The eye-watering amount KIIS is spending on Kyle & Jackie O push into Melbourne breakfast

How much is KIIS spending on launching Kyle & Jackie O into the Melbourne breakfast market? Read here.

The Australian Radio Network has budgeted nearly $3 million to market the Kyle & Jackie O Show in Melbourne, telling shareholders that it expects a 40 per cent rise in listener share in the breakfast timeslot.

Confidential can reveal ARN quietly released a statement to the Australian Stock Exchange and made the extraordinary move of detailing internal research on the KIIS show’s so far sluggish launch into the Victorian capital city.

The news comes after the latest GfK radio ratings survey results pegged the Kyle Sandilands and Jackie ‘O’ Henderson show as number seven in Melbourne’s breakfast timeslot, with an audience share of 6.1 per cent.

By comparison, market leader 3AW has a 21.3 per cent share while the duo Kyle and Jackie O replaced, Jase (Hawkins) & Lauren (Phillips), are now at Nova 100 and are rating number one on the FM dial with a share of 9.9 per cent.

Kyle Sandilands and Jackie ‘O’ Henderson.

In their hometown of Sydney, Kyle & Jackie O maintained their stronghold on the FM side with a 14.3 per cent share, second in breakfast behind 2GBs Ben Fordham on 15.6 per cent.

Paperwork filed to the ASX states that while ARN executives believe Kyle & Jackie O have the potential to reach a 10 per cent share, they cautioned investors that it “takes time to build a new show in a new market”.

Keeping investors informed of the large amount of cash associated with the push south – including the reported $200 million being spent over 10 years on Kyle & Jackie O’s salary packages – ARN said that on one day in June, the show received three million phone calls for a promotion giving away $5000 to listeners.

During one 15-minute period on that day, 28 per cent of the calls originated from Victoria.

KIIS also said internal research showed a 17 per cent improvement in Victorians saying they would “consider listening” to the show, and a 29 per cent improvement in Melburnians saying that they had ‘trialled’ the show.

Some 491,000 people in Melbourne listened to the show over the recent radio survey, down 11,000 from the previous period.

It is a long way from the commanding 679,000 people that listened to Nova 100’s Jase & Lauren.

Lauren Phillips and Jase Hawkins.

Radio consultant Peter Yiamarelos once programmed ARNs network of stations and said the show would eventually reach number one FM breakfast in the Melbourne market but couldn’t say how long that would take.

“When a radio network launches a new show or product, things move very quickly and questions are asked about how soon the show will deliver a big audience,” Yiamarelos said.

“But, all stakeholders need to know it’s a long road to success for any radio show, including the Kyle & Jackie O Show in Melbourne. And it’s best to not be impatient.”

The radio station that Kyle & Jackie O broadcast on in Melbourne has a long history with listeners who remember it as their once beloved classic hits radio station called ‘TT FM,’ which then changed its name to ‘Mix FM’ and rated poorly for more than 15 years.

The radio station only began to rate higher long after it changed its name to KIIS 101.1, and installed Jase & Lauren on the breakfast show.

“A key element to any radio station’s success these days is to ensure that their digital strategy is operating well,” Yiamarelos said.

“To focus only on an FM branding message would inhibit overall ratings success. Nowadays radio stations need to work on increasing app downloads, a strong social media content strategy and sending appropriate alert notifications to listeners.”

Originally published as The eye-watering amount KIIS is spending on Kyle & Jackie O push into Melbourne breakfast