RAJAR Q2 2010: National Stations

BBC Radio 2 still has the highest number of national listeners despite a drop in reach in Q2 2010.  BBC Radio 1 and Radio 4  have also retained their positions in second and third place, although Global’s Heart Network breaks up the party somewhat by sitting in fourth place ahead of BBC Radio Five Live.

Positively, all of the leading UK stations increased their reach in the second quarter, with Global’s Galaxy Network and Bauer’s Total Kiss Network performing particularly well.  BBC Asian Network and Bauer’s Heat also enjoyed a substantial boost in listeners in Q2.

talkSPORT, meanwhile, posted its most successful second quarter results in the station’s 10 year history (up by almost 6% period on period) – “Obviously talkSPORT’s live rights for this summer’s FIFA World Cup demonstrates that by investing in quality content a station will be paid back in audience gains,” Matthew Rouse, account director at Mindshare, commented.  “With the Premier League due to start in a matter of weeks, and with a step up in their broadcast rights in that arena, talkSPORT must use this as their opportunity to connect with new listeners and build on this success.”

However, the biggest story by far is BBC 6 Music’s incredible growth.  The alternative digital music station, which the BBC director general Mark Thompson threatened to close,  has enjoyed an unprecedented surge in listeners this year.  It will be interesting to see if this rise continues now the station has been ‘saved’.

In terms of national share, there was little change in Q2 2010.  As with weekly reach, BBC Radio 2, Radio 4 and Radio 1 dominate the top market share, with Global’s Heart holding on to fourth place.

However, there were some changes in listening habits.  Just over half of all the national stations managed to increase the amount of time their listeners tuned in for.  Unsurprisingly, BBC 6 Music recorded a big jump in its average hours during the quarter, as did Bauer’s Heat and Sunrise Radio.

However, it’s not all good news.  Total LBC, Gold Network and BBC Radio 1 failed to keep listeners for as long as they have in the past.  Planet Rock, Panjab Radio and Q also saw their average hours decrease in Q2 2010.