More FM, The Breeze NZ's most listened-to music stations - commercial radio survey results

More FM and The Breeze are New Zealand's most-listened-to music radio stations, according to the third commercial radio survey of 2019. 

In addition, the GfK survey results show more Kiwis are listening to The Edge than any other commercial radio station, with a total audience of 590,800. 

Taking out the silver and gold positions are More FM and The Breeze, in that order. 

More FM remains the country's top music station at breakfast time. In Christchurch, where the station's Breakfast Club show is broadcast from, More FM has grown its lead overall to take 20.3 percent of listenership. 

The Breeze dominated workday listening as the number one station nationwide across both talk and music formats between 9-7pm. 

"It's a pretty amazing result," MediaWorks radio group content director Leon Wratt says. 

"I don't recall a music station achieving that in recent years - and it's certainly the first time The Breeze has ever reached that place." 

Robert Scott's drive show on The Breeze has bumped its Newstalk ZB competitor out of the top spot for drive-time listenership. 

The Breeze's Robert Scott.
The Breeze's Robert Scott. Photo credit: MediaWorks

"Robert's done a great job, he's a very good broadcaster -  it also comes down to the appeal of the station, and I think The Breeze is just in a really great spot," Wratt says.

"It's a little bit like the All Blacks - the forwards do the work and the backs get the tries. Your forwards are your breakfast and your daytime, and your backs, in this case, are your drive show. 

"It's been a team effort to put together a really good product."

Meanwhile, NZME celebrates a jump in listenership for their music brand ZM, as well as Newstalk ZB's strong result at breakfast time. 

"NZME will be happy with their ZM result - it was a good result. They've seen an increase, so you're always pleased with that," Wratt says. 

Mai FM has bounced back from a drop in numbers from the last survey, returning with an increase of 12,400 listeners in Auckland. The jump over the last three months has given it the most listeners of any radio station in Tamaki Makaurau. 

"The team there have been doing a lot of work to build that audience," says Wratt.

"We're back to where we would expect the station to be in terms of the audience in Auckland." 

MediaWorks talk and music brand Magic was able to increase its share to crack 6 percent in Auckland, despite the Radio Broadcasters Association announcing a notable disturbance on AM frequencies throughout the survey period due to technical work. 

In the digital sphere, MediaWorks, which owns Newshub, has increased the reach of its streaming app Rova. The app has cracked over half-a-million downloads, and has seen more than 3.1 million streams in the last month. 

"All the radio companies are realising that digital is really important. It's an area that we need to continue to invest in to maintain our touch with our audience." 

The platform intends to release a host of new local podcasts, including a MAFS NZ fanzone hosted by Sharyn Casey and Megan Annear. 

"For the audience, it's a chance to see their favourite personalities in a different light," says Wratt.

With Kiwi radio listenership staying "pretty consistent", Wratt says the market remains strong and stable. 

"That's incredibly healthy and awesome for an industry that contributes a lot to New Zealand." 

The full GfK Total New Zealand Commercial Radio Survey can be read on its official website.

Newshub.