RAJAR Results Q3 2004: talkSPORT Boosted By Euro 2004

Kelvin MacKenzie’s talkSPORT saw its weekly reach jump up by 14.6% year on year in the third quarter to just under the 2.2 million million mark as the station cashed in on the football fever which gripped the nation during the recent Euro 2004 championships.

The summer of sport also helped talkSPORT’s share of listening increase by 0.2% points to 1.7% during the same three month period. Kelvin MacKenzie’s Wireless Group recently announced that operating profits had grown by 108% during the first six months of this year following the ‘storming’ success of talkSPORT (see Wireless Revenues Driven By Success Of talkSPORT).

The BBC’s flagship sports station, Radio Five Live, also benefited from the summer of footballing action, which saw England crash out to Portugal in an infamous quarter final clash. The station saw its weekly reach increase by 11.9% to almost 6.4 million and its share of listening rise by a healthy 0.7% points to 4.9%.

However, a furore continues to rage between the two sports stations as the Wireless Group pursues legal proceedings against BBC Five Live. Kelvin MacKenzie claims the BBC has used its guaranteed funding from the licence fee to outbid commercial competitors when acquiring the broadcast rights to sporting events (see Wireless Group Targets BBC With Legal Action).

Meanwhile, Classic FM saw its weekly reach dip by 4.9% year on year to just over 6.1 million, leading to a decline of 0.3% points in audience share. The station recently announced the departure of managing director and programme controller, Roger Lewis, who left the GWR-owned station at the end of last month to join ITV (see Classic FM Loses Managing Director To ITV).

BBC Radio Two remained at the top of the table, continuing its reign as the nation’s favourite radio station. The music-orientated station performed well in the three months to September, adding 4.7% to its weekly reach and increasing its share of listening by 1.1% points.

Youth orientated BBC Radio One also saw an increase, boosting weekly reach by 1.9% year on year as it appeared to put a recent listening slump behind it. The station also notched up a 0.6% point increase in listening share, pushing its total to a respectable 8.6%.

Emap’s indie music station, Q, put in a lacklustre performance in the third quarter with its weekly reach tumbling by 42% year on year. However, the station’s listening share remained unchanged at 0.1%. Smash Hits Radio also saw a decline, losing 25.9% of its weekly reach and dropping 0.1% points from its share of listening during the same period.

At the other end of the scale, Capital Radio-owned Xfm performed admirably, continuing to benefit from the rise in popularity for rock music and adding 7.1% to its weekly reach. The station now commands a weekly audience of 679,000, although its share of listening has dipped by 0.1% points. Capital has worked hard to boost Xfm’s appeal, launching cross-media promotions with IPC’s NME magazine and applying for a new FM licence in Manchester (see Capital Appoints Marketing Boss For Developing Brands).

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