The latest Xtra Insights survey of Cairns has Star 102.7 the No 1 station for a sixth year, and top in every day part except evenings, which is their only networked programming. The two SCA stations up north, Hit 103.5 and 99.5 Triple M also saw significant gains, with the ABC stations the ones to cop the losses. ARN‘s gold station 4CA also improved.
Johnny and Inkie (main image) on Star breakfast were down 1% but still 27.4% audience share ahead of Hit’s networked Bronte and Lakey with 19.8% (up 3.2).
ABC Far North Queensland was down 2.4 to 6.7% audience share. Triple j fared worse, down 3.9 to 6.5% and now behind the ABC.
Cume audience was down slightly overall, but not for Triple M with Tammy and JB on breakfast seeing more than 10,000 additional listeners checking the show out. That station vastly increased its 18-39 audience, for Star it was a big uptick in 65+, probably a surprise to ARN who would have hoped for that for 4CA.
Cairns’ Star and 4CA General Manager Karen Lyon said:
“It’s an incredibly proud day for the whole Star102.7 and 4CA teams today. Localism is at the heart of everything we do, and that has shone through in the feedback from the Cairns community. This team absolutely love what they do, they are proud locals, and it comes through with what you hear every day through the speakers.”
Cairns Content Director Mark Hine added:
“From Johnny & Inkie in breakfast, Nikki in the mornings and Dylan in afternoons the Star 102.7 team has delivered live and local shows that touch listeners in Cairns and surrounding areas. Combined with a strong result from Murray and the 4CA team, we look forward to continuing our relationship with the FNQ into 2026”.
For SCA, Head of Regional Content, Blair Woodcock, said:
“Congratulations to our team in Cairns on a fantastic result today. We’re proud to see growth across every daypart on both Hit 103.5 and 99.5 Triple M, maintaining our position as the #1 network for the Audience That Matters – 25-54 – reaching 65.1% of the demo.”
“Triple M has delivered a standout survey, achieving its largest-ever cume in Cairns with 67,200 listeners tuning in each week, and strong growth right across the day. Three years into their partnership, Tammy & JB (Tammy Barker and Justin ‘JB’ Bell) continue to demonstrate their unbeatable connection with audiences. Fresh off ‘buying a bar’, where they’ve been hosting listener events throughout the month, they’ve recorded 18.5% in Breakfast (up 3.3 points) and once again secured the #1 Breakfast show for Men 25-54.
“Hit 103.5 also posted strong gains in every daypart, led by impressive Breakfast growth for Bronte & Lakey (Bronte Langbroek and Danny Lakey), who are up 3.2 points to 19.8%. The Hit Cairns team has been out in force, on a mission to meet every listener in the region, and these results clearly reflect the impact of their local presence.
“Thank you to our incredible Cairns teams, and to the advertisers and partners who continue to trust SCA with their brands. Today’s results reinforce our ability to deliver premium, highly engaged audiences and strong outcomes for clients across Far North Queensland, further highlighting the ongoing importance of SCA’s reach of the Audience That Matters.”
