Survey One proved volatile for most networks and so it was with ABC Local Radio.

But Triple j proved strong across the board, helped by  its annual Hottest 100 which continues to go from strength to strength.
 
“I think triple j is an unbelievable success story,” says ABC Head of Radio Michael Mason. “Music radio has found fragmentation is happening in the market place. I think, though, when you look at these figures for triple j in this survey they just buck that trend and continues to grow and engage with audiences.
 
“It’s competitors are clearly other music stations that are around it but more and more these days it’s music on demand. Spotify, Pandora and clearly YouTube are competitive spaces for us. So it’s got a lot of competitors but we are just stoked to see the sort of audience returns triple j’s able to deliver,” said Mr Mason.
 
 
Things were not so great for ABC Local Radio with huge swings in some markets. In Brisbane 612 ABC dropped 3.0 to land on a headline share of 9.6 taking the station from 3rd place to 5th overall.
 
“We still maintain the number one position in breakfast which we are really proud of and we probably bounced out after a softer start to the cricket season.
 
Generally speaking, cricket, while we think our coverage has really gone on leaps and bounds, the reality is that First Test, that’s not in survey obviously, was washed out. It probably set us back a bit. But look, overall it’s a shorter window and we’re not going to read too much into it. We are confident and happy with how the station’s sounding. So it’s okay overall, ” says Mr Mason.
 
Conventional wisdom suggests that ABC listeners are more loyal to their brand than commercial listeners are. Is there any truth in this?
 
“There is a fair degree of loyalty in that regard and a fair degree of tolerance… we’ve got to treat that with respect and we can’t do anything to annoy them, particularly in this day and age. I think they still love the simplicity of being able to engage in quality content with the ABC. But more and more, as every day goes past, there are more choices at their fingertips. So we have got to make sure our content is more compelling than ever.”
 
Mr Mason would not be drawn on what percentage of its listeners ABC Local Radio shares with commercial or community stations?
 
“I don’t think there is any data and it would depend station by station around the ebb and flow between our stations and commercial radio.
 
“I don’t have that detail in front of me and it’s probably something I am not in a position to share. But we do know that it does certainly happen. There is movement between our stations across to commercial stations and interestingly not always the talkback stations… we frequently share audience with classic hits music stations.”
 
What are some of your plans for ABC radio for the coming year?
 
“We are working on a strategy that takes us up to 2020. So, we are working with our teams as we speak about what ABC Radio may look like in 2020 and that’s a key focus.
 
But the other key things for this year, in particular, is continuing to ensure we bring the best possible quality audio and content to our audiences all of the time. That we are as close as we possibly can be to the community, with stronger community engagement programs bringing the best of our craft to audiences and sharing across the ABC and within radio the best content we can generate,” says Mr Mason.