Towards the end of HT&E CEO and Managing Director Ciaran Davis’s address at yesterday’s AGM, he announced that they would vote to rebrand to ARN Media.
This name change, Davis said, was reflective of the expansion of ARN, in radio, podcasts, live streaming, regional acquisition and investments. The vote was successful and HT&E is no longer is here, there or anywhere (except on the ASX, but that will change next Monday too).
It was positive addresses from Davis and Chairman Hamish McLennan for the company.
Key highlights:
- Record listenership to radio, broadcasting to over 8m nationally and a No 1 metropolitan network share performance.
- Podcast audience growth of 54%
- CADA, the year old national multi-platform youth media brand’s gross reach has grown to over 3 million with an increase of the overall radio listening audiences at the younger end by +21%.
- The ARN launched iHeartRadio podcast network was the leading publisher for 36 consecutive surveys with 6.6 million combined listeners and 28.5 million monthly downloads.
- A goal is to achieve digital audio profitability by the end of 2024
Davis said,
“The world of audio and audio entertainment has never been more exciting and we are at a point where advancements in technology such as AI, increased accessibility, and changing consumer preferences are all contributing to how audiences engage with radio and newer forms of digital audio content.
As more people embrace podcasts, streaming services, and voice-activated devices, the demand for high quality audio content will continue to grow. This presents exciting opportunities for content creators, advertisers, and businesses to tap into the expanding audio market and engage with a highly receptive audience.”