Commercial radio ad revenue remained in positive territory in the month of July despite the impact of lockdowns, with revenue up 19.3 per cent compared to July 2020.
The figures are according to data released by industry body Commercial Radio Australia.
Ad revenue for the five major Australian capital city markets totalled $48.571 million in July compared to $40.724 million a year ago.
The figures include agency and direct ad revenue and were compiled by media data analytics company Milton Data, which took over responsibility for industry revenue reporting from Deloitte from 1 July 2021.
Melbourne stations reported a 30 per cent year on year increase in ad revenue to $16.408 million in the month of July, while Sydney was 11.3 per cent higher at $13.874 million.
Brisbane was up 21.6 per cent to $7.654 million, Perth rose 18.4 per cent to $6.296 million and Adelaide increased 8.2 per cent to $4.339 million.
Metropolitan radio ad revenue had rebounded by 72.6 per cent year on year in the month of May and by 40.9 per cent in June prior to the most recent COVID outbreaks.
CRA chief executive officer, Joan Warner, said: “The extension of lockdowns has taken some momentum out of the recovery but it’s encouraging to see growth for radio being sustained at a double-digit level.”
The industry launched the “We’re All Ears” marketing campaign on July 9 aimed at driving growth in the SME market.