The Australian Radio Network’s (ARN) Chief Audience and Content Officer Lauren Joyce says Kyle and Jackie O’s show won’t go national until the pair prove themselves in Melbourne.
She has also moved to play down speculation that AI voices could replace on-air talent.
“I’ve said before, until we can prove their success in Melbourne, we won’t be taking them into Brisbane. That sentiment continues,” Joyce told Mediaweek.
Joyce’s reply muddied the waters, slightly, when it comes to theorising what ARN is planning to announce at its upcoming upfront presentation, which they’ve reportedly spent a cool $1.5 million on. For what could be bigger than bonafide K&J expansion? Time will tell.
Meanwhile, on a recent story from The Australian which claimed the company was asking listeners if they would “miss” real presenters if they were replaced by AI, Joyce laughed.
“I think that story earlier in the week was all a bit of bluster, to be honest. It was part of our weekly audience research – just one question among many.
“There was no intent behind it other than understanding how audiences feel about AI voices. Beyond understanding our audiences better, there’s no secret strategy behind it as the headline implied,” she said.
Lauren Joyce
Kyle and Jackie O’s ‘universal appeal’
In Sydney, Kyle Sandilands and Jackie ‘O’ Henderson grew their KIIS 1065 breakfast share to 14.8% in Survey 5, up from 14.3%, consolidating their long-running dominance.
Smooth FM retained the overall Sydney station crown, but KIIS breakfast remains the strongest show in the market.
Despite ruling out further expansion for now, Joyce praised the KIIS breakfast duo’s ongoing strength in Sydney. “We’ve always maintained that Kyle and Jackie O’s content is universally entertaining, and that the location they’re broadcasting from matters less than it would for another show that is highly local,” she said.
Caring for their audience
Joyce said the pair’s success is underpinned by their relationship with listeners, quashing claims Sandilands was running the show off the rails by not winding back smutty content.
“Of course they care. They wouldn’t show up every day and engage with the listeners the way they do if they didn’t. You can hear it in the way they interact with callers and their fans. They really do care about them,” she said.
Building on Melbourne
In Melbourne, KIIS 101.1’s overall share landed at 6.1% in Survey 5, a figure Joyce described as steady but with room to grow.
“6.1 is good but I hope we can move up. I certainly have faith in them as broadcasters. If you look historically at KIIS overall, we’re still sitting within the range we’ve been at,” she said.
“Kyle and Jackie will stay on strategy. We’ll continue to aim to convert the cume we’ve picked up – an additional 21,000 in this book – into P1 listeners. It’s about continuing to drive more cume into the station and rinse and repeat that conversion. Our ambitions are greater than a 6.1, but it’s going to be a long journey to get the increases we’re looking for.”
That result continues a slide from Survey 2, 2024 – the last survey before Kyle and Jackie O debuted in Melbourne – when KIIS 101.1 held a 6.4% share.