UK Radio Listeners Turn To New Technologies
Listening to radio via new technologies, such as mobile phones, the internet and radio via television, is on the increase in the UK, according to an analysis of the latest RAJAR data by the Radio Advertising Bureau.
As the new Freeview digital TV service – which broadcasts radio stations as part of its package – becomes more established, the number of people listening via the television is likely to continue to rise. Already, more than half of those who do listen via the TV do so every week.
Via the internet Internet listening has been adopted by 11.9% of adults and 20.9% of 15-24s; 26.3% of more regular web users tune into radio, according to the data.
These figures are almost double those recorded two years ago and look set to rise. The frequency of internet listening is also increasing: more than one in five of those who tune in online do so at least once a week, up more than 10% year on year.
National UK radio stations are the most popular choice in online listening, followed by stations outside the UK and then local UK radio stations, according to the RAB.
Via mobile phones Listening via mobile phones is also on the rise, with a number of new phone models now including a radio receiver. This increases the opportunity to listen to radio whilst on the move, notes the RAB.
Mobile phone listening is again more prevalent amongst the younger age groups, with 6.0% of 15-24s using the technology in Q3 2002, up from 2.1% in Q3 2001; 1.8% of adults listened to radio via a mobile.
Despite increases in the proportion of listeners using these new technologies, overall radio listening, in terms of hours, declined by 3.4% in Q3 2002. The brunt of this decline came from the commercial sector, which saw its total hours fall by 5.8% to 4.8 million; the BBC’s dropped 1.6% to 5.5 million.