Metro on track for record revenue

Metropolitan commercial radio revenue has reached $453.9 million in the first 8 months of this financial year. This has left Joan Warner, CEO of Commercial Radio Australia, "cautiously optimistic" about beating the record revenue of $683.9 million that was set in 2011. The industry is already $4m ahead of where it was at the same point in that financial year.

Recent figures from Standard Media Index showed media bookings for all radio were up 3.4% in the first eight months of FY14 ($348.3m).

Warner said that commercial radio had ''continued to grow its audience and digital radio uptake has exceeded industry expectations, while still only being available in the five state capitals''.

Steve Allen, of analysis firm Fusion Strategy, has told the Sydney Morning Herald that radio listening in the next couple of years was ''not going to increase in leaps and bounds, but is more likely to go up than down'' and this was partly due to poor road infrastructure in Melbourne and Sydney delivering a captive audience.