Malaysians Biggest Radio Listeners In Asia Pacific, Says Nielsen

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 16 (Bernama) -- Malaysians are among the most avid radio listeners in the Asia-Pacific region, tuning in for an average of 21 hours and 34 minutes per week, said Nielsen's Radio Audience Measurement (RAM) in its latest findings. In a statement here Tuesday, The Nielsen Company said the survey undertaken by RAM found that nine in 10 consumers in Peninsular Malaysia aged 10 years old and above, listened to the radio. "The average time spent listening to the radio in Malaysia was the highest of the six Asia Pacific markets covered in the survey," the statement said. The survey results were based on individual quarter-hour diaries completed by a representative sample of 3,000 individuals which was conducted from March 7 to Oct 2, 2011. The statement also said that advertising spending on radio between January and September 2011 grew to 8.9 per cent (RM315.3 million) compared to the same period a year ago, and now accounted for 4.4 per cent of total Malaysian advertising spending excluding classifieds. Banks, finance-corporate sector, fast food centres and mobile line services maintain their ranking as the top three categories for advertising spending, while automotive-corporate advertisements emerged as the highest-growth category with growth of close to 300 per cent, heavily contributed by Shell and Petronas. Advertising spending from the banking and finance sector also recorded strong growth, up to 249.8 per cent year-on-year with OCBC Bank showing significant increase in spending compared to the same period in 2010, it said. Managing director of Nielsen's media division in Malaysia, Danyal Abdul Malik, said the survey results indicated that radio was maintaining its appeal among Malaysian consumers. "Increasing media fragmentation means there is a growing number of media vying for consumers' attention. "Social media is changing the nature and impact of brand interactions and offer innumerable opportunities for organisations like radio stations to engage with listeners while social networking has become increasingly important in influencing consumers' decision-making. "Our recent survey also showed digital consumers (a total of 69 per cent) in Malaysia frequently read people's comments about brands, products and services and 45 per cent of consumers indicated that they would post their views or reviews on products or brands on a weekly basis or more often," he said. Danyal said the active participation of listeners via a radio station's social network offered an alternative platform to engage with listeners. Commercial Radio Malaysia president Borhanuddin Osman said the number of weekly radio listeners in Malaysia continued to grow, most notably those listening to the English channels. "Also indicated from recent advertising spending figures is that advertisers have continued to see the benefits of reaching their target markets through radio," he said. -- BERNAMA