+ radio rose 16% to 4.21 million
- Commercial digital-only stations gained 315,000 listeners
- More than 930,000 DAB+ radios were sold in 2018, including 745,000 in new vehicles
- The number of DAB+ portable and home receivers in market totalled 2.56 million at the end
- of 2018, and the number of vehicles with DAB+ reached 2.17 million.
DAB+ technology offers superior sound quality and up to 30 extra commercial and public radio stations. These include Triple M Aussie, which launched on Australia Day with an all-Australian music format, the Christmas pop-up station Elf Radio, as well as Coles Radio, Triple M Classic Rock, The 80s iHeartRadio, NTS News Talk Sport, Koffee, Easy Hits, Kinderling Kids Radio and KIX Country Music.
For more information on DAB+ visit www.digitalradioplus.com.au.
1 Comment
the problem with DAB is, its hopeless coverage (in SEQ at least)
I live 40 mins drive north of the Brisbane GPO, I can get every normal FM station here and Sunshine coast, but I get 0, yes that’s z e r o digital stations
the radio does work, as I took the unit for a drive one day into near the city itself and was able to get digital signals but halfway home they’re gone.
so it’ll be a long time before DAB replaces analog.