Average listeners tuned in to BBC radio for 10 hours a week during the last quarter of 2014, according to official data from the UK broadcaster. That figure marked a drop of 14 percent from a decade earlier, when that average figure was 11.6 hours a week for the period. A representative from the broadcaster noted that although the interest among listeners is still high, many are tuning in through online or digital platforms that are not accounted for in the BBC’s traditional listening data. BBC radio is still reaching 65% of the population weekly with its broadcasts; in 2004, the audience reach was 66% for the fourth quarter.
Although the drops were relatively small, during the BBC Trust February meeting, Lord Tony Hall pointed to the BBC Radio 6 digital music station as a sign of success. Radio 6 was the first digital-only station to reach 2 million listeners, according to RAJAR figures. The BBC’s Helen Boaden recently spoke at RadioDays Europe about the organization’s need to reinvent its offerings in terms of on-demand content and hybrid radio offerings.
