Radio in New Zealand
The Government has dominated broadcasting since 1925, but through privatisation and deregulation (in 1989) has allowed commercial talk and music stations to reach large audiences.
New Zealand also has several radio stations serving Māori tribes, Pasifika communities, ethnic minorities, evangelical Christians and special interests.
Ten radio networks are operated by MediaWorks New Zealand, including top-rating music stations The Edge and The Rock.
Te Māngai Pāho funds Māori iwi radio stations, and the Pacific Media Network continues to receive Government support.
Spackman), 1AH (Hartle & Gray), 1AM (Hamilton Amateur Radio Club), 2YA (then owned by Wilkins & Field, Nelson), 2AB (D. Wilkinson, Motueka), Gisborne had 2AD (P.R.
In 1962, this gave way to the New Zealand Broadcasting Corporation (NZBC),[19] an independent public body modelled on the BBC in the UK.
New Zealand's FM frequency allocation issue was not fixed until the late 1990s, after those users had been progressively reassigned channels elsewhere, when the band was expanded to the full 20 MHz.
This was the only ship-based pirate station to ever broadcast in the Southern Hemisphere which it did for 1,111 days, although it was subsequently discovered that the ship had always been moored in the New Zealand territorial waters off the Hauraki Gulf.
In 1972, Radio Bosom broadcast briefly until Post Office inspectors found and seized the transmitter which was concealed in a maintenance tunnel under a University of Auckland building.
The broadcaster is bound by the Charter and Operating Principles included in the Act, which is reviewed by the New Zealand Parliament every five years and was last amended in 2004.
The broadcaster is required to provoke debate and critical thought, reflect New Zealand and Māori cultural diversity, cater for varied ages and interests, promote music and drama and create a sense of national identity.
[36][37] There are currently local access stations in Auckland, Waikato, Taranaki, Hawke's Bay, Manawatu, Wairarapa, Kapiti, Wellington, Nelson, Canterbury, Otago and Southland.
[40] The stations continue to provide a spotlight for local bands, having previously helped promote Fat Freddys Drop, Kora, Jordan Reyne, Dimmer, Jet Jaguar, Shocking Pinks, The Enright House and some underground and electronica acts.
Iain Stables (ex ZM/Edge) and Danielle Jones(ex Beach FM and MWorks/MoreFm) own the majority of this company and have some media holdings too in Western Australia.
Currently, with no need for individual breakouts agencies/ advertisers find the return on investment for full network placement works exceptionally well and great value for campaign spend due to Ski's reach.
[45] MediaWorks has continued to face ongoing financial difficulties, requiring a $43 million loan from the Government in 2011 before briefly going into receivership in 2013.
[46][47] Since Mark Weldon took charge of the company in August 2014, it has outlined plans for greater integration between radio and television.
The organisation is predominantly funded by donations, and operates young-oriented Life FM, family-oriented Rhema and Star for older listeners.
The future of some of its networks was brought into question in 2010, when the Government required Rhema Media to raise 6.4 million dollars to renew its commercial radio frequencies for the following two decades.
The network broadcasts on 100.6 FM in several centres, including Temuka, Blenheim, Kaikōura, Methven, Waimate, Oamaru, Alexandra, Gore, Mount Cook Village, Reefton, Geraldine, Twizel, Fairlie, Murchison, Timaru, Westport, Hanmer Springs and Karamea.
[53] Radio Inspectors regularly monitor and make random unannounced visits to broadcasters, and will impose fines for violations of the regulations.
The high cost of frequencies in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch makes low-power broadcasting particularly popular in these markets.
Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch are the largest commercial radio markets, surveyed four times a year by GfK New Zealand.
However, a Nielsen Media Research survey commissioned by Radio New Zealand suggests its National and Concert stations reach a combined audience of 563,000 unique listeners.
Surveys are conducted four times a year to garner the listener habits of more than 1.2 million people who live in Auckland's urban centres.
Due in part to high levels of peak hour commuter traffic congestion, 74.6 percent listen to the radio on a weekly basis.
Newstalk ZB has maintained a long-running first place in the ratings under successive breakfast hosts Paul Holmes and Mike Hosking, with a 13.4 percent station share and a weekly cumulative audience of 178,000 listeners in the latest Q2-14 survey for August to September 2014.
Despite the absence of former local breakfast duo Polly and Grant, ZM continues to lead the ratings with around 42,000 listeners each week and 6.7 percent market share.
[69][70] In the central North Island, Taranaki includes a population of 84,000 people, with The Edge attracting 21,000 listeners and The Hits securing 13.8 percent market share.
Others include Blenheim in Marlborough, Greymouth on the West Coast, Ashburton and Timaru in Canterbury, and Oamaru, Alexandra, and Queenstown in Otago.
