Nova reclaims throne as the city’s top radio station amid tight competition

Nova has reclaimed its title as Brisbane’s top radio station in a neck-in-neck competition, while B105 excelled in local timeslots, the latest radio survey reveals.

Nova 106.9 has emerged as Brisbane’s top radio station, rebounding from two consecutive losses, the latest radio ratings reveal.

Nova was beaten out by B105 in the two previous surveys.

Nova had an audience share of 11.8 per cent across the week, compared to B105’s 11.7 per cent.

Nova maintained its dominance of the afternoon drive slot, featuring Ricki Lee, Tim, and Joel.

Nova 106.9 breakfast hosts Susie O'Neill, Ash Bradnam and David "Luttsy" Lutterall. Picture: supplied.

Nova Group program operations director Brendan Taylor said he was thrilled the station was back on top.
“We are at the halfway point of the year and it’s great for us to see that we are back to where we are meant to be — in the number one overall position,” he said.

“It gives us great confidence for everything we have planned coming up, particularly with our own Madam Butterfly returning to competitive swimming one last time with Ash and Luttsy at the World Aquatic Masters in Japan next month.”

B105 had its share of victory, leading the five-day work week with 12.1 per cent of the audience, compared to Nova’s 12 per cent.

Nova’s cumulative audience shrank by 31,000 from the previous month, marking the biggest drop this survey period. It continues to boast the highest cumulative audience with 702,000 listeners.

The race for the city’s number one breakfast show was closely contested, with B105’s Stav Abbey and Matt clinching a 12.7 per cent market share, while Ash, Luttsy and Susie O’Neill fell just short.

B105’s content director Jack Ball praised his team, citing their win in all local timeslots, including Breakfast, Mornings, and Afternoons as an “incredible day” for the station.

“For Stav, Abby and Matt, this is their third straight number 1. They’re three genuine friends who want to start your morning with a heap of laughs, a heap of music, and a heap of Allen’s Brown Snake Lollies. We’re forever grateful for all of our listeners who choose to start their mornings with B105,” he said.

“Brisbane remains a fiercely tight market, we’ll be clinking our glasses today with our brother station MMM who have recorded an amazing result across the board. And as always, Nova led by their always strong drive show, keeps the market really competitive.”

B105's Matt, Abby and Stav in Brisbane. Picture: B105

The ratings for the breakfast shows have declined since the last survey in early June, with both B105 and Nova experiencing market share loss of 1.6 per cent and 0.7 per cent, respectively.

4BH 1116 emerged as the number one AM station for the second consecutive survey, registering an impressive 1.4 per cent audience increase since June 6.
In a surprising twist, 4BH 1116 tied with Nova 106.9 for the top spot on the weekend slot, marking the first time an AM station has taken the weekend leaderboard since April 2022.

The new measurement system, Radio 360, which incorporates listeners’ streaming data, saw a tie between 4BC and 4BH 1116 for the most streamed radio station, with Nova 106.9 and Triple M following closely in second place.

The 360 system also monitors the audience market of digital-only stations, DAB+ stations, with NOVA 90s emerging triumphant with a cumulative audience of 73,000.

RADIO WINNERS

Overall FM: NOVA 106.9, 11.8 per cent (-0.6)

Overall AM: 4BH 1116, 9.8 per cent (+1.4)

Breakfast: B105, 12.7 per cent (+1.6)

Mornings: B105, 11.9 per cent (-0.2)

Afternoons: B105, 13.3 per cent (+1.6)

Drive: Nova, 14.1 per cent (-0.3)

BREAKFAST

1. B105, 12.7 per cent (-1.6)

2. Nova 106.9, 12.5 per cent (-0.7)

3. Triple M, 11.7 per cent (+0.9)

4. KIIS 973, 10.4 per cent (+0.9)

5. 4BH 1116, 7.9 per cent (+1.3)

6. ABC Brisbane, 7.8 per cent (-0.1)

(Source: GfK)