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German Radio Audience: Berlin-Brandenberg
Fifth in a series looking at radio in Germany following the MA radio 2005 I audience survey release

New top station in Germany's most competitive market

The Berlin city-state – Germany’s largest city - sits in the middle of Brandenberg länder once part of the East, comprising the Nielsen V measurement zone. The contrasts are still striking. Results shown are from the MA radio 2005 I for Monday through Saturday “listened yesterday” 0600-1800 persons 14 years and older, unless otherwise noted.

The seven public broadcasting channels of Rundfunk Berlin-Brandenberg (RBB) held a total market share of 36.1%, among the lowest for public broadcasters within the Nielsen zones. RBB channels increased 62,000 listeners Monday through Friday. Privately owned channels have a 54.5% market share.  Of the top ten stations among 14 to 49 year olds, three increased audience, five decreased and two more or less stayed the same. Berlin-Brandenberg has 38 radio channels on 27 FM frequencies, one of the most congested in Europe.

Radio Audience in Germany
MA radio 2005 I results

Radio audience figures were released (March 9) for the whole of Germany by Media-Analyse, the joint broadcaster research institute.

In general, the Radio 2005 I survey – covering September through December 2004 - shows an increase in radio’s overall reach in Germany, 81.9% of the population uses the medium, up from 81.2% in the previous survey. The current survey reveals a growing difference between the amount of time men spend with radio, 220 minutes, versus 201 minutes by women. Women, however, listen more than men between 0900 and noon and men listen than women between 1700 and 1900. Increasing their time spent listening by 2 minutes over the previous survey are people 30 to 59 years of age, to 243 minutes. The most favored age group for advertisers, 14 to 49 year olds, listen 220 minutes, unchanged from the previous survey.

Privately owned radio stations in Germany have now doubled to 200 since 1989. In 1988 there were 10 private stations. That jumped to 100 in 1989. There are 59 public radio channels, dropping back from 63 in 2003. Of the top ten channels ranked by Monday through Sunday, 0600-1800 listeners, 8 are regional public broadcasters. Bavaria’s Antenne Bayern and the Radio NRW network in Nord Rhine Westphalia are the only privately owned radio chennels in the top ten.

Six separate research companies conduct the telephone surveys and collect data from zones corresponding to Nielsen television survey zones.

Before 2000 the MA conducted personal interviews to survey radio listening. That was replaced with telephone interviews. This method change caused a slight decline in reported daily usage, to 79% of the population from 82.3%, and a time spent listening increase to 209 minutes in 2000 from 179 minutes in 1999.

Subscribers, sales-houses, and regional authorities release radio listening data but selectively. Media-Analyse (ag.ma) does not publicly release radio audience results. Survey results are designed as ad sales currency, results reported include “listeners per advertising hour.”

Articles in this series on radio in Germany focus on the Radio 2005 I Media-Analyse results in the individual Nielsen zones

German Radio Audience: the North
Public broadcasters hold the edge in northern Germany, legacy stations slide.

German Radio Audience: North Rhine-Westphalia
Radio NRW and WDR, no competition.

German Radio Audience: Southwest
Market history no advantage to private broadcasters

German Radio Audience: Bavaria
Big public and private channels post big increases

German Radio Audience: Berlin-Brandenberg
New top station in Germany's most competitive market

German Radio Audience: the East
Targeted local stations gain on market leaders

The top spot goes to BB Radio with a 15.1% market share, 738,000 listeners Monday through Saturday 14 years and older, increasing 3.8%. The stations also increased to 180,000 persons 14 to 49 from 164,000 in the MA radio 2004 II and 144,000 in the MA radio 2004 I.

Public broadcaster Antenne Brandenberg holds 2nd place with a 14.1% market share, 689,000 listeners 14 years and older, Monday through Saturday. The channel lost listeners 14 to 49 years, to 66,000 from 89,000, now 7th place.

Former market leader 94.3 r.s. 2 continued its slide, landing in second place with 144,000 listeners 14-49 years from 162,000 in the previous survey. It is in 3rd place overall with 11.0% market share among listeners 14 years and older, 535,000 listeners. Three years earlier, in the MA radio 2002 I survey, the station pulled the highest number of 14 to 49 year old listeners with 202,000. No other station has topped that mark and with intense competition within the Berlin-Brandenberg market area it is not likely to happen again.

Berliner Rundfunk placed 4th among listeners 14 years and older, a 9.7% market share, 473,000 listeners. The station crashed with 14 to 49 year old listeners, dropping to 76,000 from 87,000.

Fifth place among listeners 14 years and older went to 104.6 RTL Berlin, a 9.4% market share and 457,000 listeners.  The station dropped 14 to 49 year old listeners, to 107,000 from 137,000 one year on, placing 4th in that category.

RBB youth channel Radio Fritz managed to edge ahead of 104.6 RTL Berlin into third place among 14 to 49 year olds, though the station actually dropped a fraction. Among listeners 14 to 19 years the channel increased listeners by 24,000. The station placed 6th overall with a 6.9% market share and 336,000 listeners 14 years and older.

88ächt – a public station – placed 7th overall, just a fraction beneath Radio Fritz, with 334,000 listeners 14 years and older.

The biggest winner in Berlin-Brandenberg – and on of the biggest winners in all of Germany in the recent MA radio 2005 I survey – is public station Radio EINS (“radio for adults”), increasing Monday through Friday audience by 71,000. The channel increased 25.0% over all to a 6.0% market share, 295,000 listeners, and is now ranked 8th overall. It also increased to 71,000 from 61,000 listeners among 14 to 49 year olds.

RBB’s Info Radio placed 9th overall with 274,000 listeners 14 years and older, increasing 57,000 Monday through Friday.

Energy placed 10th overall with a 5.4% market share among listeners 14 years and older.

98.8 KISS FM – now 9th among 14 to 49 year olds – increased to 49,000 listeners, steadily progressing over the last four semi-annual ratings periods. The station ranks 11th among listeners 14 years and older.

Separating Berlin and Brandenberg, market leaders differ. In Berlin the top two stations are 94.3 r.s.2 and 104.6 RTL Berlin while in Brandenberg BB Radio and Antenne Brandenberg lead.

 

 

 


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