This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily, on 30 November, 2015.

KUALA LUMPUR: Astro Radio Sdn Bhd has once again emerged as Malaysia’s most popular radio network, according to a survey.

The latest Nielsen Radio Audience Measurement (RAM) survey showed that 52.7% of the Malaysian listening population tune into Astro Radio stations weekly. Astro Radio retained its ranking, with its top three radio brands in the country, namely ERA FM with 4.7 million listeners, Sinar FM with 3.7 million listeners, followed by THR (Raaga and Gegar combined), which has 3.6 million listeners.

The company said ERA FM, Hitz FM, MY FM and THR Raaga continue to solidify their positions as the preferred radio stations in their respective language segments, while THR Gegar remains unchallenged as the No 1 station in the east coast.

“We now have 12.8 million listeners accumulatively on our platform, with the top breakfast and drive shows in the country,” Astro Radio chief executive officer Jake Abdullah said in a statement.

“We are grateful for the continued support from all our loyal listeners. As our brands continue to thrive, our commercial business remains agile and committed to delivering effective solutions and results to all our clients. Everything we do from the content, technology, marketing and advertising perspectives is focused on being social, local and mobile,” he added.

“We continue to be committed to drive 360 integrated multiplatform branded content solutions to ensure our appeal and relevance to all Malaysians,” said Jake.

To further strengthen content localisation, Jake said Astro Radio has expanded its presence in Sabah and Sarawak to reach a largely untapped market and provide the service of localised content by locals for local listeners.