Three privately owned digital stations – Jazz FM, Fun Kids and Planet Rock – all celebrate impressive RAJAR results today. Jazz FM is the UK’s fastest growing station, while Fun Kids and Planet Rock enjoyed spikes in their listenership.
Since its launch in October last year, Jazz FM has added 482,000 listeners to its audience, 74,000 of them since the last quarter.
Jazz FM Chairman Richard Wheatly, who was behind Jazz FM’s first incarnation ten years ago and who was responsible for successfully piloting the station back onto the air said: “I was confident that the UK still needed a jazz station when Jazz FM was dropped from fm in June 2005.
“I am delighted with this month’s RAJAR, which reflects the appetite for a contemporary jazz station for today’s digital generation. Our goal for the year was to become the UK’s interactive home of all things jazz, I do believe we might already be there.”
Sony Radio Academy Digital Station of the Year, Fun Kids is also celebrating with the news that over 112,000 kids and adults in London tune into the radio station each week.
Matt Deegan, the station’s Programme Controller said: “We’re really pleased that more kids, mums and dads are listening to Fun Kids every day. We’re working really hard to make it the best radio station for kids”.
Whilst RAJAR just measures Fun Kids’ audience in London, the station’s internal research suggests another 100,000 listeners tune in outside of the capital.
Finally, Planet Rock has achieved a massive 21 per cent increase in listeners year on year, taking its listenership to 709,000 weekly listeners, an increase of 23 per cent quarter on quarter and 24 per cent year on year.
Planet Rock was sold by GCAP Media to Malcolm Bluemel in June last year. Since then it has seen an increase audience and revenue over the past 12 months.
Bluemel said: “It has been a tough year but these RAJAR results are just fantastic and the icing on the cake.”