Challenging year for the Canadian private radio broadcasting industry

"Don't turn that dial" is an old catchphrase that encouraged radio listeners to stay tuned for the latest music, promotion or breaking news. Stay tuned for a brief overview of the $1.1 billion private radio broadcasting industry in 2023…coming right up.

Private FM radio broadcasting revenue relatively stable year over year, but profits turn to losses

Private FM radio is by far the largest subsector of the Canadian radio industry, reporting $927 million in operating revenue in 2023, nearly unchanged from a year earlier.

Nevertheless, private FM radio stations lost money for the second time in three years in 2023, reporting a net loss after income taxes of $45.6 million, following a net profit of $41.5 million a year earlier. Combined, private FM radio stations have lost approximately $90 million since 2020. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2019, private FM radio stations reported net profits after taxes of $177.5 million.

The number of private FM radio stations declined by 2 from a year earlier to 628 stations in 2023, while the average number of weekly employees fell by 212 to 5,264, the 10th consecutive annual decline.

AM radio in the red for the fourth straight year

While some AM stations broadcasting in Canada do play music, others are dedicated to talk, with the topics ranging from news, to call-in shows, sports talk or religious programming.

Total operating revenue for private AM radio broadcasters fell 4.3% year over year to $184.5 million in 2023, the second lowest level on record. Compared with the year 2000, operating revenue for private AM radio broadcasters has fallen by 41.4%.

Private AM radio stations lost money for the fourth consecutive year in 2023, reporting a net loss after income taxes of $27 million. Combined, private AM radio stations have lost over $150 million since 2020.

The number of private AM radio stations declined by 2 from a year earlier to 119 stations in 2023, while the average number of weekly employees fell by 39 to 1,517.

Radio Ga Ga

Another way to view the private radio landscape is through the lens of language.

Private radio stations broadcasting in English accounted for the largest share of operating revenue (-0.2% to $857 million), average number of weekly employees (-260 to 4,802) and number of radio stations (-3 to 608) in 2023, while posting a net loss after income taxes of $20.2 million.

There was one more private radio station broadcasting in French in 2023 compared with a year earlier, bringing the total number of stations up to 106, the most on record. Nevertheless, operating revenue was down 2.7% to $205.5 million, while average weekly employment fell by 3 to 1,203. Collectively, private French radio broadcasters reported a net loss after income taxes of $52.8 million.

In 2021, more than 8.3 million people, or almost one-quarter (23.0%) of the population, were, or had ever been, a landed immigrant or permanent resident in Canada. In 2023, there were 33 private other language radio broadcasters serving Canada’s diverse immigrant communities, two fewer than a year earlier.

Operating revenue for those broadcasters was down 1.5% to $49.1 million in 2023, while the average number of weekly employees increased by 12 to 776.

Private other language radio broadcasters were the lone subsector within the industry to post a net profit after income taxes in 2023 ($390,000), albeit down from a $1.4 million profit a year earlier.