Listenership of AIR channels continues to decline

New Delhi: The listenership of All India Radio's main FM Channel, FM Gold has fallen over the last three years from 30.7 per cent in 2009-10 to 17.8 per cent in 2011-12.
The listenership of the channel in 2010-11 was 18.9 per cent, AIR sources told radioandmusic.com.
The number of people who listen to AIR's other FM Channel – FM Rainbow – had also fallen from 47.5 per cent in 2009-10 to 37.7 per cent in 2010-11 but rose marginally to 38.5 per cent in 2011-12.
The listenership of the Primary Channel of AIR (including regional and local radio stations) was 53 per cent in 2009-10, but fell to 49 per cent in 2010-11, it rose slightly to 51 per cent in 2011-12. However, it has no competitor as only AIR can broadcast in medium wave.
Vividh Bharati, which at one time was the most heard radio station in the country after the decline of Radio Ceylon, fell from 52.1 per cent in 2009-10 to 40.7 in 2010-11. The sources said that the figures for 2011-12 were not yet available. The figures have been compiled by the Audience Research Unit of the AIR Directorate General.
Meanwhile, AIR has taken steps to increase advertising. Booking of commercials has been decentralized and all AIR stations can now book commercials.
AIR has also been allowed to enroll canvassers locally by intimation to their concerned commercial broadcasting service centres.
All the main 15 main CBS centres across the country and the Central Sales Unit, AIR Mumbai, have been asked to arrange meetings from time to time at their level with local advertising agencies, for which extra hospitality funds have been provided.
Earlier, a survey carried out by AIR's own Audience Research Unit in collaboration with the private agency Adfactors in January this year in Delhi had recommended a reduction in western music leadership which had zero or less than one per cent listenership. AIR Director General L D Mandloi had told radioandmusic.com that the findings were being scrutinized by a Committee headed by the Additional Director General.
The survey covered 742 FM household radio households with 10 random samples from each urban ward in NCR.
According to the study, the ownership of FM stations in the capital is:
FM Radio Ownership                 (%)
FM in mobile phones                     82.7
FM in car                                      27.4
FM radio set only                         22.1
FM in other gadgets                     6.3
MW with FM radio set                  6.3
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