Mediaweek and a massive week in radio
Eight days ago ARN reported its half-year results. That started a week of non-stop news and analysis.
Monday we dropped our Survey 5 GfK Preview.
Tuesday those Survey 5 results dropped and Mediaweek released its analysis of every station in every market. This survey Jasper Baumann was on ratings duty with me.
Wednesday we interviewed Nova Entertainment’s Brendan Taylor who talked about the Nova’s brand’s new #1 show in Melbourne. Plus we reported on the full-year financials for Nine Radio.
Thursday Jasper highlighted the Top 5 DAB+ stations in each metro market. We also reported on the full-year performance of SCA.
Friday we speak with ARN’s Duncan Campbell below. SCA chief executive John Kelly also explains why the whole company has a spring in its step.
Don’t forget ARN’s other shows
There’s one thing everybody asks ARN national content director Duncan Campbell about. It’s what’s happening with Kyle and Jackie O in Melbourne. We wanted to know too. (See also what CEO Ciaran Davis told us about it here.) But there’s a lot more going on inside ARN too.
“It’s been a challenging first half, but we’re recovering well,” Campbell told Mediaweek.
“The Sydney result this week was fantastic and we worked on WSFM and getting that back and that’s a good result.
Jonesy and Amanda, Christian O’Connell
“Adelaide came back after, but there are still some issues there with breakfast. The key is to make that breakfast show more lively and funnier and more positive.
“Perth’s 96FM is number two and performing well.
“Brisbane’s KIIS 93.7 is not where we want it to be, and that’s a work in progress. With the networking of the KIIS brand up and down the eastern seaboard, we’ve had to move the format of 97.3 from an adult contemporary format to a CHR. At the moment in that market, B105 has the stronger breakfast show and there are three CHR stations – KISS, B105 and Nova.”
K&J & KIIS 101.1 and Christian O’Connell & Gold 104.3
Don’t mention the war: “The reality for Melbourne is there’s been so much noise by the three networks there in terms of marketing breakfast shows,” said Campbell. “There’s five FM stations with a cume over a million.
“There’s not a lot of settling going on. There’s a lot of floating cume moving between those stations. The station with the greatest top of mind awareness gets the ticks in the book at the moment, and Nova Breakfast got that. Nova had some great PR and, you know, they’ve done some marketing.”
While KIIS has yet to power ahead, Melbourne was also a challenge with a fall in breakfast at Gold 104.3.
“We didn’t market Christian O’Connell, so he suffered from a combination of that and a statistically average book in terms of where the survey diaries landed.”
Campbell pointed out Gold was not the only casualty in breakfast with a fall also at Triple M.
“Kyle and Jackie O went up by 0.2, which we’ll take thank you very much. I think there’s still a lot of settling to happen. I really believe that. I think it’s just too early.”
Campbell added it will be interesting to see the shape of the Melbourne market in 12 month’s time.
He also pointed out if Kyle and Jackie O can boast a cume of 750,00 in Sydney, that could be the ultimate prize in Melbourne too.
Campbell added: “There was an expectation it would happen quickly, but it won’t. The messaging and familiarity takes a lot longer to permeate out into the suburbs and the real heartland of listening.”
When asked about the “dirty talk”, Campbell said: “What we’re trying to make sure doesn’t happen is that the the sexualised content doesn’t detract from the other brilliant stuff they do.”
The former KIIS 101.1 breakfast hosts are making it difficult for the new hosts. Does Campbell regret letting Jase and Lauren go?
“Jase was on our network for five or six years. We couldn’t get the show to work. Yet they move across the road, and…I think it’s a perfect storm. There’s some sympathy generated for them leaving, and the way we let them go.”
SCA’s Mike E and Emma
Another former ARN team on the up?
We asked Campbell about our speculation Mike E and Emma might get 2Day breakfast. He noted ARN used to have the duo hosting breakfast at what was The Edge.
“That would not be a dumb move. 2Day breakfast is potentially a poison chalice until Kyle and Jackie O move on. Habitual listing with Kyle and Jackie O is so embedded now. With a Sydney cume of 750,000 it’s going to take an exceptional show to beat it.
“The way to do it would be to commit to a show like [Mike E and Emma] long term. Commit to it and embed it. Give it the support it needs and see if they can over time build an audience that challenges Kyle and Jack.
“If there’s a show that could do it over time, it’s potentially that show. They’re both very good, the chemistry’s great between the two of them, and they’re radio people.”