Is it about cume or share?
War of words between major networks escalates
So, let’s see if we can get this straight.
Duncan at ARN says that, based on shares, his network owns the number one FM station in each of the four metro markets where his organisation operates.
Over at Nova Entertainment, Paul reckons Nova is the clear number one network based on cumes from all five metro markets surveyed.
Meanwhile, Craig at SCA claims his Today network has the most listeners when you add in the Today branded stations in major provincial markets such as Gold Coast, Canberra and Newcastle.
They can’t all be market leaders, can they?
To explain, let’s start with SCA Head of Content Craig Bruce who had this to say:
We didn’t start this conversation around spin because we don’t need to. There is daylight between us and the next biggest radio network on any measurement. This idea that Nova is the number one network and this line that Paul has been sprouting for the last couple of months is, quite frankly, just not true.
And I have to get in the press and remind everyone that we do have the largest network and the biggest cume in the country. I’m happy to do it, but we’re that much out in front of the Nova network and ARN in terms of size and scale that it’s just a ridiculous argument for us to have to have.
Paul Jackson, Group Program Director at Nova Entertainment takes a different view:
Let me explain. I think they’ve shuffled the deck chairs around to make a pretty pattern.
Here is the real truth. We’re talking about cap cities. There are five Novas. If I compare them to your five Today stations, the Novas have 3,175,000 cume. The MIXes (including KIIS) have 2,682,000 cume and the Today stations, the five of them, have 2,761,000 cume.
We first took the lead in cume in August last year and have widened the gap ever since. We have record cumes in every market and we have a 400,000 lead. Those are true facts. We are not adding in Newcastle stations or Canberra stations. We are talking about capital city stations.
What we don’t do here is we don’t twist the numbers to say whatever we want. You have to front up in this business. You have to front up frankly in life and tell the truth.
ARN’s National Content Director, Duncan Campbell sees things differently to both Craig and Paul:
I must pass a comment on SCA stating of cume. The share result is what matters in this country. When I worked in the UK it was more about cume than share. Australia is all about share and I think that to start deflecting away from the real result and sort of muddying the waters by throwing in cume is just disappointing given I’ve always been very adamant about not spinning numbers – being very up front about what I put forward.
For years SCA’s been criticising DMG for quoting cume. So, to now quote cume themselves is a bit rich. But I’ll leave that to them to sort out.
The fact is, that in Brisbane, 97.3 is number one and it’s an ARN station. In Sydney KIIS is number one FM in share and that’s an ARN station. In Melbourne Gold is number one FM in share and that’s an ARN station. And in Adelaide MIX 102.3, an ARN station, is number one overall in share. That’s how we measure ourselves in this country – share and not cume.
Last word goes to Craig Bruce:
But what I do know about radio is that these things move in cycles and we have brand new shows in Perth, Melbourne and Sydney and a new national Drive show. We believe in all of those shows. I believe our time will come.
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