Down to 1% share: How can radio stay relevant in a digital-first ad market?

Radio is losing ground in India’s advertising market even as overall AdEx expands, signalling a deeper challenge for the medium in 2026: how does the category defend its commercial relevance when advertisers are chasing digital-first measurement, on-demand consumption and sharper targeting. 

The latest dentsu-e4m Advertising Report 2026 captures the slide clearly. Radio AdEx is pegged at Rs 1,501 crore in 2025, translating to just 1% of the total advertising pie. In 2024, radio was estimated at Rs 1,679 crore and held a 2% share. The decline is not only about a dip in spends, but also about share erosion at a time when the broader advertising market is growing.

Yet, the story is not simply one of decline. Radio continues to hold a unique position in India’s media mix: it is trusted, high-reach, locally rooted and habit-driven. The challenge is that the medium is now competing in a market that increasingly rewards measurable outcomes and multi-format ecosystems. 

In a world where advertisers want dashboards and direct attribution, radio’s traditional strengths of reach and recall are no longer enough on their own. The task for 2026 is to translate those strengths into solutions that fit modern buying behaviour.

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Industry leaders say the response lies in reframing what radio is. Ashit Kukian, CEO of BIG FM, says the radio industry is actively expanding its AdEx potential by evolving beyond traditional airtime into a multi-platform ecosystem.

According to Kukian, this ecosystem integrates digital audio, podcasts, social media, influencer-led content and on-ground experiences. He adds that this strategic shift is enabling radio to unlock new advertiser segments, including digital-first and hyperlocal brands, while offering deeper audience engagement and measurable impact. Kukian positions radio as a trusted, high-reach medium that continues to innovate and adapt, and says he is confident integrated solutions will drive sustained growth in radio AdEx and strengthen the industry’s role in the evolving media landscape.

The shift is visible across networks that are increasingly pushing branded properties, community-led formats and platform partnerships. Rather than being treated as a spot inventory platform, radio is attempting to be sold as a solutions medium, where the value comes from integrated engagement across on-air, on-ground and digital extensions.

The real tune is playing in Tier-2

Radio’s resilience is also being linked to markets beyond the metros. While large cities remain important, growth is increasingly coming from Tier-2 India, where radio’s cultural footprint remains stronger and local trust still translates into habitual listening. 

Abe Thomas, CEO of Radio City, says trends emerging from Radio AdEx show that core categories such as auto, pharma and healthcare, jewellery, food and education continue to spend, reinforcing radio’s position as an always-on medium rather than a tactical burst buy. Thomas also points to the fact that growth is regional, with markets such as Jaipur, Surat, Baroda and Nagpur demonstrating that expansion is now being driven outside metros.

Thomas says radio is also seeing a shift from spots to solutions, with branded properties and integrations repositioning the medium from an inventory business to an engagement platform. 

He adds that the top 10 advertisers’ share is rising, and larger brands scaling spends suggests repeat reliance rather than experimentation. In his view, the outlook is positive but disciplined, and future upside will come from higher yields through content integrations and measurable outcomes rather than pure volume-led growth.

Rate of decline: When pricing becomes the problem

Even as radio looks for new revenue streams, one of its biggest headwinds remains yield compression. Nisha Narayanan, Director and COO, Red FM, says radio AdEx has been under pressure and the market has tightened, but Red FM has grown 4 to 5% ahead of the industry. She says category momentum has been visible in real estate, auto, retail, BFSI and health services, while broader participation from education, government and FMCG would have strengthened overall industry performance further.

Narayanan also underlines that high-consumption periods continue to demonstrate radio’s strength. She points to the 2025 festive season, which she says saw a 12 to 15% YoY uptick and contributed nearly 20 to 25% of annual revenues. 

However, she flags that revenue pressure is also coming from yield compression, with aggressive pricing in pockets of the market creating confusion around rate benchmarks. 

According to Narayanan, this has prompted some advertisers to divert spends to adjacent formats such as audio OTT. She adds that while non-metro, medium and small markets have delivered healthy volumes, lower ad rates have kept overall revenue growth moderate.

The underlying tension for 2026 is that radio is not necessarily short of demand, but it is facing a tougher pricing environment. As competition in audio increases and advertisers become more cost-sensitive, radio networks are being forced to defend rate benchmarks while also proving incremental value beyond airtime.

Beyond the dial: where 2026 growth could come from

The industry’s answer, executives suggest, lies in making integrated offerings the default rather than the add-on. This includes scalable IPs, on-ground events and activations, and digital extensions through social and influencer-led content. These are not being positioned as vanity initiatives but as revenue multipliers that can widen the advertiser base. 

Integrated offerings are also seen as more attractive to digital-first brands, D2C players and hyperlocal businesses that may not see value in pure airtime but are open to high-impact local engagement.

The opportunity is particularly significant because radio still carries strengths that many newer formats struggle to replicate at scale: local credibility, community connect and consistent reach. If radio can combine those strengths with modern packaging, sharper measurement and a stronger solutions layer, it can improve yields even if the market remains price-sensitive.

Policy and platform: the growth challenge is also structural

Accelerating growth, however, is not entirely in radio’s control. Narayanan says the past year was challenging for the industry due to monetisation pressures, shifting media consumption habits, infrastructure constraints and regulatory barriers. She argues that growth will depend significantly on the pace and clarity of reforms, particularly around FM policy.

Narayanan says she welcomes the intent to strengthen the broadcasting and audio ecosystem through balanced regulation and innovation, but adds that this is also the moment to re-examine key policy levers. She points to implementing TRAI’s recommendations, permitting news and current affairs on private FM, and enabling radio access on mobile devices. 

She also stresses that a phased and sustainable roadmap for digital radio implementation is essential, along with migration reforms that provide stability and long-term visibility for broadcasters. 

Ultimately, she says collaboration between broadcasters, policymakers and technology partners will be critical in shaping the next phase of the industry’s expansion.

Pressure points: the numbers behind the strain

The pressure is also visible in quarterly financials, with most listed radio businesses reporting sharp year-on-year declines in Q3FY26. HT Media’s radio business (Fever FM) reported revenue of Rs 34 crore in Q3FY26, down from Rs 51.1 crore in Q3FY25, a decline of roughly 33.5%. Radio City reported revenue from operations of Rs 46.47 crore in Q3FY26 compared to Rs 65.38 crore in Q3FY25, a year-on-year decline of around 28.9%. DB Corp’s My FM reported advertising revenues of Rs 41 crore in Q3FY26, down from Rs 48.6 crore in Q3FY25, marking a decline of around 15.6%.

ENIL, however, stood out as one of the few exceptions. The company reported a 3.8% year-on-year rise in revenue to Rs 164.94 crore in Q3FY26 from Rs 158.90 crore in Q3FY25, even as the broader sector remained under strain. The divergence underlines the uneven nature of the radio slowdown, where scale, diversification and stronger non-spot revenue streams appear to be emerging as key differentiators.

The financial stress has also spilled into workforce decisions. In September 2025, the Indian radio industry saw one of its biggest rounds of retrenchments, with insiders estimating that as many as 300 employees were laid off across networks. 

Sources indicated Radio City alone let go of 100 to 150 staffers, with employees across non-core functions asked to leave, highlighting how cost-cutting is spreading across the sector as companies grapple with mounting financial strain. BIG FM, too, is believed to have let go of nearly 50 to 70 employees across verticals, as per sources.

Read: Indian FM Radio faces major job cuts: Big FM, Radio City lead layoff wave

Still, the layoffs and revenue declines are also being read as part of a larger reset rather than a collapse. Across networks, the push towards integrated IPs, on-ground experiences and digital extensions is not only about chasing new revenue streams, but also about building a more resilient model that is less dependent on spot inventory and cyclical ad demand. In that sense, 2026 could become a transition year where radio begins to reclaim pricing confidence, deepen its Tier-2 advantage and position itself not as a legacy medium, but as a full-spectrum audio and community platform.