Thanks TV-Expert.
Who would have guessed a 20% increase in those younger age groups?
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In 2002, 10-17 cume was 337,000 and 25-39 cume was 827,000.
It should be noted that total market population in 2002 was 3.65m. In 2012 it was about 4.2m, and the current estimate is 4.83m, so the cume increases have more or less kept in line with the overall population increases.
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Thanks for that. 
Whilst on 2002, since I have provided the overall Sydney ratings for S1/2012, it’s only fair that I do one for S1/2002 as well.
The survey took place just before Alan Jones had started on 2GB after having moved across from 2UE.
#1: 2Day: 13.8
#2: 2UE: 11.9
#3: 2MMM: 9.1
#4: Nova: 8.6
#5: ABC702: 8.1
#6: Mix 106.5: 7.0
#7: WSFM: 6.1
#8: 2CH: 5.1
#9: 2GB: 4.9 (the station’s fortune was about to change very soon from that point)
#10: 2JJJ: 4.4
#11: 2RN: 2.4
#12: ABC Classic FM: 2.3
#13: ABC NewsRadio: 2.2
#14: 2KY: 2.1
#15: 2SM: 0.8
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Isn’t it amazing to see how 2MMM has declined for no real reason.
What could’ve caused its decline?
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Three things. They’ve lost their music focus. Too much talk and “comedy”. I no longer even try Triple M because I know it’s likely if I flick on it will be talk or sport. So I don’t bother.
Secondly the music they do play is repetitive and their interpretation of rock is too narrow.
Thirdly, the sound of the station is too bogan and tradie sounding.
I just wish they would listen to some rock and classic rock stations in North America and just copy them! Stations like Q107 in Toronto or The Drive or WXRT in Chicago. These stations rate!! In much more competitive/bigger markets.
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It’s the third survey of 1988 and 2MMM continues to to reign as No.1, especially since 2SM switched to the dowdy Lite’n’Easy 1269 in April of that year.
Mark Collier is at the helm of Sydney’s No.2 station, Radio Active 2UE, and his memos to staff are always inclusive. He thanks everyone for their efforts, and whilst it’s unlikely that Alan Jones or John Laws will be at the ratings party at Sheila’s later that night, Mark will be there and he’ll chat to everyone who works at Bond Media’s 2UE. As a manager, Mark knew everyone’s name, from the tea lady to the on-air talent.
There are three Sydney stations with a higher rating in 2022 than they had in 1988 - 2BL/702, 2GB and 2UW/KIIS.
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What format was on 2KY at the time?
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talkback and racing, I think?
Here’s the equivalent Melbourne survey 3/88 (with 2/88 in brackets)
FOX 16.4 (17.9)
3KZ 13.7 (13.4)
3AW 12.4 (11.6)
EON 9.8 (9.9)
3MP 9.7 (11.5)
3LO 9.0 (9.6)
3UZ 6.4 (5.9)
3XY 6.3 (5.9)
3TT 5.5 (3.9)
3AK 4.4 (4.3)
ABC FM 1.7 (2.0)
3AR 1.5 (1.5)
Some big drops for FOX (-1.5) and 3MP (-1.8) and an increase for 3TT’s 2nd survey (+1.6). A small climb for ‘light and easy’ 3AK (+0.1), the slightly revamped 3UZ (+0.5), and even 3XY managed an increase (+0.4) as it’s about to change format to XY Easy Rock.
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Would love to see Brisbane around this time in 1988. Think FM104 was peaking about that time. I’m not sure if Stereo 10 had flipped to Lite and Easy, I can’t remember if it was 87 or 88.
Re the Melbourne one I’m a bit surprused 3TT wasn’t doing better. What format were they at the time? Classic hits?
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TT launched in April 1988 as Classic Hits, but it was challenged by the popularity of 3KZ’s Hits and Memories and there were probably not a lot of listeners from 3DB that followed to 3TT as they most likely just migrated to 3UZ’s revamped talk and racing line-up, so even though DB’s last survey was 6.1, just how many of those followed the change to TT is unclear.
3DB’s last survey (1/88) had a rating of 6.1. 3TT’s first survey (2/88) was 3.9. (-2.2)
3UZ’s survey 1/88 was 4.1. Next survey it was 5.9. (+1.8)
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BRISBANE S3/1988 (S2) [Brisbane only had 3 surveys in 1988]
- FM104 37.9 (30.3) That was its largest share ever, and remains the largest share ever recorded by an FM station in any of the capital metros.
- 4BH 882 13.5 (13.7)
- 4KQ 693 11.5 (12.5)
- 4BC 1116 9.0 (10.2)
- 4BK 1296 7.7 (7.7)
- 4QR 612 7.4 (9.7)
- 4IO 1008 6.3 (7.6)
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Thanks. Yep thought so. FM104 was dominating for a few years by then but got an extra ‘bump’ from Expo, they were not exactly the official broadcaster but they certainly capitalised on it more than the others. And to think only a couple of years later they would be in a totally different state because of the disastrous rebrand and different format in response to B105. Yes B105 was always going to make some impact but they would have held up much better if they hadn’t messed with it.
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And having to change frequency at about the same time that B105 launched probably didn’t help.
I’ve often wondered if FM104 had been able to stay on 104.1, with B105 launching on 104.9 instead, how much of a difference that would have made.
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Personally I don’t think the frequency change had too much impact. If I recall correctly they moved to 104.5 well before B105 launched, so people had already found it. It was the more the fact they literally changed the station’s identity at the exact moment B105 launched so people were confused. It was like there were suddenly 2 new stations. They effectively pushed their long standing audience to try both. B105 outgunned them with promotion by an absolute mile. People of course tried out the new station in droves because all of a sudden the station they had loved for years was gone overnight. It was a masterclass in what NOT to do when an utterly dominant station meets its first real competition.
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Here is the first survey for 1984 in Sydney. It’s an interesting one for several reasons:
- 2WS hit No.1 for the first time and it shared the win with 2UE who had the powerhouse line up of O’Callaghan, Laws, Buttrose, Malcolm T and John Pearce.
- 2UW had relaunched as Magic 11. The format flopped but it cut loose a swathe of under 24 year olds that caused a surge for 2MMM and 2SM. In Survey 2, 1107 started to revert back to the 2UW call sign but the damage was done and the ratings continued to fall. It was only three years earlier that The New 2UW was rating close to 16%.
- 2CH’s elevator music continues to be a winning format with those over 50. No commercial stations play this style of music anymore.
- Both 2KY and 2GB were providing a credible alternative to 2UE in the world of commercial talk. 702 was struggling and after midday it failed to reach above a 3 share.
- 2DayFM was a “smooth style” station and was enjoying respectable ratings, although it trailed MMM, 2SM and 2WS
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It was about August 1988 when the change over to Lite and Easy 1008 occurred.As I was a big radio nut back in those days (not anymore) of course I remember 
FM 104 definitely ruled the airwaves back then
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Melbourne’s Survey 1/84 (4/83 in brackets)
3AW 14.5 (11.1)
3KZ 13.7 (14.5)
3AK 11.2 (12.1)
3XY 10.7 (11.0)
EON 10.6 (8.8)
3LO 8.4 (6.6)
FOX 7.3 (8.3)
3MP 7.2 (8.3)
3DB 6.5 (5.1)
3UZ 3.3 (8.5)
3AR 2.5 (2.4)
O/FM 2.1 (1.6)
O/AM 2.0 (1.7)
EON’s first double-figure score. Just over a year later (2/85) it would hit #1.
Looks like 3UZ took quite a hit, there might have been some fallout when 3UZ dumped its racing broadcasts in 1983 and became “3UZ Muzic”. On the other hand, 3DB, now having racing all to itself, has gone up a bit. The days when saturation racing coverage could still draw in an audience!
(EDIT: The 3UZ logo will be from 1985, not 84, as Stereo AM launched in 1985. IIRC the station had similar imagery but was branded as just 927AM in 1984?)
3XY still just hanging in to double figures, though by 3/84 it would dip below the 10 mark and would never hit it again.
A bit of a contrast between 2BL (4.8) and its Melbourne equivalent 3LO (8.4), although both stations would have to work around parliament broadcasts at various times during the year so that would play havoc with trying to hold onto regular listeners.
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They also dumped Bert Newton, who brought in the listeners. Here’s an ad from August 1983 - with the slogan TalkRadio 927. I think it was more a talk and racing station hybrid that switched to a music station, so no surprise at the fall.
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Was that just based on a huge mass of telephone bookmakers or something - or was there genuine just interest in just hearing the races as if it were a call of a football game?
I can kinda get watching/listening now that it’s all betting on apps or whatever, but I struggle to imagine how it’d be a mainstream thing to listen to, rather than the 2-3% maybe that it can draw now - overestimating to account for those watching TV or streaming.
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My memory may be biased, but I think it was a case of “less is more”. I don’t really recall many interstate races being covered, so there was less racing coverage, but you took a general interest. Information about overseas sports (eg NBA, EPL etc) was a lot more limited, so races were just part of general interest like Tattslotto. Think of it, as there was a lot less choice/specialisations to focus on.
Betting was either the government owned TAB or bookies at the track. Blissfully, there were no ads for bookmakers (I think it was illegal).
Curious as to others views/recollections
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