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ftm Radio Page - January 20, 2017

Fall in listening favors news and talk stations
Europe1, NRJ punished

All of the action was at the top of the card as French measurement institute Médiamétrie released November-December national radio audience estimates. And most of that action was market share growth. Incumbent top rated general interest channel RTL remains, of course on top; 12.6% market share, up from 11.5% one year on. Then, too, number two is, again, public news-talk channel France Inter with 11.0% market share from 9.9%.

Number three is RMC, the news-talk-sports channel owned by NextRadioTV. Posting 6.8% market share from 6.4% year on year, RMC bested suffering Europe 1, which fell to 6.6% market share from 7.4%. Altogether, it was a very good showing for speech-based radio channels; regional public network France Bleu being the exception, dropping on aggregate to 6.0% market share from 6.5%. All-news public channel France Info placed 9th with 3.8% market share, best showing in more than four years.

National music channels were up a bit, down a bit or flat, with one big exception. Pop music icon NRJ dropped to 5th place from 4th one year on; 6.1% market share against 6.7%. It is the worst showing for NRJ in more than five years. NRJ Group deputy director Maryam Salehi blamed “persistence of messages from Fun Radio urging listeners to respond to Médiamétrie in their favor,” quoted by Les Echos (January 20). The episode is referred to locally as “Fungate.” (See more about media in France here)

Fun Radio was punished with delisting by Médiamétrie for two survey periods last year after complaints from competitors about on-air activities during the November-December 2015 and January-March 2016 periods in which its market share surged. Médiamétrie statisticians made “adjustments” and Fun Radio posted 4.2% market share, down from 5.5% year on year. (See France national radio audience trends here in Resources)

Total listening in the November-December period was off, 80.8% national reach down from 81.9% one year on. Typically, November-December yields more radio listeners than other periods. But national reach in the period has slipped consistently for five years; November-December national reach was 82.5%. Aggregate audience for public broadcaster Radio France is 24.6% market share, up from 24.0% year on year and 23.0% in November-December 2013. Commercial broadcasters aggregate market share dropped to 70.7% from 71.2% one year on.

Established brands stay firm, new brands challenge
When ratings slip, change the name

Radio markets are either static or dynamic, so to speak, and market share estimates measure the universe of listeners. The brand strength of established stations is rarely challenged. Newcomers can attract considerable attention. One fact about radio audiences, particularly in recent years, is that some stations feel the squeeze.

The top three Romanian national radio channels increased market share, year on year, in the ARA/IMAS/Mercury audience estimates for the September-December 2016 period, released this week. Public broadcaster Radio Romania’s main general interest channel Romania Actualitati leads with 15.5% market share, up from 14.3%. Pop dance music channel Kiss FM, owned by Greek broadcaster ANT1 Group, placed second with 10.3% market share, up from 8.8%. Third in the ranking of listeners 11 years and older is hip-hop dance channel Radio ZU, 9.0% market share up from 8.2%. Radio ZU is owned by broadcaster Intact Media Group.

General interest Europa FM, owned by Lagardere Active Radio International (LARI), placed 4th, off slightly to 8.0% market share from 8.3%, year on year. Public channel Antena Satelor, which targets rural audiences, was up slightly to 6.6% market share from 6.3% holding 5th place. (See Romania national and Bucharest radio audience trends here in Resources)

Information channel ProFM, owned by RCS & RDS, fell to 4.2% market share from 6.4% one year on. In November 2015 RCS & RDS launched contemporary hit station Digi FM, replacing InfoPro, and after a year on the air ranked 8th nationally with 2.3% market share. Soft A/C station Magic FM, also owned by ANT1 Group, was rock steady at 4.1% market share. (See more about media in Romania here)

LARI owned Radio 21, also a pop dance channel, dropped to 2.2% market share from 2.5% year on year. It has been sliding downward for several years and earlier this month was rebranded Virgin Radio. Romania’s radio market has been “static” for years, said Lagardere Active Radio International (LARI) CEO Daniel Galinski to Adevarul (January 9). “I felt the need to reposition (Radio 21) and confront radio industry giants and to do that the best option was a brand whose DNA says ‘provoke’.” LARI has owned Europa FM and Vibe FM since 2000 and Bucharest station Smart FM since 2007.

Radio 21 was fully acquired by LARI last year after holding a minority stake for several years and media regulator National Audiovisual Council (CNA) approved the name change in December. LARI and parent Lagardère Active have a brand management arrangement with Virgin Radio International. Recently LARI opened stations in Africa under the Virgin Radio brand.

Bucharest alternative music station Radio Guerrilla, taken off the air in 2013 with the failure of the Realitatea Media media house, returned to the airwaves last May, owned by Expresiv SA, and posted 1.8% market share in Bucharest.

Radio Page week ending January 13, 2017
radio in Norway, DAB, DAB+, FM shutoff, NRK, radio in Gambia, radio in Africa, Paradise FM, Teranga FM, Hilltop FM, Afri Radio, radio in Bulgaria, music rights, public broadcasting, BNR

Radio Page week ending December 23, 2016
radio in France, Fungate, Fun Radio, RTL France, NRJ Group

Radio Page week ending December 16, 2016
radio in Spain, EGM, AIMC, radio audience, Cadena SER, Onda Cero, Cadena Cope, Los 40 Principales, radio in Portugal, Record FM, Global Difusion, Kiss FM

Radio Page week ending December 9, 2016
radio in Switzerland, Ringier, DAB+, Spotify, SFR 3, radio in Norway, digital radio, DAB, digital transition

Radio Page week ending December 2, 2016
radio in Germany, ARD, mobile apps, VPRT

Radio Page week ending November 25, 2016
radio in France, Mediametrie, Paris radio audience, France Inter, music radio, Rire et Chansons, radio in the UK, BBC Radio, streaming audio, The Archers, radio in Hungary, Class FM, Slager Radio, NMHH, radio license

Radio Page week ending November 18, 2016
radio in France, Médiamétrie, RTL, France Inter, NRJ, Europe 1, Fun Radio, radio in the Czech Republic, radio audience, RadioProjekt, Radio Impuls, CRo Radiozurnal, CRo Radio Plus, Rock Radio, Radio City, radio advertising

Radio Page week ending November 11, 2016
radio in Austria, DAB+, ORF, WorldDAB

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