MediaVest: ‘It’s positive to see such a competitive London marketplace’
Arum Nixon, client investment director at MediaVest UK, says it’s no surprise that the radio industry is in a celebratory mood this morning…
This has been one of the strongest ever sets of results for commercial radio, and all parties seem to have plenty of good news to shout about. Bauer were able to toast their highest ever reach this quarter, giving a strong start to the new Bauer Passion Portfolio and Bauer Place Portfolio, and as records fell across the industry, Kiss recorded its highest ever reach in its first set of results since going national.
Down the road, Global must be delighted to see Capital back at the top of the London table, with its highest reach since March 2004. In fact, within the London commercial marketplace only Heart has attracted more listeners in the past seven years – 2,185,000 last June. Capital is the new golden child of the Global network, with the brand being rolled out to the regions and supported by substantial marketing spend, so this is a timely boost. However, its recent performance in the RAJARs has been far from consistent, and they must hope that they can sustain these gains next quarter. Either way, from an industry point of view, it’s very positive to see such a competitive London marketplace.
With three of the top four stations in London based on share (Capital, Heart and LBC), the number one breakfast show (Capital) and most listened to commercial station (Classic FM – recording it’s highest reach since June 2005), there will surely be a few corks popping in Leicester Square.talkSPORT are also a station riding the crest of a wave, following their Sony award wins with another record reach figure, and after a somewhat lacklustre performance last quarter, Absolute will be delighted to have added 31% more listeners across the network year on year. Even Jazz FM got in on the party with record reach and hours, and will have high hopes now the station is national.
Add to this the continuing growth of digital listening, and it’s no surprise that the industry is in a celebratory mood this morning. Over recent times, commercial radio has seen a pretty substantial overhaul, putting its faith in the strength of its brands and investing considerable amounts in the product, and this strategy seems to be paying dividends. Commercial radio now seems to have a product genuinely capable of trading punches with the BBC – let’s just hope the champagne is flowing in three months’ time.