Newstalk ZB and Mike Hosking claim Auckland radio crown

Mike Hosking has once again topped the charts in the latest radio survey. Photo / Michael Craig.

Newstalk ZB and breakfast host Mike Hosking have once again claimed the crown in the fierce fight for listeners on Auckland's airwaves.

Newstalk ZB, owned by NZME, also retained its dominance as the number one station across New Zealand, according to the latest GfK independent commercial radio survey.

"These results reflect a huge six months for Newstalk ZB, with the launch of new shows and a dedicated, relentless focus on covering the big issues and setting the news agenda," says Shayne Currie, NZME's managing editor.

"Whether it's high-quality news coverage, informative commentary and analysis, or being on hand at major events like the Royal Wedding, our listeners have come to expect a first-class radio experience.

"The dominance of the station and Mike Hosking at Breakfast is outstanding. For Mike to be in his 10th year as number one, is world-class," Currie said.

NZME - which also owns stations such as ZM, The Hits and Radio Sport - and its radio partners have over 2 million listeners.

Adding that to the substantial audience of websites like nzherald.co.nz, the New Zealand Herald newspaper and other titles such as Hawke's Bay Today and NZME reaches 3.3m Kiwis.

The Royal Wedding was a big news event for NewstalkZB in the latest survey period. Photo / Ben Stansall.

The survey results were also a win for the overall New Zealand radio market, which snared 3.4m listeners.

"The last commercial radio survey was strong but reaching over 3.4 million listeners via radio is just remarkable," said NZME's chief commercial officer Matt Headland.

"We're up across the majority of our key markets with growth in all demographic groups 18 years and older," he said.

"Obviously winning Auckland rates highly but combined with NZME's results in Wellington, Christchurch, Tauranga and Dunedin it's a great day – NZME's upward momentum continues.

"iHeartRadio continues its consistent growth with digital radio listening now part of our everyday life. With NZME's strength across traditional radio and audiences listening digitally, advertisers need to put their dollars where they are most effective."

NZME streaming radio partner iHeartRadio delivered 23 per cent growth year-on-year with over 776,000 registered users.

NZME's group director entertainment, Dean Buchanan, says that of NZME's music brands Mix deserves a special mention.

"Mix is our newest station making this survey result even more impressive. Mix continues to grow its audience and for the first time rates higher than The Rock, George FM, Magic and Radio Live in Auckland," he said.