No stopping the MIX 106.3 juggernaut as ABC's Ross Solly faces ratings dip

MIX 106.3 has again dominated the radio ratings in Canberra, while ABC Radio Canberra's Ross Solly has seen a dip in listeners tuning into him on his Drive program.

The third and final ratings survey for the year also saw MIX 106.3's Nigel Johnson and Kristen Davidson continue to rule the crucial breakfast radio airwaves, increasing their audience share by 4.3 percentage points to 21.1 per cent, way ahead of their nearest morning rivals, on sister station HIT 104.7 (14.5 per cent) and ABC Radio Canberra (14.4 per cent).

After a decade's absence, Ross Solly returned to the ABC Radio Canberra airwaves in late 2023, taking over the Drive program in November.

The latest ratings may reflect listeners settling back in to Solly's program.

MIX 106.3's Nigel Johnson and Kristen Davidson remain the king and queen of breakfast radio in Canberra. Picture supplied

The first survey this year saw him boost ratings by 2.2 percentage points.

The most recent results have seen his audience share fall by almost the same margin, 2.3 percentage points.

ABC Radio Canberra had a 9.3 per cent share of the Drive audience, from 4pm to 7pm.

The MIX 106.3 program CBR Wrapped featuring Rod Cuddihy and Gabi Elgood dominated the drive-time ratings, with a 23 per cent audience share.

The overall results saw MIX 106.3 the winning station with a 22.9 per cent audience share.

The FM station attracted a big swag of younger listeners this survey, despite targeting an older demographic.

Despite his up and down ratings, Ross Solly has been welcomed back to the airwaves by many Canberrans. Picture by Keegan Carroll

It had a 15.5 percentage point jump in listeners aged 10 to 17, sitting at 35.6 per cent of that audience.

Similarly, MIX 106.3 also saw an increase in its listeners aged 18 to 24, with an almost 10 percentage point jump to 21.4 per cent.

And it made inroads into the afternoon timeslot, increasing its audience share by 6.8 percentage points, to 27.3 per cent.

MIX 106.3 was followed by sister station HIT 104.7 (13.9 per cent), ABC Radio Canberra (11.4 per cent), Triple J (8.9 per cent), ABC Radio Classic (8.6 per cent), 2CA (6.4 per cent), 2CC (5.4 per cent), ABC Radio National (4.9 per cent) and ABC News Radio (4.4 per cent).

Craig Wagstaff, general manager of amplifyCBR, the owner of MIX 106.3 and HIT 104.7, said he was grateful for and humbled by the ratings results.