Radio revenues declined 5% in 2009

Radio revenues declined 5% in 2009 Image

For the first time since 1993, operating revenues at private Canadian radio stations declined in 2009, to $1.5 billion.

The figure was a five per cent decline from 2008's level, Statistics Canada said Tuesday. the industry derives 97.5 per cent of its revenues from advertising, so overall revenues were dragged down by a drop in ad sales last year.

Regionally, revenues increased 6.7 per cent in Saskatchewan and 1.1 per cent in Quebec while declining in all other parts of Canada.

As a whole, private radio broadcasters earned 17.9 cents worth of profit before interest and taxes per dollar of revenue. it was the worst performance since 2002, and the results are in stark contrast with the industry's steady increase in profitability over the previous 10 years.

Ontario led the country in profitability, with Ontario radio stations earning an average of 21.7 cent of profit in 2009. Alberta radio broadcasters, who had posted the best profitability in recent years, registered the worst result for that province since 1998, with profits before interest and taxes of 19.5 cents per dollar of revenue.

Francophone radio stations fared better than their anglophone and ethnic language counterparts. the former saw revenues increase by 1.7 per cent while the latter two saw declines of 6.6 and 1.1 per cent, respectively.

This was a reversal from the three previous years, when anglophone stations posted strong annual growth in operating revenues.