(Nov 5): Radio listenership among Peninsular Malaysians has reached 91% of those aged ten and above, a survey by market research firm GfK revealed, with over 18.3 million people tuning in.

The radio audience measurement survey also found that the average radio listener spent 16 hours a week tuning in.

Listeners aged between 10 and 29 have reached 92% in market penetration while those aged above 30 are consuming more radio than before to reach between 85% and 90% market penetration.

Those over 30 mostly tune in on weekdays from 7am to 9am, noon and 2pm and from 5pm to 7pm.

he younger 10 to 29 age group tend to listen to the radio between 7am and 9am, 5pm to 7pm and 9pm to 11pm on weekdays.

“Despite the challenges presented by new media in today’s digital age, good old radio continues to be effective in reaching out to nine in ten of the population in Malaysia.

“Results revealed that most people tune in during the morning commute to school or work, and lunch time, so advertisers seeking to get the most bang for their advertising buck should choose these two peak radio listening periods to air their messages," GfK Malaysia managing director Selinna Chin said in a statement today.

The survey also found that three in 10 listeners aged 10 years and above consume radio via smartphone or pay TV decoder.

The time spent listening to radio is higher when using mobile apps and Internet platforms, as studies showed that listeners listening via these methods tend to spend an average of 18 hours weekly tuning in, GfK said.

Car radio listenership has increased when compared to the results from the previous wave — reaching out to 12 million listeners aged 10 years and above.

According to Chin, the increase in car radio listening is also seen in many other countries, especially in those where there have been a rapid increases in car ownership and the subsequent traffic jams that accompany this development.

“Radio as one of the mass communication medium continues to be a relevant in the daily life of  society in urban and more so rural areas, as an entertainment medium and as a means for conveying the news and public events to the people.

"We can be sure that this traditional mass medium will continue to be an effective platform to deliver informative messages to the wider audience in a timely manner,” Chin added.

GfK’s radio ratings survey is conducted in two waves per year among 12,000 unique individuals. – The Malaysian Insider