Is anyone listening to the radio?

With over 8 million Australians using Spotify, it’s easy to question its relevance. However, video didn’t kill the radio star, and streaming hasn’t either.

Here are some reasons why people are still listening and how we can tell:

Local Content: Local radio provides content that resonates with communities. It covers local news, events, and issues overlooked by larger media outlets, fostering a sense of community. Unlike global streaming giants, local radio offers unique voices.

Community Engagement: Local radio actively engages with the community through sponsorships and competitions. This year, we’re giving someone a chance to win $100,000.

Technological Adaptability: With the rise of streaming services, local radio has kept up streaming its own services. For 2ST, Power FM & Kix Country, these are all free to the listener via iHeart Radio.

Audience Surveys: Independent companies conduct surveys using sound statistical techniques to measure audience sizes. In Sydney alone, the last survey of 2024 indicated ~4.5 million listeners.

While I can’t provide an official source for my market (The Southern Highlands and Shoalhaven), I can make educated guesses based on comparisons with other surveyed markets with similar population sizes.

Disclaimer: I’m not a market research professional!

I’ve compiled 11 markets similar in size to the Southern Highlands and Shoalhaven. ARN (our parent company) has a presence in each market, sometimes exclusively. This table summarizes the percentage of the population that listens to an ARN station.  

Based on this table and the average ARN rating of 46%, we can estimate our listener count through our own population numbers: 

We can tell people ARE listening to radio through a number of techniques and common sense that show Australians still listen. People listen as radio provides live and local content that remains relevant, even with the rise of streaming services. And at the end of the day we have the numbers to prove it.