LONDON�Digital radio listening has reached an important milestone, according to the U.K.�s RAJAR, who published their third�quarter 2015 survey results this week. Important highlights are as follows:
- Analog radio� listening declined year on year by 10.4 percent�to just over 50 percent�of listening (to 50.4 percent�from 56.4 percent�in Q3 2014)
- �Listening on all digital platforms grew year over year led by a 14percent�increase in DAB listening (to 286m hours from 250m hours in Q3 2014) and a 9percent�increase in online listening (to 71m hours from 65m hours in Q3 2014). Listening on digital TV grew by 2percent�(to 52m hours from 51m hours in Q3 2014). DAB ownership grew by 10percent�year on year to 53.6percent�of all households (from 48.7percent�in Q3 2014).
- �Over 30 million people� (56percent�of adults) listen on a digital platform every week, with digital listening hours growing year over year by 12.5percent�(to 433m hours from 385m in Q3 2014) and to a new record platform share of nearly 42�percent(to 41.9percent�from 37.8percent�in Q3 2014).
- �Digital listening in cars grew by 41 percent year over year (to 43.3m hours from 30.8m in Q3 2014) and now accounts for over 19percent�of all in-car listening (19.3 percent from 13.8 percent in Q3 2014), boosted by growth in new cars having digital radio as standard equipment.
- Over 50 percent (50.6 percent) of total listening hours to National BBC and commercial stations are now digital for the first time, and there was strong growth in both BBC and commercial digital listening with their digital platform shares increasing to 42.4 percent and 41.2 percent respectively (from 38.4 percent and 36.5 percent in Q3 2014).