Revenue Surge in Feb

Metro ad revenue jumped by 12.64% in February to reach $61.907 million, according to figures sourced by Deloitte and released today by Commercial Radio Australia.

The strong growth for the month took total revenue for the first eight months of the financial year to $502.854 million, a 5.58% increase compared to the same period in 2014/15.

“February was a good month for commercial radio, with stations reporting double digit increases in ad revenue across all five capital city markets”,said CRA chief executive officer Joan Warner.

Advertising revenue for Sydney reached $18.780 million in February 2016, 10.58% higher than 2015.  Melbourne was up 13.52% to $18.964 million and Brisbane rose by 13.90% to $9.651 million. Adelaide continued its strong run, up 16.81% to $5.595 million, while Perth climbed by 11.36% to $8.917 million.

Joan Warner said the results reflected an increasing recognition that expenditure on commercial radio advertising offered a measurable and positive return on investment.

Figures for the financial year to date show Adelaide posted the strongest growth, with advertising revenue up 12.30% to $47.186 million from $42.018 million previously.

Sydney stations recorded a 5.17% rise to $153.663 million over the eight month period ending February 2016, while Melbourne grew by 5.37% to $153.655 million.  Brisbane was up 2.50% to $78.276 million and Perth rose by 6.24% to $70.073 million.

The Deloitte figures report actual revenue received by metropolitan commercial radio stations and include all metropolitan agency and direct revenue.