RAJAR Results Q3 2004: BBC Extends Lead Over Commercial

The latest RAJAR listening figures for the third quarter of 2004 reveal a relatively disappointing performance for All Commercial Radio, which saw its share of listening decline by 1.3% points period on period to 43.7%. The corresponding increase experienced by All BBC helped it extend its lead as it pushed past the 54% mark.

The situation was also less than impressive for National Commercial, which saw its share of listening slip by 0.5% points during the same period to 9.6%. All Local Commercial dipped by 0.8% points to just over the 34% mark, while BBC Local and BBC Local/Regional saw their share of listening remain virtually static in the third quarter.

The picture remains largely unchanged in year on year analysis with All BBC seeing its share of listening rise by a healthy 2.6% points at the expense of All Commercial, which dipped by 2.5% points in the third quarter of this year. Meanwhile, All National Commercial managed a slight 0.1% points increase, despite a slowdown in the number of new digital stations entering the market. All Local Commercial suffered a 2.7% points decline in the three months to September and BBC Local Radio dipped by 0.3% points during the same period. BBC Local/Regional and Other Listening saw their share of listening hold firm.

Period on period analysis of weekly reach reveals a slight 0.3% decline for All Radio, which fell just below the 44 million mark in the third quarter of this year. Within this, All BBC notched up a 0.4% increase to just over 32.5 million, while All Commercial slipped by 1% to around 31 million weekly listeners.

Data for the three months to September also brought less than impressive news to All National Commercial Radio, which saw its weekly reach decline by 2.6% period on period to around the 12.75 million mark. All Local Commercial also failed to shine with a 0.8% drop during the third quarter to just over 25.7 million. BBC Local and BBC Local Regional also suffered declines, while Other Listening inched up by 0.4% period on period to above the 2.7 million mark.

Again, the situation remains largely unchanged in year on year analysis with its weekly reach inching up by 0.1% during the third quarter. All BBC recorded a healthy 2.3% increase at the expense of All Commercial, which sank back by 1.7% during the same period.

However, the outlook was more positive for All National Commercial, which saw its weekly reach climb by a solid 2.1% year on year thanks to new digital radio stations still rolling out on the Freeview platform. However, All Local Commercial put in a less impressive performance with its weekly reach shrinking by 3.1% in the three months to September. BBC Local and BBC Local/Regional dipped, but other listening rose by a notable 4.6% in year on year analysis.

The latest RAJAR data for the third quarter of this year shows that All BBC Radio saw a solid 2.9% year on year increase in average hours per listener to just under 18 hours. All Commercial proved less fortunate with a 3.8% decline during the same period to an average of 15 hours.

All National Commercial also suffered with a 1.2% year on year decline to 8 hours per person and Local Commercial dipped by a more notable 4.1% during the same period to just over 14 hours. BBC Local Radio slipped by 2.4% in the three months to September and Other Listening fell by 3.7%. All Radio remained static during the third quarter with an average of 24.4 hours per listener.

Subscribers can access ten years of media news and analysis in the Archive