Small bump up for Kyle and Jackie O as Melbourne crowns new ratings winner
Gold recorded an overall audience share of 12.1 per cent in the fourth ratings survey of this year, putting it just ahead of 3AW on 11.9 per cent. But 3AW's Ross Stevenson and Russel Howcroft maintained a whopping lead of 16.6 per cent in the crucial breakfast slot – well above Nova's Jase & Lauren on 10.8 per cent and Gold's The Christian O'Connell Show on 10.1 per cent.
ABC Melbourne continues to underperform, falling by 0.3 percentage points to 5.9 per cent – while Gold's sister station, Kiis, is languishing in eighth place overall on 5.5 per cent.
It is important to note that survey time slots do not always correspond precisely with program time slots.
Gold was launched in October 1991, replacing 'hits and memories' format KZ-FM. It surged to No. 1 the following year, but despite its strength on the FM band, it took more than three decades to repeat the achievement.
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It's welcome news for parent company ARN, given the continued underperformance of its Kiis station in Melbourne.
Last year, Kiis axed its Melbourne breakfast presenters, Jason Hawkins and Lauren Phillips, to make way for a networked version of its Sydney-based show, hosted by Kyle Sandilands and Jackie O. ARN splashed a reported $200 million to secure the pair for the next decade – with their entry into Melbourne rumoured to be the first step of a national roll-out.
But so far, Kyle and Jackie O has proven to be an expensive flop in the Victorian capital, despite climbing 0.5 points to 5.6 per cent in the latest survey. Meanwhile, Hawkins and Phillips, who were hired by rival network Nova, are now the top-rating FM breakfast show.
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