I thought it was in 1996 they were on the FM band ,as I was up there then visiting my relations that year
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Today, for the final radio ratings survey for 2024, weâre off to the Central Coast of NSW:
Star 104.5 remain on top with 17.9%, down 0.6 from last year, followed by Triple M who went up 3.9 to 14.9% to take out 2nd place, with Hit 101.3 falling down to 3rd place with 12.8% (-2.3). Of the Sydney FM stations, KIIS went up 2.1 to 7.7%, well ahead of the others, and outrating ABC Central Coast (5%) in the process.
In the demos, Star is #1 in the 10-24s & 40-54s, with Hit taking the top spot in the 25-39s. Triple M is #1 in the 55+. Interestingly, KIIS was 3rd in the 25-39s (ahead of 107.7 Triple M), and 2nd in the 40-54s.
In breakfast, Starâs Gina & Matty took the top spot with 18.6% (-0.8), followed by Hitâs Jess & Ducko from Newcastle with 14.5% (-0.2), and Triple Mâs Paddy & Maz with 13.4% (+2.1). In Drive, Starâs Meg Alexander was #1 with 18.7% (-2.2), followed by Hitâs Carrie & Tommy with 16.1% (+0.1), and Triple Mâs Rush Hour with 14.9% (+3.0).
The âOther Stationsâ share this survey is at 26%, down 2.2 from last year.
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Looking at the demographics Star 104.5 lost listeners in the older demographics, 40-54 and 55-64. This is probably as a result of them skewing younger since they dropped the 80âs from their playlist. I wonder how much impact the axing of Rabbit at Breakfast has had??
Triple M CC looks to have gained from the changes at Star 104.5.
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The âOther Stationsâ in the 40-54s rose 1.0 to 19.7%, but on among the 55-64s, it went down 6.6 to 28.9%, whilst in the 65+, it went down 6.5 to 53.6%.
Triple M CC had a decent rise in the 65+, going up 7.4 to 15%, nearly doubling their share for that demo from last year. The station is also #2 during the workday (9am-4pm) behind Star.
Itâs worth noting that itâs the first time since 2012 that 107.7 has been the #2 station overall.
They have completely changed format. A few years ago they avoided playing tracks and artists that were too close to urban / hip-hop - or if they did, youâd only hear them during the party shuffle on Friday or Saturday nights. Now you hear Jack Harlow, Nelly, Lil Nas X etc. all the time.
The resulting âharder edgedâ sound, combined with them dropping '80s music, has meant that Iâve changed over to CoastFM. Even though 96.3 is not included in the ratings, Iâd imagine a lot of those older listeners have done the same.
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HUGE figure for KIIS at 7.7, really not far behind Hit101.3.
High figure for Triple M Sydney too, i suspect some people donât really know if they are listening to Sydney or Newcastle or the local one.
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Best showing ever for 106.5.
Poorest showing for 101.3 since 2009 (and 2nd lowest ever).
Best showing for 107.7 since 2009.
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At risk of upsetting the Meg Alexander fan club here, her music based drive show is down.
Remember last year, Hayden Else had over one in five listening to Drive.
Whatever NE want to say, they should regret Hayden going elsewhere*.
Room enough for a market the size of the CC to employ both Meg and Hayden.
Agree with @Radioheadâs comment, amusing that SCA are losing out on the station formerly known as yet still referred to by many as 2GO over the MMM confusion.
More confused a branding folly than Mike Moore coming out of a yarn on Fromtline saying âMmmmmâŚâ
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Iâd have to agree - Star104.5âs decline and Triple M Central Coastâs gain has to be due to the music shift in dropping the 80âs on Star.
I wonder if weâll see this reversed over the coming months?
The Coast obviously just wants and older skewed good listening station.
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Itâs interesting to see in the 40-64 ratings (combining the 40-54 & 55-64 ratings, and then divide it by 2) that Triple M beat Star in that combined demo for the first time since 2019, when the former was still branded 2GO.
Here are the stats from 2016 (when Xtra started surveying the Central Coast market) to now, comparing 2GO/Triple M with Star.
40-64 Ratings
| Year | 2GO/Triple M | Star 104.5 |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 18.5 | 14.8 |
| 2017 | 15.4 | 16.3 |
| 2018 | 17.4 | 18.4 |
| 2019 | 19.5 | 15.6 |
| 2021 | 17.8 | 19.2 |
| 2022 | 15.5 | 19.2 |
| 2023 | 17.0 | 19.1 |
| 2024 | 18.0 | 16.3 |
In the 25-54s, the battle between Star & Sea/Hit is more tighter, particularly since 2021, as youâll see below.
25-54 Ratings
| Year | Star 104.5 | Sea FM/HIT |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 19.8 | 22.5 |
| 2017 | 23.0 | 20.5 |
| 2018 | 20.8 | 22.7 |
| 2019 | 24.0 | 21.2 |
| 2021 | 21.0 | 21.6 |
| 2022 | 21.4 | 18.2 |
| 2023 | 20.1 | 21.5 |
| 2024 | 19.9 | 18.8 |
Looking at the figures, itâs clear that Star skewing their music younger has helped beat Hit in the combined 25-54 demo in this yearâs survey (for the record, Star went up 1.6 in the 25-39s, whilst Hit also went up 1.5 in that same demo).
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Xtra Insights will release its 200th regional ratings survey tomorrow (Tuesday 25th March). Its first survey for 2025 will be for the Mandurah market, to be released at 2pm AEDT/11am AWST.
Source: Radioinfo
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The first regional radio ratings for 2025, covering the Mandurah market, is out now:
Coast FM remain on top with 23.3% (-2.4 from 2022), followed by The Wave with 20.7% (+3.1). Of the Perth stations, Nova is the most popular with 7.7% (-0.5), followed by ABC Radio Perth with 7.3% (+1.2). Triple M outrates Mix 94.5, rating 5.8% (+0.6) & 4.7% (+0.3) respectively, and also both managed to outrate 96fm, who scored 4.6% (-1.2).
In the demos, Coast is #1 in the under-55s, with The Wave dominating in the 55+.
In breakfast, Coastâs Nikki & De Mello is #1 with 22.1% (-2.6), just ahead of The Waveâs Gunners & Ali with 21.6% (+4.6). The Wave wins in Mornings & Weekends, whilst Coast wins in Afternoons, Drive & Evenings.
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Next stop, Coffs Harbour:
Triple M takes out the top spot with 24.2% (+0.4 from 2022), followed by Hit with 22% (-2.7), JJJ with 13.7% (-0.7), ABC Coffs Coast with 8.2% (+0.5), and ABC Radio National with 7.5% (+1.0). 2HC rated 1% (-0.7).
In the demos, Hit is #1 in the under-40s, whilst Triple M wins the 40+.
In breakfast, Triple Mâs Moffee is #1 with 24.2% (-0.5), followed by Hitâs Jess & Ducko with 23.5% (-1.1). In mornings, Chris Smith on 2HC rated 1.7% (-0.8 from John Laws). In drive, Hitâs Carrie & Tommy is #1 with 27.4% (-3.0), followed by Triple M with 21.6% (+4.5).
The âOther Stationsâ ratings is at 18%, up 3.0 from 2022. Itâs particularly high in the 65+, where the âOtherâ share is at 30.4%, up 4.6 from 2022.
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Looks like 2HC may as well just close down. Only 2,000 cume listeners. Give them each a smart speaker.
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That explains why 2HC havenât yet been given their own live & local breakfast show.
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They do! Cam from 6-9am⌠although by the looks of it, broadcast from Grafton, specifically for 2HC. When I listened in a few weeks ago, there were time calls, current weather temps, local news, Cam talked about local events, played some great music and each hour was timed out perfectly to the news.
..and a local arvo show as well.
Listening to Triple M, Hit and 2HC⌠I felt that 2HC was the most local sounding station in Coffs Harbour . Triple M brekky was local and Coffs Harbour focused. After 10, it was the usual generic Triple M regional stuff.
I think the problem is very few people would know about 2HC in town and what it offers these days, which is a shame. While I wouldnât expect it to rate the same as Triple M, I thought it could rate around 10%.
Maybe the whole thing needs to be re-launched with some decent advertising promoting the station. Maybe moving back in to town may helpâŚalthough the average listener probably wouldnât even know the whole station comes from Grafton these days!
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Agree, being on FM would be a big help too.
Doesnât help when every other station in Coffs is on FM.
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2HCâs new tactic is âMeet Every Listener.â
Starts at 9.05am Monday and wraps up at 9.06am.
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Maybe have a local announcer in Coffs and do some OBâs, or on-ground activity.
Something you canât do when your announcer is not actually in the market.
Gordie is also doing local breaks on KIIS Brisbane and Melbourne, but nothing beats being there.