courtesy of
June the 3rd, 2014
The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission today released statistical and financial information on the 685 commercial radio stations operating in Canada for the broadcast year that ended on August 31, 2013.
Revenues remained relatively stable from the previous year despite competition from satellite, online and mobile services. Total revenues for AM and FM stations increased by 0.26%, from $1.618 billion in 2012 to $1.623 billion in 2013. These revenues enable commercial radio stations to provide a variety of programming to Canadians, support established and emerging Canadian talent, and offer employment opportunities to over 10,200 people.
Over the past year, stations cut their expenses by $2 million, for a total of $1.252 billion. As a result, profits before interest and taxes (PBIT) improved slightly from $321 to $328 million, increasing the PBIT margin from 19.8% to 20.2%.
Each year, the CRTC compiles financial data on the Canadian broadcasting and telecommunications industries to produce a series of reports. This year’s report on the radio sector provides data on a national basis and by individual markets, as well as on the 81 radio stations operated by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.
Quick facts
FM radio
•Canada’s FM radio stations continued to generate the majority of total revenues. The addition of 13 new FM stations in 2013 brought the number operating in Canada to 556.
•In 2013, these stations earned $1.33 billion, slightly up from $1.31 billion the previous year.
•Revenues for English-language FM stations increased by 1.31%, from $1.04 billion to $1.05 billion.
•Revenues for French-language FM stations increased by 0.5%, from $251.9 million to $253.2 million.
•Ethnic FM stations saw their revenues increase by 4.3%, to reach a total of $21.1 million.
AM radio
•The number of AM stations in Canada remained at 129. However, their total revenues decreased by 3.8%, from $306.2 million in 2012 to $294.6 million in 2013
